Bhutan Folk Festival
Location: Vicinity of the Punakha Dzong (Fortress)
Season/dates: 13, 14 &15 Dec, 2008
Duration: 3 days
Tourist Profile: Enjoys sports and games, history, culture, outdoors
Punakha is the winter residence of the Je Khenpo, the Chief Abbot of Bhutan. Situated at an elevation of 1350 meters or 4430 ft. from the sea level, it was once the capital of Bhutan. The valley has a sub-tropical kind of climate and winters are very pleasant.
The landmark of the place is its dzong or fortress-like structure called Punthang Dewachengi Phodrang. The Pho-chu or the male river flows to its right and the Mo-chu or the female river flows to its left offering a picturesque beauty to all who visit the valley. The dzong was the second of its kind built by Zhabdrung Ngawang Namgyal in 1637, who unified Bhutan under one authority, the first being Semtokha dzong built in 1629. It was also in this dzong where the first king of Bhutan Sir Ugyen Wangchuck was enthroned as the first hereditary king of Bhutan in 1907.
It is in the vicinity of this dzong where a three-day festival captioned the ‘Bhutan Folk Festival’ will be held starting from 13th to 15th December 2008. The event is organized to commemorate the hundred years of monarchy in Bhutan. It will be a very special occasion for the tourists where they can get to participate with the local people in all of the events.
You will experience and discover the living tradition and culture of Bhutan which form very much the part and parcel of present-day Bhutanese life. You will also discover for yourself what Gross National Happiness really means to the Bhutanese people which otherwise is difficult to define in words.
The event will showcase different artifacts, games, dances, food, folk and religious performances. It is a festival which will portray the simplicity, complexity and understanding of Bhutanese life.
In addition, you will experience how closely-knit a family the Bhutanese people is. The monks will see that the gods are appeased through their rituals so that the festival goes on un-hindered till the end. The lay people will come forward in contributing what they can towards such events while seeing the guests are at ease and happy. Traditional games may look very simple and yet very testing in their real performance. And yes, the Bhutanese are voracious eaters and one will find lots of choice during the festival with villagers bringing their pack lunches to the ground and sharing with others.
For those who like colors and dances there can be no better choice than mask and folk dances. Mask dances are not only a source of entertainment but one which embodies spiritual enrichment. Then while you will see the richness of Bhutanese textiles on display, you will also see the real processes as to how they are done from dying to carrying out intricate designs. This too goes for other handicrafts which will all be displayed for the benefit of the visitors.
Traditional etiquette demands for harmonious behavior including serving food, eating, dressing and even walking. You will observe all of them during this festival. Therefore, it will be an opportunity one may not want to miss. You can read Bhutan in a period of three days’ time.
The scene is set and we invite you all to come and partake in this grand festival.
Tashi Delek!
Friday, August 15, 2008
Wednesday, July 16, 2008
Bring Them Back
It isn’t quite 9/11 but then again this is not the US. This is Bhutan, the GNH nation. It is about happiness and a sense of assured wellbeing that isn’t quite there. Instead, there is a palpable sense of unease, even fear over what is going on in the capital. And it is all the harder to stomach when it concerns the youth, the supposed future of the nation. What happens when the streets are not safe anymore? Why are young kids menacing people with knives and sticks looking for easy loot? Wherein lies the answer to such unprecedented developments?
The players in this dangerous coliseum are obviously parents, teachers, the legal system and society at large. Today, after several incidents of blatant disregard for the law, people are actually scared to be out on the streets. On the other hand, we have youth who contemptuously ridicule the law. Being in the lock-up for a night or two has become almost second-nature for them. They are well aware that they will be out sometime or the other to resume their conquest of the night and hapless victims. They are not scared to scare the rest of society.
Why is this happening? People say that this is the consequence of changing times. Something that is inevitable. Yet, have we not as a nation always purported to avoid that cliché? We sell ourselves as a country that is different, unique, if you will. If that be so, then there is the need for us to urgently seek a solution to this growing malaise. Young students preying on migrant workers and the like mean a much deeper issue. It is pretty much the same for young girls throwing themselves at ever-willing sugar daddies.
In the end, it all boils down to money. Money to sustain a lifestyle that is not in keeping with the family income. For one, it is about drugs. It has become an all pervasive habit with youth. Tablets, syrups, intravenous stuff, they are doing it all. Only, getting the regular fix costs money. How does a young boy or girl pay for it every day with no source of income? Get into crime, that is the doorway to a regular fix. Steal, bully, sell yourself, anything at all. That is the present state of our youth. The people we so laud as the ones who will take us into a brighter future.
There is the need for the government to seriously look into these issues. We are emerging as a socially loose society. Divorces are rampant; education is weak and youth counseling non-existent. The law is still unclear about how to deal with minors and we have no mechanism in place to bring the aberrant back on the right path. Such lapses will only exacerbate the problem that not only makes our streets unsafe but goes against the very values that we embody as a GNH nation. We need to bring the boys and girls back to the fold. And we need to do it fast, before we lose them altogether.
The players in this dangerous coliseum are obviously parents, teachers, the legal system and society at large. Today, after several incidents of blatant disregard for the law, people are actually scared to be out on the streets. On the other hand, we have youth who contemptuously ridicule the law. Being in the lock-up for a night or two has become almost second-nature for them. They are well aware that they will be out sometime or the other to resume their conquest of the night and hapless victims. They are not scared to scare the rest of society.
