<Bhutan
Here in Phuntsholing, I stayed overnight at the Druk Hotel and was met the following morning by the driver and guide from India for the drive onward about five hours to Darjeeling and the Windamere Hotel. Read pages 123 to 128 in "East is West" for a complete description of the Darjeeling area.

It had been several years since my previous visit, but little change has taken place. The Windamere has tidied up the rooms, with new curtains, chair cushion covers, carpeting and new electric heating. Though the mid-day temperatures are up to 70F, the evenings are frequently not only chilly, but can be cold down in the 40's, so with a fire in the working fireplace in one's room, supplemented by the new electric fan heaters, one is now comfortable on the coolest of nights. The two hot water bottles are still supplied each evening, under the covers at the foot of the bed, but now more for nostalgic reasons than necessity.

The market, just steps from the hotel, remains a major attraction with excellent buys in carpets, semi-precious stones, English books in the large Oxford Books bookstore, with a large selection of books on the Himalayan region from Nepal to Bhutan.

A variety of antique stores will supply you with faithful "reproductions", sold as genuine antiques. Buy at your own risk, but, if you like it and the price is right, buy it and enjoy it. A reproduction can be a valuable item if skillfully created.

The Tibetan Refugee Center has a carpet weaving center for Tibetan-style carpets. Here a tour will introduce you to the hand spinning, natural color dying and weaving of the carpets, as well as an explanation of the Tibetan designs. Carpets here are by special order only and then shipped to you at home. You may choose a design, then go to the yarn room to choose your own color pattern. A 3 x 6 foot wool carpet is about US$290, includes shipping and insurance to your door. The woolen carpets, ready-woven on the Indian market, purchased in the bazaar ready for hand carry home in the 3 x 6 size, are about US$200.

The front desk of the Windamere has a display of souvenir packets of Darjeeling tea. With several travel lectures scheduled for this winter and coming spring, I thought it would be a good idea to buy some to give out as a promotional item to each person attending. Pure Darjeeling tea is actually rarely seen on the world market. Look at the box carefully at the supermarket next time and you will surely see the word Darjeeling followed by the word, blend. I arranged for the hotel to box some up and have it ready for my departure. The night before I left, I inquired as to whether the box would be ready for departure early the next morning. "Yes, it is being crated now." I was getting nervous at the word crated and the next morning when I saw the size of this two-door, file cabinet sized wooden crate, I mentioned to the boy I would have quite a job getting this all the way back to my home in Tokyo. He had no idea of how many flights I would be taking but, assuming I was headed back directly he suggested, "Just get a coolie to help you get it home from Tokyo airport." Seems they have been showing some very old Japanese movies in Darjeeling!
 

The newly completed Ana Mandara beach resort at Nha Trang, Vietnam.

TV in the room has a satellite link to CNN, NHK, Australia Television, MTV, Star Sports and Star Plus.

The airport is just across the road and down a bit, but with only a couple of jet prop ATR flights a day, it is a true convenience and the arrivals/departures go virtually unnoticed. The airport is virtually downtown, making access to any of Nha Trangs' current or future resorts most convenient.

The early January daytime temperature of about 75-80F (24-26C) and constant breezes, along with low humidity, make beach walks and quiet hours on one's veranda or lazing on the beach a delight. Evening light winds are cool but serve to keep the mosquitoes at bay.

A trip into town from the resort may be made in one of the cyclos, a kind of 3-wheeled bicycle, with a passenger seat between the two front wheels. It's only a few minutes' ride along the wide boulevard that skirts the beach into the downtown area. The charge is set at US$2 per hour and two hours will take you round trip with a short city tour and time for a bit of shopping or exploring in the colorful local market. Unlike in Ho Chi Minh City, here they carry only one passenger per cyclo, but they travel along at a leisurely pace, frequently side by side, making conversation possible with the neighboring cyclo.

The resort has bicycles for rent at $2 and motor bikes at $7 per day. Activities include tennis, scuba diving, windsurfing, beach volley ball and snorkeling. There is a fitness center for those who can't get away from the daily workout. The diving season is February through October at outlying islands, in a nature preserve area protected by the World Wildlife Fund. The clear waters feature coral, multicolored fish, anemones and starfish. Day and night fishing are available.

Travelers' cheques are accepted only at banks in Nha Trang, so be sure to cash them in Hanoi or Ho Chi Minh City, so as to have cash available. The hotel bill may be settled by credit card, but you will want to be sure to have cash for other purchases and services in Nha Trang. Payment may be in the local currency or US$ cash. It is very handy to have US$ cash in small bills for payment of purchases. With the local currency at over 10,000 dong to one US$, it is easier in many cases to use the $. Change will be returned to you in dong.

I needed a haircut, so decided to try the barbershop across the road from the resort. The barber did an excellent job for $2. I pay nearly $60 in Tokyo!

Food and beverage costs at the resort are modest. Minifridge costs are soft drinks $2, imported beer $2.70, domestic beer $2, nuts $1.70, with poolside bar prices similar. The dining room features a very good menu of Western and Vietnamese dishes with a cheese burger with salad at $6, cream of tomato soup at $3.50, jumbo prawn sautÈed with garlic and sherry $7, spaghetti $7, yakisoba with snow peas and mushroom at $5, chicken Oscar with asparagus and crabmeat $10, tenderloin steak from Australia $16, home made ice cream $3 and Vietnam fried spring rolls at $5.50. Gosh, I am getting hungry!

For an evening cocktail on your veranda facing the South China Sea, I would suggest buying duty free liquor. The allowance is 2 liters per adult and is available at both the transit and departure areas of Hong Kong and Bangkok airports, as well as other international airports you may pass through en route to Vietnam.

I had a car with driver and guide transfer me overland to Dalat, a five-hour drive, with stops along the way to enjoy panoramic views of the South China Sea. A stop for lunch along the way is usually made at a minority settlement called Chicken Village. Later, you may want to stop at Duyen Lam Lake for a short lake cruise and an elephant ride. Pages 185 ? 187 of "East is West" describes the wonderful Dalat Palace Hotel. You will want to spend two nights in Dalat, especially if you want to take advantage of the tennis and golf. It is a short walk downtown for those who enjoy shopping in Asian markets. Jr. suites in the Dalat Palace Hotel can accommodate 2 extra beds, making it a perfect accommodation for families.
 
 

A great way to start the day. Breakfast along the river at the Oriental Hotel, Bangkok.

The thought of a couple of nights at the Oriental Hotel in Bangkok sounded like a great way to end my Southeast and South Asian travel. It is no wonder the Oriental continues to be rated the finest hotel in the world, year after year. There is no one point to rave about, the whole experience of staying at the Oriental is an experience in perfection. Try it.

With the currency crisis in most of the newly-developing Asian economies, the dollar buys more than twice what it did even a few short months ago. Everything has become such a bargain, I spent twice as much as I would have done normally. Somehow, this does not really make much economic sense, does it? One should be able to say one saved 50%, not spent twice as much!