Bhutan and Kona Bikes

Wednesday, March 4, 2009 I recently returned from my first trip overseas. I always thought my first trip outside of North America would involve backpacking and hostels. Instead this trip involved biking in Bhutan – an experience of a lifetime. I had the privilege of being sent to Bhutan on behalf of KonaWorld Travels along with Maurey “Mo, the magician” Olsten, to teach a mountain bike guiding course to the guides of Uma Paro, and other Bhutan guiding companies. Bhutan is a country... Read more

National Broadband

With Daga and Gasa now on-line, the nation is set to embark on the age of e-governance 12 August: All 20 dzongkhag administrations now have broadband internet access, with leased line connections being established in Dagana and Gasa yesterday. With nationwide administration broadband connectivity achieved, the government has achieved establishing a comprehensive intranet that will enable nationwide e-governance, at least in theory. Dzongkhag administrations can now connect to the Thimphu wide area... Read more

HM confers National Order of Merit to a MBBS student

August 11: His Majesty the King conferred the prestigious National Order of Merit (Class III) to Pem Chuki, a MBBS student who studied at the University of Kelaniya in Sri Lanka. The award was conferred in recognition of her academic achievement at the medical school. Pem Chuki was awarded Gold Medal in Pharmacology in her Bachelor of Medicine (MBBS) programme. A press release from the Royal Office for Media says since 2007, His Majesty the King has been awarding personal hand written certificates... Read more

Bhutan’s rich biodiversity 21 new species

11 August : Adding to an already rich biodiversity are 21 new species of amphibian, insects and an equal mixture of both flowering and non-flowering plants discovered in Bhutan. These have been clubbed in a book, “The Eastern Himalayas: where the world collides,” launched by WWF on August 10. Also included in the discovery list are 7 species of grass root parasite, commonly called lousewort, and a unique frog species, Scutiger bhutanensis. A total of 353 new species have been discovered in the... Read more

The watery death toll of our rivers

10 August: Bhutan’s rapid rivers have been responsible for snatching at least 15 lives every year since 2002, with very slim chances of recovering the bodies. The past seven months alone saw about 15 deaths from drowning. The highest number was reported in 2007 with 32 cases and the lowest in 2002 and 2006 with 15 cases. Last week, the search team in Tsimalakha, while looking for bodies of the seven boys washed away by the Wangchu on July 27, found the decomposed remains of two females. These unclaimed... Read more

The watery death toll of our rivers

10 August: Bhutan’s rapid rivers have been responsible for snatching at least 15 lives every year since 2002, with very slim chances of recovering the bodies. The past seven months alone saw about 15 deaths from drowning. The highest number was reported in 2007 with 32 cases and the lowest in 2002 and 2006 with 15 cases. Last week, the search team in Tsimalakha, while looking for bodies of the seven boys washed away by the Wangchu on July 27, found the decomposed remains of two females. These unclaimed... Read more

The watery death toll of our rivers

10 August: Bhutan’s rapid rivers have been responsible for snatching at least 15 lives every year since 2002, with very slim chances of recovering the bodies. The past seven months alone saw about 15 deaths from drowning. The highest number was reported in 2007 with 32 cases and the lowest in 2002 and 2006 with 15 cases. Last week, the search team in Tsimalakha, while looking for bodies of the seven boys washed away by the Wangchu on July 27, found the decomposed remains of two females. These unclaimed... Read more

Two more test swine flu positive

7 August: Two more Bhutanese have been confirmed positive for the pandemic influenza A H1N1 virus on July 27, taking the total number to six. One of the confirmed cases is a 65-year-old man from Thimphu. His sample, according to records with the influenza-testing centre at the Thimphu referral hospital, was taken on July 24. “He has no history of travel. He has a large family but none of them have the virus,” said the hospital’s medical superintendent Dr Pandup Tshering. “Some of his family... Read more

The trouble with tourism

Tour operators seek govt. help in solving the industry’s problems 7 August: Not everything is hunky dory with Bhutan’s main hard currency source and the country’s second largest revenue earner – the tourism industry. There are many issues that need to be addressed by the government for the industry’s growth, according to the association of Bhutanese tour operators (ABTO), who presented their problems to the government on Wednesday. The major issues, they say, are with the inconsistent... Read more

Druknet defends itself

7 August: The introduction of broadband internet in the country got rid of the long wait in front of a browser for many netizens. But today, broadband subscribers to the country’s oldest internet service provider (ISP) have been complaining of slow internet speed, with some even comparing it to experiences with dial-up internet access. Frequent network disconnections, poor customer care, coupled with high internet rates, subscribers complain of being cheated. Druknet officials deny that their customers... Read more

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