Bhutan

As the Druk Air plane enters Bhutanese airspace, soft Himalayan flute music is played on the loudspeakers. The plane descends through the deep valleys – above the wingtips , on both sides, on ridges and hilltops, you can see monasteries, white little houses here and there and groups of white flags. The plane jumps over one last ridge and we’re in Paro, on the country’s only airport, in a broad, terraced, yellow-green valley.

Bhutan is from another time: traditional architecture - white houses with intricate, painted roof woodwork are perfectly preserved; most everybody still wears traditional dress (gho for men and kira for women); the national pastime is archery; the pace of life is slow, punctuated by religious festivals, fabulous displays of masks and costumed dancing. The last Shangri-la.