Search 283 stories and 49 dives.

Painted timber facade with rows of small arched niches in orange, ochre, black and gold

Paro

Paro, Bhutan

December 2010

Paro lies along the Paro Chhu in western Bhutan at approximately 7,380 feet (2,250 meters) above sea level. Paro International Airport, located a few kilometers from the town, is Bhutan’s principal international air gateway. The town and surrounding valley contain traditional Bhutanese shop houses, residences, temples, and religious-administrative complexes. The photographs taken in 2010 document painted timberwork, prayer wheels, monastic activity, shops, and everyday life in and around Paro.

Rinpung Dzong, also known as Paro Dzong, stands above the river. Its full name, Rinchen Pung Dzong, is commonly translated as “Fortress on a Heap of Jewels.” Built in 1646, the dzong became an important center of religious and administrative authority in western Bhutan. It continues to house the Paro district monastic body, temples, and government offices.

Above Rinpung Dzong stands Ta Dzong, a circular watchtower built in 1649 by La Ngonpa Tenzin Drugdra, the first Paro Penlop, to protect the fortress below. The tower was later converted into Bhutan’s first national museum and opened to the public in 1968. Its collections interpret Bhutan’s religious, artistic, cultural, and natural history.

Developments Since the Photographs Were Taken

The photographs predate the September 2011 earthquake that extensively damaged Ta Dzong. Restoration began in 2014, and the National Museum reopened on 24 June 2020. In 2012, Rinpung Dzong was included with four other Bhutanese dzongs on Bhutan’s UNESCO World Heritage Tentative List.

Whitewashed fortress-monastery with red roofs on a hillside above the dry winter fields of Paro valley
Two monks in orange and maroon robes crossing a flagstone courtyard lined with painted columns
Looking down on a walled compound of white buildings with carved timber windows and shingled roofs
Painted timber facade with rows of small arched niches in orange, ochre, black and gold
Sunlit stone-paved dzong courtyard ringed by galleries of painted woodwork
Prayer wheels set in arched recesses along a whitewashed wall below timber windows
Row of red prayer wheels behind carved wooden posts and a floral-painted cornice
A monk in maroon robes kneels over a long wooden plank in a stone courtyard
Elderly woman in a knit cap and maroon shawl seated against a red-painted timber wall
Woman sitting cross-legged on the ground with prayer beads, a cloth bundle beside her
Woman with prayer beads seated in a doorway beside a large red prayer wheel
Sunlight and shadow across a line of prayer wheels under carved arches
A prayer wheel blurred mid-spin between two worn wooden posts
Suspension footbridge strung with weathered prayer flags below a dry pine-covered hillside
Row of wooden shutters and a door set in ornately painted timber framing
Two small children in worn sweaters standing close together beside an adult
Jars of preserved chillies and pickles lined up on a sunlit concrete ledge
Row of painted prayer wheels mounted in a red wooden frame
Man in a striped gho and backpack browsing goods hung outside a shop window
Shopfront under a blue sign reading "SD General Tshongkhang, Paro Town", toys hanging outside
Families at the open windows of a painted shop house, seen past a carved railing
Older woman in an orange knit cap holding prayer beads beside a large prayer wheel
Two-storey building with painted window frames and shutters, hills rising behind
Young girl in a red pinafore and beaded necklace looking at the camera
Girl in an olive knit cardigan standing in front of a parked truck
Black Ambassador car marked "IMTRAT" parked beside a blue hatchback on a dusty street

Related Stories

Pashupatinath Temple

Kathmandu

Pashupatinath Temple

Apr 2016

Phewa Lake and Tal Barahi Temple

Pokhara

Phewa Lake and Tal Barahi Temple

Apr 2016

Wildlife in Chitwan National Park

Chitwan National Park

Wildlife in Chitwan National Park

Apr 2016

All Stories →

Fact check: Accuracy matters. If something looks incorrect, please suggest a correction.