To the Land of Happiness (Paris, hotel, comparison, cities)

[Cida]

Has a nice sound, doesn't it?

Into the Land of Happiness
By Jennifer Moses

Squeezed between the northeastern tip of India, where it loops around Bangladesh, and the southernmost curve of Tibet, Nepal has a population that is mostly Hindu. Bhutan, in the same neighborhood, is largely Buddhist. Bhutan is also the last of the Himalayan kingdoms to remain a kingdom, with a hereditary monarchy and a culture largely untouched by the ravages of Hollywood’s fashion and pop dominance on the one hand, and that of environmental degradation on the other. Until 1974, Bhutan didn’t let foreigners in. Since then, it’s been reinventing itself, casting itself as the world’s happiest nation and measuring its overall welfare not in terms of G.N.P. but by “gross national happiness,” as set forth in 2008 in the Constitution of Bhutan.

https://www.nytimes.com/2018/07/25/t...tan-nepal.html

[PBob]

To any who would consider a trip, read the article carefully and do independent research. Distinguish between setting up a measure/goal of happiness and actually achieving it. The tourist/visitor experience is almost completely managed (like North Korea, though I'm not really making a comparison between the countries here). Still the author of the article was aware of filth, poverty and other non-"happiness" conditions. Think of what was shielded from view. Literacy among females is 55% and per-capital GDP ranks 150th in the world (...though, admittedly, money won't buy happiness) it's a strictly patriarchal place, from what I could tell, from the King to citizenship, which can only be acquired through a father. http://www.oocities.org/bhutanwomen/statuswomen.html
Still, Bhutan does have some beautiful scenery, though many waterways have been converted to hydropower production, with all the ill effects that come with that.

[Nn2036]

The country is beautiful and nice but I think it is a little bit too sterile, like Disneyland or Switzerland. No trash or filth I seen during the trip.

You do have to pay $200-250/person per night, but you will get a free private guide, free meal and nice hotel. Very comfortable trip.

Don't go there with a tour group from the your country. Contact a travel agency in Bhutan so you get a private tour by yourself and your family.