SIKHIM AND BHUTAN
enduring. It was very pleasant to find the same cordial wishes and expressions of goodwill repeated by every one in turn, and to be made to feel so thoroughly that our visit was looked on in the light of a compliment to their country, and that everything was thrown open to us, instead of finding obstacles and difficulties in our way.
The history of the building of Poonakha I heard from the Thimbu Jongpen, who, when a boy, heard it from a very old woman. According to him, the old palace and fort stood on the ridge where the Dechen-phodang stands. The greater part of it having been burnt down, the Deb Zimpon, who had usurped all the power, determined to rebuild it on its present site, which was much more convenient for the supply of water. The valleys were thickly populated in those days, and the Deb collected so many people that the materials were passed from hand to hand the whole way from Dechen-phodang to Tashi-cho-jong, a distance of quite a mile. It is needless to say the labour was forced, and although the palace was said to have been completed in one year the Deb became very unpopular.
The Tibetans seem to have been very fond of raiding Bhutan, as the fort of Simtoka, close by, built by the first Shabdung, was soon after captured and burnt by them. In rebuilding it the architect utilised one of the original wood pillars which had only been singed as a memorial of the saint. It stands there to this day, its damaged surface covered with elaborate carving.
We broke up camp early in the morning, and for three or four miles our path lay through open ground similar in character to that below Tashi-cho-jong. We saw several monasteries, but only entered one, Pangri-sampi-gnatsa, which was beautifully situated in the midst of the valley, but contained nothing of much interest. Turning due north over a cliff, we came to an entirely different scene, the valley narrowing considerably, and being beautifully wooded and picturesque to a degree. Throughout the march ruined houses were in a majority, most evidently
176
