Showing posts with label Cross Country Ride. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Cross Country Ride. Show all posts

Thursday, February 11, 2016

Bhutan Entry Procedure For Travelers


The Highway connecting Bhutan with India is scintillating, making it one of the best memorable rides that we have had in the entire trip. Our eyes never got tired of seeing lush green tea estates for miles and miles.

We entered Bhutan via Jaigaon/Phuentsholing. The mere thought of riding your own bike in another country was thrilling and a country as beautiful as Bhutan was the icing on the cake. Indians do not need a visa to travel to Bhutan. In fact one can cross over to Pheuntsholing shop around from 9 am-10 pm and get back to Jaigaon by 10 pm. However, if you plan to extend your trip beyond Pheuntsholing, you would require a travel permit and a vehicle permit if you plan to use your own vehicle.

TRAVEL PERMIT

The Entry Procedure is pretty straightforward and simple. One has to go to the Immigration office at the border, the first building on your right and fill out the entry permit form. All you need is your passport and a couple of passport size photos. After taking pictures of you on their webcam, the Immigration office at the Pheuntsholing issues entry permit. The permit is issued for a maximum of 7 days and entry is restricted to Paro, Thimpu and Pheuntsholing. To visit any other destination within the Kingdom and extend visit beyond 7 days you have to extend your travel permit at Thimphu.

VEHICLE PERMIT

Getting a permit for your vehicle is again a simple procedure. Vehicle permits are issued by the "Roads And Safety Authority Of Bhutan." This office is barely a kilometer away from the Immigration office at the border. You have to provide a copy of RC book, Insurance, Driving License along with a copy of Entry Permit. You are required to write a letter seeking permit for your vehicle from the Road and Safety Authority. Bikes are charged Rupee 10 per day. Vehicle permits are issued with the same conditions as entry permit.

Any extension requests should be done at "Roads And Safety Authority" office at Thimphu. If you wish to enter the Kingdom on a Sunday, keep in mind that the Road and Safety Authority office functions only from 11 am to 1 pm. Once you have all the permits, keep the permit papers handy and safe as you are required to show these documents at various check posts en-route. From Pheuntsholing to Thimphu, there are two Immigration check-posts and it is mandatory to get your travel permits stamped here during entry and exit.

FOREIGN NATIONALS

For Foreign Nationals planning to visit Bhutan, it is mandatory to book their trip through a Bhutanese tour operator. The tour operator will take care of their visa, stay, tours and the likes.

STAY

We would recommend staying over at Pheuentsholing instead of Jaigaon as it is more organized, calm and peaceful. Pheuntsholing is a brilliant place to break your journey as it offers wonderful hotels and restaurants catering to all budgets.nd also has a bustling and busy market making it the perfect place to pick up goodies for friends and family.

Petrol pumps are fewer in Bhutan. Leaving the pumps at the border town there are only two more fuel pumps en-route. One at Geddu and the other at Tsimasham. It would be wise to tank up before entering Bhutan.

Monday, June 1, 2015

Riding Into The Happiest Kingdom Bhutan


One thing that stands out about Bhutan is its pristine beauty. The mist, the forest around, traditional wooden homes with colorful carvings or paintings, monasteries, scintillating landscapes beautifully painted by colorful trees makes you feel like you have entered a fantasy World. The Land of the Thunder Dragon as it is popularly known, is truly a biking country. Riding our bike on these wide roads with greenery all around, the clouds blessing us with little raindrops and the river stream swaying through made us hope that this road would never end.


Our Bhutan ride was simply the best and most enjoyed stretch in our whole ride across Nepal, Sikkim & Bhutan. The BRO have done a fabulous job in maintaining the roads to compliment the beauty of Nature that Bhutan has to offer. It really is a 'Paradise on earth.' The sun constantly plays hide and seek with you and the clouds join in. They make you doubt your own watch as 1:30 in the afternoon may seem like 6 in the evening. On the way, 'Dantak Canteen' 75 km from Phuentsholing (the entry point) is a perfect place to stop for lunch. It serves hot and spicy food and Indian food seems to be their specialty. Their special tea easily replaces one peg of whiskey in the cold weather.


Riding on Bhutan roads leaves you amazed by their traffic sense, their patience, and their respect for pedestrians. With so many junctions on a single lane you may expect traffic jams and grid locks but forget traffic jams this country does not need red, yellow or green lights to keep them in check. Yes, they do not have traffic signals yet they believe in following traffic rules and need not be manned by cops all the time. They follow the law whether someone is looking or not and this is what speaks volumes about their culture, values and the kind of people they are.

Our interaction with locals here confirmed the fact that Bhutan truly is a happy country. People here are content with their lives, give importance to cleanliness, they know that money can fetch you materialistic things but they do know that money cannot truly buy you happiness, which is a choice and they choose to be happy. Everyone you meet has a smile and they are very grounded and welcome you to their homes with open arms. They can be seen flaunting around their traditional attire, gho and kira, being at ease wearing them on a daily basis and do not feel the need to imitate other countries as they are very proud of  their deep rooted traditional and cultural values and why not- the basic act of being kind and respectful to another human being reflects among each one of them.

Thimphu, the capital, is a wonderful place to begin your travel for the first time in a Kingdom. It is the lifeline of Bhutan with a lot of activities around. Apart from being tourist friendly with abundant hotels and restaurants, there are a lot of  exhibitions organised to promote handicrafts from different parts of Bhutan. The weekend markets are definitely worth a visit and if you are a sports enthusiast, you might want to give a shot at Archery in Thimphu. They are also huge fans of Football and while we there, there was a Football Championship going on and the crowd was going berserk.

