SIKHIM AND BHUTAN
re-done every five years. Altogether there was an air of bustling activity which was pleasant to meet with. Up the valley lies the nearest road to Phari, a short three days' march for a laden coolie, and it was along this route the Chinese Mission passed when bringing a decoration for the Tongsa Penlop in 1886.
We struck camp early the next morning, and on our way bade the Paro Penlop farewell at the entrance to the castle. The ascent, which I think must have been a short cut, and not the regular road, was very rough and steep up to the Tayo-jong, the curious rounded fort described by Eden.
“One of them is a curious building formed of two semicircles, one large and the other small, built up one against the other for about five stories high.”
The road beyond was very good, and ascended gradually to the pass, 8900 feet, near the Beila-jong. A steeper road on the other side led us down to Pemithang, the seat of an inferior official who calls himself a Penlop, where we camped under walnut-trees. The so-called Penlop was a pleasant, stout man, who did his best to make us comfortable. We found some of his boys playing quoits, a very favourite game amongst the Bhutanese, and close by a curious succession of mendongs, or prayer-walls, which was most unusual, as the mendong ordinarily consists of one long wall, but here there was a succession of three.
We left Pemithang early, and instead of going to Tashi-cho-jong via the Pami-la, we followed the Pemi-chhu to its junction with the Tchin-chhu, the road, a very good one, never being far above the water. The hills on either side were thickly wooded, with beautiful masses of flowering pear and peach, but at the junction with the Tchin-chhu, where we turned east up the stream, the whole aspect of the country suddenly changed to barren hills, with sparse and stunted trees, chiefly Pinus longifolium.
On the left bank, about two miles up, we saw a house conspicuous for its cared-for appearance, and found that it belonged to the ex-Paro Penlop, who was for years one of
130
