[grplr02]

Tushar, great write-up, great pics. Very happy everybody had a great time in Bhutan. Anybody else wants to ride here on your own, give a shout-out, my friends might be able to take care of you.

[slicvic]

Originally Posted by Tushar

The Bhutan riders for one, face the issue of not having any official Harley-Davidson presence in the region. Their motorcycles are imported from the USA, and have to be serviced by non-company technicians. Once the service work was done, we saddled up and were off.

I think they import the bikes from Singapore. Was in Bhutan 2 months back and that's what one of the Bhutan Dragons had told me. He's in your group picture too. Bike from Singapore, Accessories from Bangkok. Had the pleasure of riding his bike for a day too. The Bhutanese tax structure is not as harsh as in India and so the Bike is much cheaper than in India but the shipping costs remain.

Some pictures from my ride, if I may
The Paro - Thimpu road is a dream to ride on. Specially for someone who has lived along the coast and is not used to these mountains


Cloud kissed mountains are endless


As are the many rough patches in areas under widening or repair


This HD breakout was a fresh import at the time of my visit (not yet registered), don't know if it joined the ride

Originally Posted by Tushar

- The Government of Bhutan has pledged to conserve the country's biodiversity and green cover. The establishment aims to maintain 60% of its land for forested areas, and over 50% of that has been allocated to protected sectors such as national parks and nature reserves.

- There isn't a single traffic signal in Bhutan! Police officers directly handle traffic even in places like Thimphu, where the traffic density is relatively higher.

- Education is provided free of cost in Bhutan. Even medical care in Bhutan is provided by the government, without any charge for citizens or even tourists!

Having learnt a little more about our northern neighbor, we called it a day, knowing that a long ride back awaited us the next morning.

The beautiful roads are built by Indians (The DANTAK project is by Indian BRO) Government of India has a lot of strategic interest in Bhutan

All buildings have the traditional architecture as it is compulsory, so are the paintings around the windows as well as the exterior walls.

The Buddha Statue is huge check out the size with a person in front of it

[Sojogator]

Loved every bit of the logs here. Reading the log was an emotional experience for me. The bikes, the photos and the descriptions brought back my childhood memories galore when I lived at Siliguri Always took these places for granted and miss them thoroughly now that I am away from them.

Thanks again !

[Tushar]

Originally Posted by slicvic

I think they import the bikes from Singapore. Was in Bhutan 2 months back and that's what one of the Bhutan Dragons had told me. He's in your group picture too. Bike from Singapore, Accessories from Bangkok. Had the pleasure of riding his bike for a day too. The Bhutanese tax structure is not as harsh as in India and so the Bike is much cheaper than in India but the shipping costs remain.

This HD breakout was a fresh import at the time of my visit (not yet registered), don't know if it joined the ride.

You're right. I believe the bikes are built in the USA and then sourced from Singapore. I'm not sure about the exact tax structure. However, I met some people who said a recent tax revision has made the cars / bikes now face heavy duties like India. ( Link )

We had two Breakouts with us on the ride, pretty sure one of them was the one you checked out.

[S2!!!]

A wonderful write-up. The amount of fun you had is clearly evident in your narration. What more could a biker ask for? Good roads, good bikes and good company of individuals who share the same passion.