Kurje Lhakhang: After a breakfast of traditional buckwheat pancakes, Pema took us to several temples, or Lhakhang, where we spun the prayer wheels. The small prayer wheels surround the outer walls of temples and monasteries, while the larger ones are typically located near the entrances, or in a building by themselves outside the temples. The prayer wheels have prayers written inside them that are released by spinning them. The large prayer wheels also have an arm at the top that rings a bell once every revolution.
At the Lhakhang, as with other religious places throughout the country, you will find many small statues made from the cremated remains of the Bhutanese ancestors, known as tsa-tsas. There were also many people walking around the temple while praying, using piles of small stones to help keep count of their laps.
Hiking Bumthang: We spent the rest of the day hiking around the city and getting slightly burnt by the sun, which was able to break through the clouds for the first time on our trip. We walked to the Handicrafts Emporium and bought a few souvenirs. Souvenirs are somewhat expensive in Bhutan due to the low number of tourists that visit each year, and are typical of the items you might find in a standard Bhutanese home. We bought several t-shirts to take home and a wood carving of the royal seal.
We stopped to admire some of the architecture of the city. We were also greeting by some passers-by and asked by some school children to take their picture. Communicating with the locals is quite easy since most of them speak English, being the second official language of the country, and which they all learn in school.
Watching the Sunset: After returning to our hotel, we dropped off our souvenirs, met up with Pema, and we all headed out on an attempt to find a nice overlook to view the sunset. Unfortunately, the dirt road heading up the mountain turned impassable by car, then impassable on foot, so we abandoned the idea and headed back to town. Along the way, we passed several groups of schoolchildren on their way home from school. Some children, particularly those in the more remote areas of the country, can walk up to an hour or two, or even more, to and from school. No school buses here. After returning to town, we were still able to see the sun begin to set before a group of clouds swept in to obscure the view.