Geographical Outline: Bhutan approximately the size of Switzerland, covers an area of 47,000 sq.km (18,147 sq.miles), and has the population of less then 700,000. These figures however, do not reflect the incredible geographical and ecological diversity of the country, nor its natural wealth. Rising from 300m (1000 ft) on the Indian frontier to 7300m (14000ft) on the Tibetan (Chinese) border, and in less than 150 km (90 miles) as the crow flies, the land is reminiscent of a gigantic staircase.
There are two ways to describe the geography of Bhutan - vertically and horizontally. Vertically, the the rivers flow north to south, forging deep valleys through the Himalayan range. Each is separated from the next by rofty ridges, the highest being the Black Mountains, which effectively divide Bhutan into the western, central and eastern regions. Horizontally, the country is divided into 4 zones. The southern region, rising from 300m to 1000m (1000 ft to 3300 ft) is tropical in climate and vegetation, and abounds with orange, banana and cardamom plantations. Thick jungles with occasional forest clearing separate the southern belt from the central valleys. These constitute the sub tropical zone from 1200m - 1600m (4000 ft - 5250 ft), populated in the east and the centre by people who live on forest products and crops of rice, millet and maize. The central valleys are dedicated to agriculture and range from 1300m to 2700m (4300 ft to 9000 ft). Depending on the elevation, farmers grow maize, rice, barley, wheat or buckwheat. Apples and potatoes are important cash crops in this area.
These valleys are the core of Bhutanese culture. Dominated by impressive fortresses known as dzongs, Bhutanese houses with their typical trefoil-shape windows and pitched roofs stand among the cultivated fields. Forests of oak, conifer and rhododendron cloak the higher slopes. Small urban centers which cater to a largely agrarian population dot the landscape. A winding, spectacular central road links the different valleys, from Ha in the west to Tashigang in the east, crossing mountain ranges over passes as high as 4000m (13000 ft). The central valleys are the land of beautiful monasteries and breath taking temples, of fluttering prayer flags and exciting contests of archery, the national sport of Bhutan.
Above 3000m (10,000 ft) is the highest ecological zone, dominated by bamboo and coniferous forests, with fir, larch, cypress and pine. This is the domain of yaks, tended by stalwart semi nomads who during the summer months graze their charges in upland pastures of 5000m. (16500 ft) and above, living the wind swept black tents. Towering over the valleys, clear lakes and meadows of alpine flowers and rare medicinal herbs, the summits of the Himalayan chain form a formidable natural boundary with the Tibetan region of China to the north.
The origin of the name itself remains obscure, perhaps it comes from the Sanskrit "Bhot ant" meaning "End of Tibet". For all the tales of receptions friendly and unfriendly, of strange customs and even stranger legends, of legends, of scenery breathtaking in its beauty and forbidden in its rigor, Bhutan remains to the world at large a mythical Shangri-La