- Morning Yoga/meditation/breathing practices with Samin

- After breakfast visit the Memorial Chorten (stupa) built by her Royal great grandmother for her son the 3rd king of Bhutan His Majesty Jigme Dorji Wangchuck.

- Drive to Big Buddha – the biggest sitting Buddha statue with panoramic view of Thimphu valley 

- Visit the Royal Textile Museum and brief walk around the craft bazaar 

- Lunch in town

- Visit the traditional paper factory 

- Open time to relax and take a stroll around town  

- Evening Yoga with Samin (gentle flow/traditional Hatha/ Vinyasa yoga)

- Dinner out in town 

- If the weather permits, we will have an outdoor Morning Yoga/meditation/breathing practice with Samin at the Big Buddha.

- After breakfast drive to Dodena for a short day hike with packed lunch to Tango Monastery. Tangu is situated in the northern outskirts of Thimphu. Tango is a premier      Buddhist College as well as retreat center for the monks. Meditate and do some stretching with Samin here.

- If time permits, visit the Chamglimithang ground to catch some locals playing the national sport of archery

- Rest of the afternoon will be open time, explore and walk around Thimphu town

- Evening Yoga with Samin (gentle flow/traditional Hatha/ Vinyasa yoga)

- Dinner at the Hotel 

 Drive to Punakha (85km, 2-3 hours)

- Morning Yoga/meditation/breathing practices with Samin

- After breakfast, leave for Punakha. Punakha is located at a much lower altitude and therefore is warmer and used to be the old capital of Bhutan. Following traditions, the central monastic body shifts from Thimphu to Punakha during winter and back to Thimphu in the spring every year

- On the way you will see Simtokha Dzong, the oldest Dzong in Bhutan

- We continue east over the Dochu La (la means pass). Here in Dochula you will see the 108 chortens or stupas that were built by the Queen Mother for peace and prosperity of Bhutan. From the summit, in good weather 200 miles of snowcapped Himalayan peaks are visible. If the weather permits we will do some breathing practice and meditate in the small caves spread across the hill

- As we descend from the pass you will notice a dramatic change in vegetation. Cactus, banana, poinsettia and other semi-tropical plants dominate the landscape. After a few hours, we reach the green and gold terraced fields of Punakha.

- After lunch, short walk through paddy fields to Chimi Lhakhang, temple dedicated to one of Bhutan’s favorite saints, the “divine mad monk” Drukpa Kinley. Nearly 500 years ago, this region was the stomping ground of this unconventional monk who taught Buddhist dharma by employing a shocking and lascivious sense of humor. The landscape is dotted with evidence of his abiding influence, and legends of his exploits are still told by local villagers. Chimi Lhakhang is also known as the fertility temple. Women who are having trouble conceiving come here to pray and receive the fertility blessings of the resident lama who gently taps them on the head with a wooden phallus.

- Evening Yoga with Samin (gentle flow/traditional Hatha/ Vinyasa yoga)

- Dinner at the hotel 

- Morning Yoga/meditation/breathing practices with Samin

- After breakfast drive further north of the Punakha valley to commence on a short hike to Khamsum Yulay Temple – built by the Queen Mother for the 5th King and overall wellbeing of the country and her people

- Have a picnic lunch along the banks of the Mo Chu (river)

- Visit the magnificent Punakha Dzong. The valley is dominated by the impressive      Punakha Dzong, which sits at the confluence of the Mo (female) and Pho (male) rivers. Built by Shabdrung in 1647, this massive Dzong is one of the holiest in Bhutan. It houses some of the country’s most sacred relics, including Shabdrung’s preserved remains

- After the Dzong visit, we walk to the longest suspension bridge in Bhutan and meet the bus other side of the river

- If time permits on the way to the hotel visit the nunnery at Wolakha

- Evening Yoga with Samin (gentle flow/traditional Hatha/ Vinyasa yoga)

- Dinner at hotel  

- Morning Yoga/meditation/breathing practices with Samin

- Drive to Shalupangkha – a local monastery on a hilltop in Gaselo, Wangdue Phodrang. The monastery houses and educates 20 young monks from the neighboring villages. The group can do a “Tshog Offering” – an offering/ritual well      being prayers by the monks. The group can offer or donate food (should buy fresh fruits and food before going) or money for the monks

- Lunch at the monastery with the monk

- On the way back we visit a village called Changkha. Experience rural Bhutan

- Open/relax time at the hotel

- Evening Yoga with Samin (gentle flow/traditional Hatha/ Vinyasa yoga)

- Dinner at the hotel 

 Drive to Paro (125 km, 3-4 hours)

- Morning Yoga/meditation/breathing practices with Samin

- After breakfast we continue our journey and drive to Paro over the same road road that brought us to Punakha

- At Dochu La, if the group is interested and the weather is good, hike to Lungchutse (4 hours both ways). A temple located above Dochula at 3600 meters. From here, on clear sunny days the Himalayan range of Bhutan is vividly visible.

- Lunch at Dochula (if the hike is undertaken)

- Paro is a fertile valley with paddy fields spread across the valley. It was once the  center of trade for goods coming in from Tibet. Paro town lies along the banks of the Pa Chu and its tiny streets are lined with brightly painted wooden shops and restaurants.  

- Evening Yoga with Samin (gentle flow/traditional Hatha/ Vinyasa yoga)

- Dinner at the hotel  

 Day trip to Haa over Chele La (60 km, 2-3 hours one way)

- Morning Yoga/meditation/breathing practices with Samin

- Drive to Haa.

- The Haa summer festival is a lively and uplifting celebration of traditional living-culture, nomadic lifestyles, unique Bhutanese cuisine, traditional sports and religious performances. It provides unparalleled insight into the lives and traditions of Bhutan’s nomadic herders. It displays a lively traditional living culture, nomadic life styles, demonstration of local cuisines, brewing of local ara, traditional sports, religious performances, dances, songs, artifacts and natural alpine flowers

- Evening Yoga with Samin (gentle flow/traditional Hatha/ Vinyasa yoga)

- Dinner at Hotel 

 3-4 hours hike round trip both ways

- We will skip the yoga session this morning. So we can get a head start on the hike to avoid the crowd up at the temple.

- After an early breakfast hike to one of the most important religious sites in Bhutan,      Taktsang Lhakhang, known as Tiger’s Nest. This magical monastery clings to vertical granite cliff 2000 feet above the valley floor. The legend of Taktsang dates back to 747 AD when Padmasambhava, in the wrathful form of Guru Dorji Droloe, is believed to have flown here on the back of a tiger to subdue the evil spirits of the region. Tantric Buddhist mythology tells that the vanquished spirits were transformed into protectors of the dharma. One of them, Singye Samdrup, is recognized today as the guardian deity of Taktsang. After about an hour of rather steep hiking, you reach a      small teahouse that has a wonderful panoramic view of the temple. If you      are interested, it is possible to get a closer view by hiking another hour (each direction) to reach the temple.

- Evening Yoga with Samin (gentle flow/traditional Hatha/ Vinyasa yoga)

- Farewell dinner and feedback/close circle in town 

Catch your outgoing flight to either BKK/DEL

FLIGHT TIMING

PBH-BKK: Departure: 16:10, Arrival: 21:50

PBH-DEL: Departure: 07:15, Arrival: 09:05