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what appeared to be a dressing gown. The hotel's general manager? Employee of the month? I am ashamed to say that I later found out that this was none other than His Majesty King Jigme Singye Wangchuk, an active monarch-of-the-people who is held in very high regard by all Bhutanese.
After being allocated a room key, it was more than I could manage to take my small case from the young lady who had been detailed to take it to my room, so I followed behind feeling a bit embarrassed. The "room" turned out to be a separate bungalow in the spacious and wooded grounds, replete with a twin bedroom, a lounge with triple sofa and twin armchairs, a dressing room and a bathroom. Having learnt from my wife, the first thing I checked was the bathroom. I wonder if the hot water is hot? YIKES!! Immediately, scalding hot water gushed out of the tap at high pressure. Very welcome, given that the bathroom otherwise felt like a refrigerator. Two electric heaters served to make the bedroom very cosy - I even had to turn one of them off.
Will two rolls be enough?
Brian's very comprehensive briefing notes included the advice that we bring two rolls of lavatory paper. My inspection of the bathroom revealed that this advice was very sound. The roll next to the loo had about a quarter inch thickness of paper remaining. There was a new roll, still wrapped in its cellophane wrapper, straight from the factory, but even this only had half an inch. I wondered at all the industry and effort that went into manufacturing and marketing rolls of lavatory paper with such limited reserves, in a country where chillies were a staple. I was worried!
I left the room, carefully turning off each of the two light switches in the bathroom, the four in the dressing room and the eleven in the bedroom/living room (all being controlled by a majestic GEC fuse box containing equal amounts of ceramics and electrics) and headed for lunch.
I am a very conservative eater, and my first exposure to Bhutanese food was approached very much with Brian's 'two rolls' advice on my mind. But lunch could not have been more pleasant or more welcome.