Losing the yeti in forgotten nation of Bhutan
Tim Sullivan from Associated Press reported on the modernizing kingdom and the mystical creature, the Yeti, in their folklore.
” He remembers the darkness of the pine forest, and the footprints, and his terror when the creature began to howl. He remembers the stories of his childhood, of a beast that stalked the upper reaches of the mountains, and how fear spread through the village every time it was spotted.
In a remote Himalayan kingdom that held out against the modern world for as long as it could, the old man remembers a time when the yeti was a normal part of life.”
“Only after China invaded Tibet in 1959 did the king decree his country would not be fully closed off. At first, change came slowly: there were no paved roads until 1963, no tourists until the 1970s and no international phone service until the 1980s.
In the 1990s, though, things accelerated: Television arrived in 1999, the road network grew, the electricity grid blossomed. While tourism remains highly restricted – visitors must pay $220 per day, in advance, to get a visa – there were still 20,000 tourists last year, nearly ten times as many as in 1991. In a nation where kings held absolute power, March democratic elections brought in a generation of ambitious politicians.”
Bhutan to crown its fifth king in November
Extract from Reuters
“THIMPHU, July 23 (Reuters) – Bhutan will crown its fifth king on Nov. 6, ending a two-year wait for an auspicious date for the 27-year-old Oxford-educated King Jigme Khesar Namgyel Wangchuck to don the Raven Crown.
Jigme Khesar became king late in 2006 after his father abdicated, but astrologers said last year was an inauspicious time for him to be crowned in the reclusive, mainly Buddhist Himalayan nation.
Last week, the king ratified Bhutan’s first constitution, formally ending a century of royal rule and establishing a parliamentary democracy with the monarch as head of state.
It had all been the idea of the country’s fourth king, Jigme Singye Wangchuck, who forced his largely reluctant people to accept democracy.”
Read more here http://in.reuters.com/article/domesticNews/idINDEL27611820080723
Tony Leung marries Carina Lau in Bhutan
Tony Leung marries Carina Lau in Bhutan on the 21st July 2008, and the internet was flooded with news of the union.
Here are some of the newsite carrying the news from AP ad Agency
IHT
China.org.cn
China Daily
Singapore Straits Times
And some pictures released by Jet Tone
Tony Leung and Carina Lau at their wedding ceremony in Bhutan. (Reuters)
Hong Kong actors Tony Leung and Carina Lau pose with young Bhutanese monks during their wedding ceremony in the Kingdom of Bhutan July 21, 2008
Movie stars’ wedding at the Last Shangri-la
HONG KONG – Actors Tony Leung Chiu Wai and Carina Lau have kept the tabloids guessing where and when they will marry: Would it be Hong Kong, Bali or Phuket, this month or in October?Read more
http://www.asiaone.com/print/Just%2BWoman/News/Celebrities/Story/A1Story20080715-76660.html
Now Sing Tao Daily, quoting a ‘reliable source’, reports that the couple will tie the knot in the reclusive Himalayan kingdom of Bhutan next Monday.
They chose Bhutan to keep their big day paparazzi-free, says the report. The kingdom limits tourism and it is not easy to apply for visas.
Business Times Weekend features Bhutan
This weekend, Singapore’s Business Times runs a write up on Bhutan and the spectacular scenery that awaits visitors when they visit this “Tantric Buddhist kingdom of unspoiled natural beauty and fascinating culture wedged in the Himalayas between Tibet and India”.
Extract
“
In an effort to retain its unique cultural identity, the kingdom, with a native population of about 600,000 distributed unevenly over a mountainous area of 47,000 sq km, took a strict isolationist approach to its existence. As recently as 1992, the annual government quota for visitors was just 3,000, although by the end of last year, that figure had swelled to a relatively large 22,000.
In recent years, Bhutan has adopted a (by its standards) radically different route to economic growth, hoping to take a tightly controlled and more gradual path to development. In addition to opening its borders to more visitors – limited to those willing to pay a few hundred dollars a day for the privilege – the country became a constitutional monarchy and held its first elections earlier this year. The much-revered king also abdicated in favour of his Western-educated son, whose coronation will take place this September.
Its many colourful religious festivals and centuries-old temples and monasteries remain the principal draw for visitors, but the great outdoors also beckons in Bhutan. First-time visitors will perhaps head initially for the cultural sights around Paro Valley, where the only airport is located. The number one attraction is the nearby Taksang, or Tiger’s Nest Monastery, impossibly perched on a vertical rock face about 800 metres above the valley floor.
…. “
Read more of the article at the online version,
http://www.businesstimes.com.sg/sub/whatsin/story/0,4574,286555,00.html?
or
http://www.businesstimes.com.sg/sub/storyprintfriendly/0,4582,286555,00.html?
