After spending almost 2 weeks in Mumbai, India, I am leaving for Bhutan tomorrow.
Bhutan is a tiny country in the eastern Himalayas and is bordered by India on its east, south and west. To the north is Tibet (currently occupied by China). 
This himalayan kingdom, recently transitioned to democracy, is almost completely Buddhist. The Bhutanese call their country Druk Yul which means Land of the Thunder Dragon.
To go to Bhutan from Mumbai, one has to travel to Kolkata, take a train to New Jalpaiguri and finally take a bus to the border. Bhutanese currency is called the Ngultrum and it is pegged equal to the Indian Rupee at all times. National food of Bhutan is chili and cheese. 
I’m told that people speak English, and some Hindi too.
Entry to Indian nationals is unrestricted but for people from other countries it is mandatory to travel on a fixed itinerary with a travel agent (an expensive and restricted affair.) Consequently I haven’t made any plans, but will figure out things to do once I reach there.
See you all in 3 weeks with updates on Bhutan and Russia
cheers!
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[...] I am excited to get united with her. Byebye from both of us. For next 2.5 weeks, we will explore the himalayas in Bhutan. [...]
@ Priyank : Entry to Indian nationals is not unrestricted. You will need a permit to enter the country which can only be supplied if you have a voters card or a passport. The permit is for a fixed time period only. Make sure you have enough passport sized photos (usually 2) and have plenty of patience at the border in Phuntsholing to deal with the Bhutanese bureaucracy. It takes normally half a day to get the permit and if its better now I can not say. Mostly Bhutanese speak Dzongkha and English but some may speak some Hindi. Nepali is the second most popular language there. It may also be wise to mention the name of all the destinations in Bhutan that you would like to visit at the border itself because otherwise getting a permit again for them is even more troublesome in Thimphu. Also do not lose the permit since it will be checked many times!
@ Priyank : One more thing Rs. 500/ Rs. 1000 Indian bank notes may not be accepted in Bhutan. When I was last there they were accepted but they were in the process of forbidding them on the instructions of RBI.
Hey Odzer:
I didn’t know about the currency thing at all. Rest of the stuff, ah well, looking forward to it 
Thanks for the info buddy!
Usually, visiting Nepal n Bhutan is affordable due to the currency conversion.
Have a nice trip Priyank, and great weather. Winter views can be one of the brightest best in the mountains. Hope the beauty and splendour of the mountains opens all doors and windows in ur mind and makes you forgive stupid faus pax stupid people make sometimes bye bye
it means “be with ye” soon 
Yes, I agree with Odzer. You need to have a visit permit.
And that’s one of the ways to enter Bhutan.
I have collected some info and will now stop for some time unless I am thru with your experience & knowledge about Bhutan.
Hey finally I got to the right place Priyank.
You said: ‘National food of Bhutan is chili and cheese’
I said: Becareful, lol, you are looking for explosion.
Anna :0
Hey,
Bumped to your blog. Come back and get us more stories from the Himalayan kingdom
have a good trip and see u soon..and yes, i didnt convert them, but no lays and pepsi..
Hey Priyank,
How is Bhutan? I am glad you missed the horror show in Mumbai.
Waiting for updates. BTW, did you check out the smiley face in the sky tonight? I took a picture and put it up on my blog
http://letsgoforavacation.blogspot.com/
I hope there comes a legislation that allows people from travelling only so much. That should be the only way to rein you!
Manasa:
Ah, Nepal perhaps, not Bhutan. Bhutanese currency is on par, and the country is generally expensive (for tourists) compared to India.
Rolling:
Thanks for the wishes. Bhutan is beautiful indeed!
Cuckoo:
I certainly hope that you can find some useful information here.
Anna:
)
LOL, yes explosion…. it was explosive, I wasn’t very careful!
Ravi:
Welcome to my blog and thanks so much for the comments! I certainly hope to bring lots of stories to you!
Lakshmi:
Oh no! You will become the villian of unhealthy food making companies
Vamsee:
Welcome to my site and thanks for commenting! I did follow the events closely…. very shocking. I’ll check out the smiley face now!
Arun:
LOL
OR show the account balance in double digits. That has reigned me in for now
I’d loved to go to Bhutan – especially with their stated policy of gross national happiness. What a good attitude from their leadership.
Indeed Mark, And this is not just an academic or political exercise… the people there ARE happy and cheerful!
[...] bureaucracy is a topic of discussion in itself. My friend Odzer had warned me, but I had no idea that I would need so much [...]
Hello Priyank,
What did you use to enter Bhutan? Voter card or Passport or something else? Do you know if PAN is accepted?
Thanks! – and I’m enjoying going through your posts.
-Neeraj
Thanks Neeraj and welcome to my blog! I used my passport. If you read the next post – welcome to Bhutan, it will tell you everything.