Punakha city sits in one of the most beautiful natural valleys of Bhutan. Indeed Punakha was the capital of Bhutan until the 1950s. The drive was amazing and as we drove we learned more about this country. In addition to having happiness as its Gross National Product this country is carbon neutral and plans to be completely organic within 5 years. One of the weird facts about Bhutan is that there are only about 8 names in the country. When you are born your parents take you to the temple and they draw a name out of a hat and it is yours! This consists of a first and second name but no family names. No one has one here! Also, because we are all older than our guide Karma he calls us only Madame because you never address anyone older than you with a name. It was great to learns all this information as the drive today was long and incredibly mountainous to cross Dochula Pass (3150 mt.). By crossing the Pass we had a chance to view the Bhutanese Himalayan Mountains. Take a look at the road and the mountains. 
We hiked to Chimi Lhakhang which is the fertility temple in Bhutan. This temple was built in 1499 by Saint Drukpa Kunley (Divine madman) who legend reports subdued the demoness of the Dochu La with his magic thunderbolt of wisdom. Representations of this thunderbolt are seen everywhere in the local village and the temple.
I will add a picture and you can decide if it is truly a magic thunderbolt.
To the side is an illustration of some of the beauty that you see. It is a gold prayer wheel being spun by one of many who come to worship here.
We hiked to Chimi Lhakhang which is the fertility temple in Bhutan. This temple was built in 1499 by Saint Drukpa Kunley (Divine madman) who legend reports subdued the demoness of the Dochu La with his magic thunderbolt of wisdom. Representations of this thunderbolt are seen everywhere in the local village and the temple.
I will add a picture and you can decide if it is truly a magic thunderbolt.
We also visited the Punakha Dzong built by Shadrung in 1637. This is the most beautiful and important Dzong as it is where the king is crowned and where his marriage takes place. Every inch of wall and ceiling space is covered with intricate designs.
We got to see a magic hat dance which is one of the most colorful dances with twirling fabric of many designs. This dance is only performed on very special occasions and we happen to be here for the Lunar New Year. This year it is the year of the snake. Since the dance happened in the temple of the monks we were allowed to watch but not take pictures. You need to come to Bhutan to see it as well!
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