Short note on Bhutan

In the pre-dawn hours of Saturday, the 6th of February 2016, I wrote about the birth of the first child to the king and queen of Bhutan on my FaceBook page (under FB heading: R. Vania – Books, Essays, and Articles).

My first novel introduced a character from Bhutan. He and his country played a larger role in the second novel. The third novel (in progress) has Bhutan as a location for some of the action. So, I naturally follow news I can find about it.

It’s a fascinating place. It is known as both the last Shangri-La (by romantically inclined Westerners) and as the Land of the Thunder Dragon (by its citizens).  It gave up striving for Gross National Product and turned to Gross National Happiness instead. GNH is a well thought out system of assessments, action plans, and evaluations that have since become a model for other countries. Bhutan is also a land of stunning beauty, 100% organic food production, a net zero carbon footprint, and benevolent leadership.

On the other side of the coin, it is under the lip of the Chinese border. There are many concrete signs that China would like to take Bhutan under their “protection” exactly as they did with Tibet. The Chinese have already claimed land there and have had military cross well past Bhutan’s borders. Troubling times to raise a new baby prince.

Prince William of Britain and his wife will be visiting Bhutan in the Spring. Their visit will help this tiny kingdom to gain a bit of notoriety in the world. Such on-going press coverage may serve as a watchful eye to help protect it from invading forces. There are already too many plants, animals, cultures, and countries going extinct. Bhutan doesn’t have to be one of them.

From any angle, Bhutan provides plenty of raw material and inspiration for a novel.

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