After a long winding, stomach churning drive, we stopped at a road side restaurant en-route to Thimpu, for an evening meal. The time was around 6 pm. It had become quite dark by then. Thimpu was still three hours away and we were very hungry!!!
The restaurant was made out of wood and cement and had a small fire-place, made out of iron, in the middle of the room. By this time, it was freezing cold and we were literally shivering. We pulled two chairs and sat beside the wood stove. It gave us instant relief from the freezing cold. My wifey really liked the comfort provided by the stove and spent the whole time near it! She absolutely refused to move away!
The restaurant was a small cozy place and the Bhutanese King’s photos were displayed everywhere. Bhutanese people respect and love their king very much. We later saw the King’s photo exhibited prominently in each and every house, shops and other buildings!!!
We had some piping hot coffee, made out of Yak’s milk and some super tasty Pork momos. Tashi, our driver, was blissfully munching Ema Datchi. This dish comprises of rice and Chicken with red hot red chillies. It is very spicy and tasty too!
Almost all varieties of snacks and beer were available in that restaurant. There were other Bhutanese people in the restaurant. They were guzzling Carlsberg beer and gazing at us with inquisitive eyes! I chatted up with the owner and his kid. Their curiosity vanished, when we spoke to them in Hindi. Lesson learnt -Bhutanese people are fluent in Hindi!
It was our first experience interacting with Bhutanese people and we were really very impressed. They are very gentle and polite people. Everyone was wearing
Gho and posed for photographs. Our driver
Tashi can be seen on photo H. He is sitting on the sofa by the wall, wearing a black leather jacket. The owner and his son can be seen in photo E.
Travelouge will continue.....
More stunning photos coming up...