Our 60-seat plane refuels in Calcutta, India on the way to Paro. Visibility on the the flight is cloudy. We arrive in Paro on October 6 in the late afternoon. We are greeted at the simple Paro airport by our guide Wangdi and driver Pram and because of tight accommodation space, we drive in the dark to Thimphu, where we spend our first night. The 60km drive takes about 90 minutes along mountainous roads. The road is narrow and slower Indian and Bhutanese lorries must pull over to let us pass.
That night we get our first taste of the kind of food we will be eating for the next few weeks: chilies and cheese (ema datse, Bhutan's national dish) and red and white rice, supplemented with occasional mushrooms, potatoes and daal (Indian style lentils). The ubiquitous dogs of Thimphu start their all night cross-town barking and howling.
