Jakar town in the Bumthang Valley. The 'Fortress of the White Bird' dating from 1549 sits on a small hill overlooking the town. Bumthang is closely associated with Guru Rinpoche and the valley is the spiritual heartland of the country.
Kurjey Lhakhang - a monastery comprising three temples surrounded by a wall of 108 chortens.
The 'second' and 'third' temples at Kurjey Lhakhang. In the center is the 'second' and holiest temple which is built on the site of a meditation cave containing a rock with the imprint of Guru Rinpoche.
On the left is the more recent 'third' temple built by the Queen Mother Ashi Keasng Choden Wangchuk in 1984.
Khina and Ohma - two charming and friendly sisters who looked after us with warmth and kindness at the Hotel River Lodge in Jakar.
Khina was an expert at lighting the wood burning fires in the bedrooms. This was an essential service since it was mighty chilly in Jakar. Ohma was always full of joy and grace.
We wanted to take them home!
The main tower inside the Jakar Dzong.
Classic Bhutanese architecture and design in a small courtyard inside Jakar Dzong. A majority of buildings are not constructed according to a formal plan but simply follow the design in the architect's head.
A door with an oversize door frame!
Kathleen fills the door and provides a good reference scale! 'Duck or grouse' was a common refrain in most historical Bhutanese buildings.
Ironically, my only contact with a low-hanging door frame came in a distinctly less historical building - the washroom at Paro airport. The wood frame to head collision resulted in much cursing, a bloody cut and a throbbing headache for the next hour! Not exactly the way I intended to depart Bhutan.
Springtime! Jakar Dzong.
Mini-chortens filling a sacred cave in the Bumthang valley. Each chorten is placed in the cave to commemorate a deceased family member.
A General Store on 'Main Street' Jakar.
Note the 'stable' style of entrance door with a closed base. The purpose of these split doors remains a mystery since there were no horses in town except for the two and four wheeled varieties.
A prominent sign outside an innocent looking building on Main Street.
The mind boggles at the nature of the dual services provided within - a pint of beer and polish my toe nails please!
Hi David,
I often check my google reader to see if there are any new posts on Asian Images :) Hope you start posting again soon :)
Best regards to you and Kathleen,
Ana
Posted by: ana | 31 August 2009 at 02:11 AM