In Bumthang we took in the ubiquitous monasteries and temples, which were actually more sacred in Bumthang than other regions of Bhutan. In the 8th century, an Indian yogi called Padmasambhava brought Buddhism to Tibet and Bhutan, so he is quite the celebrity here. There are countless myths surrounding his exploits and many are focused on the monasteries and areas in Bumthang. We also visited a waterhole to the side of a river, which Padmasambhava was said to bury teachings at the bottom of. These "treasures" were rediscovered later by a yogi who allegedly took a butterlamp to the bottom and when they resurfaced with the treasures, the lamp was still burning, hence the name "burning lake". Nearby the lake is a very narrow cave entrance, which then winds down and exits at the bottom of the hill. It is said that to pass through this entrance, one's "sins" (better translated as previous negative actions/wrongdoings, and therefore not associated with the christian birthright and perpetual guilt trip) are removed or cleansed. Anyway, I managed to squeeze myself through this hole with difficulty, and although my karma may have been clean when I emerged from the otherside, my clothes certainly were not.
On the way home, we got dropped off at a place called Phobjikha, also known as the Valley of the Black-neck Crane. We stayed at a local hotel and got up at 5:30 am to trek into the nearby marshes to catch a glimpse of the rare birds which migrate to this valley from Tibet every winter. We were not given very explicit directions, and as the sun slowly dispersed both darkness and heavy mist from the frosted earth and surrounding dark mountains, we found ourselves stuck up to our knees in icy cold mud in the middle of the marshlands. Lost and yet to get a close look at any cranes, we tried to find a safe way through the trecherous badlands (anyone recalling the scene in The Two Towers where Gollum leads Frodo through the Dead Marshes to the Black Gate will know what I'm talking about :-). We made slow progress by hopping from small shrub to shrub which rose just above the water, trying to avoid sinking into the frigid waters. By crawling along the ground on our bellies, commando stealth style, we managed to get quite close to the cranes and get some spectacular photos of them!