A 20 minute ride from Thimphu on a road between huge pine trees, strewn with the brown needle drops and of course the cold wind running the chills across your face lingering with the fragrance of Earth leads you to a brick establishment on a rock, sheltered by massive trees with the blue sky and white clouds in the background glorifying the monastery even more making you wonder if this is the the stairway to heaven.


This monastery is the Dechenphu Lhakhang popularly known as 'Denchen Pho' and is of great religious importance to the Bhutanese people. Non Bhutanese visitors are not allowed inside the Dzong but are free to visit the Monastery.

Apart from a handful of locals you will not spot anyone else here making it the ideal place for solitude and to get lost in your thoughts. Just sit on the grass, close your eyes and this place soothes you automatically leaving you in a trance mode.


On the foot hills is the Pangrizampa Lakhang. Today, this temple is used as an Astrologers Center of the state clergy and is home to close to 100 monks studying Astrology.


Tashichhoe Dzong, also called the "Fortress of the Glorious Religion," is the powerhouse and administrative building of Bhutan. It houses the throne room and offices of the king, the cabinet secretariat and the ministries of the home affairs and finance. It is open for public viewing from 4 to 5 pm. However, be there a little early to see the Royal Police Guards unfurl the Bhutan National Flag. While entering the Dzong, we were captivated by the paintings on the wall, each even more  impressive than the other. The Dzong is massive and beautiful and there is a huge monastery within the Dzong.



Bhutan National Library is a treasure trove of Bhutanese and Tibetan literature, be it ancient manuscripts carved on wood or written on handmade paper, they are all preserved at their pristine best. This three storeyed wooden building serves as a home for Monks and scholars. Most of the ancient manuscripts are wrapped in silk cloth. On the ground floor of the library is another great piece of history, the "Largest Published Book" in the World.



Only a few kilometers away from the National library is the Zilukha Nunnery which is the biggest nunnery in Bhutan. The nuns here are actively involved in helping the less privileged and the local communities. The panoramic view of the Tashichhoe Dzong from here is breathtaking.


The entire Kingdom seems to idolize the King and the Queen and is apparent from the Portraits and hearty message from the public to the royal family. Our sincere respect to the country as it values Gross Domestic Happiness over GDP.

We checked into Hotel New Grand, we stayed there for two nights and on the second day we were told fresh towels would not be provided and guest have to reuse the same towel as it's their policy which was not mentioned during check-in. This defied all logic, when the guests are expected to pay for each nights stay such gimmicks should be avoided. Also, their restaurant is very mediocre, majority of items on the menu are not available and their WiFi barely works. Overall, this hotel can be avoided as there are plenty of other options.

The rice bowl restaurant was our favorite for Bhutanese food and just around the corner is the Bhutan Kitchen Restaurant, the perfect place to try authentic Bhutanese food.

Next stop Paro valley.

Monday, December 8, 2014

Himalayan Motorcycle Odyssey!

"It's a part of our life that we spent in the mountains."


Our love for travel, road, mountains and the bike took us to the Himalayas for a road trip that we would cherish and take to our graves. The three of us, Guy, Girl and Motorcycle headed out in search of salvation to Nepal, Bhutan and the hidden treasure, Sikkim.

Our trip started with Nepal, then we rode to Sikkim and from there we headed to Bhutan. During the entire trip of 50 days, we covered 4269 km. We made hotels our homes, fell in love with Momos, Nepali thali, Datshi, Paa, people, culture, roads, landscapes and many more.

Our Route Map
It is very difficult to put in words all the fun and excitement that we had over these two months. However hard we think, we are running short of words to describe how awesome we felt and how lucky we are to do things that our hearts have always craved for. Over the last several days, we spent a part of our lives with the incredible people of North East India, Bhutan and Nepal.


This adventurous road trip on our motorcycle took us to three places that are an extension of the graceful Himalayas, but are unique in their own way and left us enchanted by their magic. Nepal offered us a chance to see some of the most exotic migratory birds in Koshi Tappu, the birth place of Goddess Sita - Janakpur. We rode on an elephant back into the Royal Chitwan national park in search of the imperil one horned Rhino. Katmandu treated us with abundant heritage and history, we had spectacular views of Himalayas from Pokhara and visited the birth place of Buddha - Lumbini.


Our very own Sikkim offered us a change to see one of the highest lakes in the world - Gurudongmar lake, 16th century Rumtek monastery, second capital of Sikkim - Rabdentse Ruins, glimpse of super rare and highly endangered wildlife, rode on the second highest bridge in Asia, saw the gears used by the great Tenzing Norgay.


Bhutan - The awesome Kingdom that puts Happiness ahead of Money. A country that does not believe in traffic lights, yet maintains impeccable driving sense. Home of the breathtaking Tiger nest monastery.


All of this would not have been possible without the help of an integral part of our family - our Royal Enfield motorcycle. He turned out to be the best companion to do this trip with. Throughout the testing climatic conditions and terrible roads, he did run like a champ and never gave us any trouble or threw fits around. True to his tag line -"Made like a gun, goes like a Bullet," this machine is indeed a true legacy. We just fell in love with our bike all over again.

This trip will always stay very close to our hearts.