Bhutan: cosa fare e vedere

Bhutan lies between India and Tibet, and its valleys step down from high Himalayan ridges to warm southern lowlands. Thimphu, the capital, is a small city centred on the Tashichho Dzong, with a giant gilded Buddha on a hill and a weekend market, and it is known for having no traffic lights. Many people still wear the gho and kira, the national dress.

Paro, in a wide valley with the country's only international airport, has the Rinpung Dzong and the Tiger's Nest, a monastery clinging to a sheer cliff high above the valley. Punakha Dzong stands where two rivers meet, and the Phobjikha valley is where black-necked cranes spend the winter. The Bumthang valleys hold some of the oldest temples in the kingdom.

Ema datshi, a stew of chillies and cheese, is the national dish, eaten with red rice, and butter tea is offered to guests. Archery is the national sport, and tsechu festivals fill temple courtyards with masked dances. March to May, with rhododendrons in bloom, and October to November give the clearest mountain views.