Why is this happening? People say that this is the consequence of changing times. Something that is inevitable. Yet, have we not as a nation always purported to avoid that cliché? We sell ourselves as a country that is different, unique, if you will. If that be so, then there is the need for us to urgently seek a solution to this growing malaise. Young students preying on migrant workers and the like mean a much deeper issue. It is pretty much the same for young girls throwing themselves at ever-willing sugar daddies.
In the end, it all boils down to money. Money to sustain a lifestyle that is not in keeping with the family income. For one, it is about drugs. It has become an all pervasive habit with youth. Tablets, syrups, intravenous stuff, they are doing it all. Only, getting the regular fix costs money. How does a young boy or girl pay for it every day with no source of income? Get into crime, that is the doorway to a regular fix. Steal, bully, sell yourself, anything at all. That is the present state of our youth. The people we so laud as the ones who will take us into a brighter future.
There is the need for the government to seriously look into these issues. We are emerging as a socially loose society. Divorces are rampant; education is weak and youth counseling non-existent. The law is still unclear about how to deal with minors and we have no mechanism in place to bring the aberrant back on the right path. Such lapses will only exacerbate the problem that not only makes our streets unsafe but goes against the very values that we embody as a GNH nation. We need to bring the boys and girls back to the fold. And we need to do it fast, before we lose them altogether.
Wednesday, July 9, 2008
Employment
The sights and sounds of the job market remain the same. The number of jobs available is increasing. The number of job seekers is increasing faster. And the level of frustration is rising.We are now talking about 3.7 percent unemployment, meaning more than 10,500 youth looking for jobs. This is just the known estimate; there are many more, along with the related problems.
The essence of the problem has not changed since employment was first recognised as a problem. Most people talk about a mismatch. The jobs available are not what job seekers are looking for. The job seekers are not what employers are looking for.
As the job fair last weekend showed, and as job fairs of the past years revealed, employers want skills and experience. Job seekers are fresh out of educational institutions. If they had skills and experience they would already have jobs.
This is a gap that needs to be closed and, apart from vocational institutions, the first options have to be apprenticeships and internships. Such a “trial” period has proved to be of great value for both employers and job seekers around the world. In Bhutan, however, given that private employers are struggling to launch their businesses, they cannot afford to pay interns. Youth cannot afford to work for free. The government needs to share some of the costs. Internships in critical employment areas could be subsidized.
More than internships youth need trainings. The industry is poised to expand and is already looking for a wide range of trained people. The 10th Plan has projected 90,000 jobs and the immediate need is quality training in this vibrant service sector.
At this stage, a central employment agency may help provide the perspective and focus needed to tackle the problem.
This trend is emerging at a time when our agricultural fields are becoming fallow at an alarming rate. It is extremely unlikely that youth, particularly, will think of returning to the farms. The new government is looking at vocations in rural areas, more businesses than outright farming.
Such an initiative would need to be dramatically creative. It would need to be accompanied by facilities and comforts like power and telephone lines and, these days, good Internet connections. Most people will move out of the large cities only if there is a semblance of urban living that includes shops and entertainment centres.
For a start, however, the government needs to clamp down on unwanted practices today. There are a number of industries and services, like the printing industry, that have not taken off only because they have remained briefcase businesses and nothing has been done about it.
These are industries where the government is the main, and sometimes the only, client. They turn over millions of ngultrums and can employ thousands of people. If these are not controlled and nurtured, starting new ventures will be far more difficult.
The essence of the problem has not changed since employment was first recognised as a problem. Most people talk about a mismatch. The jobs available are not what job seekers are looking for. The job seekers are not what employers are looking for.
As the job fair last weekend showed, and as job fairs of the past years revealed, employers want skills and experience. Job seekers are fresh out of educational institutions. If they had skills and experience they would already have jobs.
This is a gap that needs to be closed and, apart from vocational institutions, the first options have to be apprenticeships and internships. Such a “trial” period has proved to be of great value for both employers and job seekers around the world. In Bhutan, however, given that private employers are struggling to launch their businesses, they cannot afford to pay interns. Youth cannot afford to work for free. The government needs to share some of the costs. Internships in critical employment areas could be subsidized.
More than internships youth need trainings. The industry is poised to expand and is already looking for a wide range of trained people. The 10th Plan has projected 90,000 jobs and the immediate need is quality training in this vibrant service sector.
At this stage, a central employment agency may help provide the perspective and focus needed to tackle the problem.
This trend is emerging at a time when our agricultural fields are becoming fallow at an alarming rate. It is extremely unlikely that youth, particularly, will think of returning to the farms. The new government is looking at vocations in rural areas, more businesses than outright farming.
Such an initiative would need to be dramatically creative. It would need to be accompanied by facilities and comforts like power and telephone lines and, these days, good Internet connections. Most people will move out of the large cities only if there is a semblance of urban living that includes shops and entertainment centres.
For a start, however, the government needs to clamp down on unwanted practices today. There are a number of industries and services, like the printing industry, that have not taken off only because they have remained briefcase businesses and nothing has been done about it.
These are industries where the government is the main, and sometimes the only, client. They turn over millions of ngultrums and can employ thousands of people. If these are not controlled and nurtured, starting new ventures will be far more difficult.
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