Julia Sable

In the Land of the Thunder Dragon: Travels in the Himalayan Kingdom of Bhutan

Until the 1950s, Bhutan was one of the most isolated countries in the world, with no roads and an economy based on barter. Over the last 40 years, it has developed rapidly. Roads now crisscross the country, people are educated primarily in English, and TV and Internet arrived in 1999. Discussion is under way about joining the WTO.

At the same time, the government is trying to preserve its unique culture, unspoiled environment and Buddhist spirituality. The King, a highly revered and beloved figure, has articulated a vision of "Gross National Happiness," an attempt to define development in terms of both spiritual and material wellbeing. Still, the tension between old and new is everywhere apparent, as one travels from the city with its Internet cafes and new five-star hotels to the countryside almost untouched by modernization, or as one watches teenagers in jeans and tank tops passing government officials in traditional gho and kira.

These pictures were taken during an internship I completed with the World Food Programme (WFP) last summer. I would like to thank Gerald Daly, a Fletcher alum and Country Director of WFP-Bhutan, and the Luce Fund, for making this experience possible.