This is the last of four films made for Korean TV about the remote Buddhist kingdom of Bhutan in the eastern Himalayas. The full title of the series is Bhutan, In Search of a Celestial Kingdom, and is hosted by “History Traveler” Kwon Ki-bong.
In this final film Kwon starts by talking to a nomadic family on the highlands who are taking their yaks to better pastures. He sees how they collect milk and make butter and cheese. He also meets some children on their way to school, and talks to a man waiting for a bus to take him to market.
He then goes past a Dzong of the old capital on his way to Thimpu, the present capital. On his way he fins a large bronze Buddha statue, 51 metres high on a hill overlooking the city.
He then travels on to Wangdue Phodrang and a monastery where he meets with the young novices and comes to know something of their lives, before returning to Thimpu for the major festival of the year, the Thimpu Tsechu.
All in all the series has been a light, but interesting, look at the people and culture of Bhutan, and I quite liked the presenter who was always willing to get involved, and try something new, and not afraid to meet with people, and talk to them about their lives.
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