We left Trongsa on a very crisp clear morning for the 185k drive to Mongar for a rest day and annual festival.

The night before some rain and a cool change had passed through which resulted in crystal clear air. The day started as what has become a normal drive in Bhutan with crossing a couple mountain passed in excess of 3500 metres and lots of big drops off the edge and views everywhere. As we gained altitude Julie and needed to put on more clothing as the temperature drop while driving thought acres of heavy frost all the way from the valley floor at our overnight stop.

Part way to the first pass we looked out to our right and it was the first OMG view for the day. We looked across at part of the Himalayas, which was the highest mountain in Bhutan. The drive continued on over the first pass where some of us hung prayer flags we had been provided that morning.

Descending the other side the prayer flags worked for Frank and Ross as we found them parked on the side of the road with no brake due to a broken line. With a part from David and some brake fluid from Gerry we blocked line to the broken pipe for them to proceed on with three-wheel brakes ready for the mechanics to repair on the rest day.

And hour or so later we topped the final pass for the day, passing the Stupa and looking out to the left it was a OMFG moment. The horizon was full of snow covered Himalayas. The photo will tell the whole story.

We wound our way back and forth across the hills to a lunch stop picnic on the side of the road prepared by the lady that cooks for the King when he visit the region.

After the picnic Mark Wenklemen spent the afternoon with me since he wasn’t able to bring his car and drive for small reason and was doing the rally with a driver in a local car. The afternoon drive descended out of the pine and fur trees in to tropical jungle clinging to the steepest mountainside you can imagine. We past to very great water fall on a road that would be like the death road in Bolivia if it had the volume of traffic. About 100ks of the drive this day was through national park.

As we are moving east in Bhutan the traffic is very sparse as this day we meet all most no one in the morning then a couple dozen in the middle of the trip them almost no car for the afternoon drive.

We arrive in the bustling little hillside town of Mongar after crossing the river at 400 metres elevation then a great short steep mountain road climb through roadworks to 1600 metres elevation ready for the festival.

Those sleeping on the town side of the hotel experienced the festival all night as it carried on till 0630hrs this morning. The entire rally met in the foyer at 0830hrs for help with the national dress we had been give earlier. The Gho that men wear is almost impossible to fit on your own. The half Kira for woman is an art in putting on that take practice. Julie has mastered fitting a half Kira herself as she has worn one everyday since getting to Bhutan but still requires  help from me for fitting a full Kira.

We walked the short distance to the festival in the square at the Monastery. This is a most colourful event of dancing and music. For a more complete coverage of the festival it will be best to read Julies blog at www.juliestephenson.net/journal.

The same cook served lunch to us in the Palace gardens as yesterday.

The afternoon was spent writing this and sorting photos to save spending all night after dinner, before going for a walk around town.

Today was a rest day in the Punakha, which started with a choice of Rafting or visiting the temple of Fertility.

18 decided that Rafting was the go so all into the bus then off up the river to the start point. The river is low at the moment with the monsoon season having finished a couple months back. We could see how high the river had been earlier in the year. It was a pleasant paddle down the river with some small rapids to get us wet. However we took on most of the water from paddle splashing when we neared other boat. The water originates from the glaciers in the Himalayas, as it was quite cold it took me a couple hours after lunch before I was warn.

After lunch in the park beside the River we all headed to the Dzong built in the seventeenth century, which was, the original parliament till it was moved to Thimphu sometime ago. The architecture, carvings and painting of such a large build was fascinating.

Julie, Richard, Hector and I then grabbed a chance to go the Fertility Temple that we had missed in the morning.

Yesterday morning was spent catching up on my emails, as it was the best Internet since Kolkata. We looked around Thimphu before having lunch ready for the short 66k afternoon drive to Punakha.

This drive took us over a pass at 3100metres as we crossed into the next valley. The top of the pass had 108 Stupas, 108 is a very special numbers in Buddhism.

This entire road is a construction site with Indian workers widening the road, all the road construct in Bhutan is done by Indian workers that live in Shanty towns beside the road.

This piece of road is very important, as it is the only road connecting the East and West of Bhutan. During construction the workers are having a constant battle with landslips as they make the old cuttings wider for the new road.

With the Himalayas being the youngest mountain range on Earth, so much of the mountain are made from very unstable and loose rock which just keeps falling down with rain and slight tremors.

Drive 66k drive was a 2 1/2 hour events for us with the roughness and all the one way bits past landslips.

Our Hotel for the night is very very nice and will be home for the next 2 nights, while we visit some temples and some of the group go white-water Rafting.