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Anthony Bourdain journeys with director Darren Aronofsky to the Himalayan nation of Bhutan, sampling the cuisine and immersing themselves in the culture of a country trying to hold on to its traditions as it strives to modernize.
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00:00Anthony Bourdain was our window to the far-flung exotic places of our planet.
00:05But he had a way of making what was so foreign seem so familiar
00:08by the time he was done weaving his words around the story.
00:12Anthony is mourned intensely by those who knew him best
00:15and those who didn't really know him at all.
00:18It's because he leaves us all with a gift,
00:21his gift, of revealing through his stories,
00:24his travels, his meals, our shared humanity.
00:27The fact that what we have in common
00:30is still so much more powerful than our differences.
00:34To remember, Anthony, is to never forget this.
00:37It is always people who matter the most.
00:41Without them, the perfect meal can never become the perfect moment.
00:46Tonight, I am honored to introduce the final episode
00:50of this season of Parts Unknown.
00:54Bhutan, a place few of us will ever see.
00:57remote, unfamiliar,
00:59a land of soaring mountains and haunted forests,
01:02newly opened to the West,
01:04but home to ancient teachings about peace and karma,
01:08life and death.
01:10You think animals are sentient?
01:29I think pain is, you know, pain is pain.
01:33If you don't respond to that, you're doing something seriously wrong.
01:36It's very Buddhist of you, I think.
01:37Look, when I worked in Cape Cod,
01:39my job is to load this steamer with lobsters,
01:42and they don't scream, but, you know,
01:44you scratch it against the things.
01:46I have dreams, and I'm in a sauna,
01:48and I look through the window,
01:49and there's a giant lobster,
01:50like, you know, a bib with a chef on it, you know?
01:52Isn't it?
01:53Ha, ha, ha, ha.
02:01Ha, ha, ha, ha.
02:04Ha, ha, ha, ha.
02:06I took a walk through this beautiful world.
02:09There's something here in this beautiful world
02:15I felt the rain getting colder
02:39Bhutan, a remote, relatively rarely visited kingdom of myth and legend
02:59high in the Himalayas known as Land of the Thunder Dragon
03:09One of the reasons it's not on the tourist trail is it's hard to get to
03:26Flying in, you hang onto your seat as the plane negotiates some alarming maneuvers through narrow mountain passes
03:34Before dropping into the country's only international airport
03:38Said by some to be the most dangerous in the world
03:41Located between India and Tibet, Bhutan about the size of Switzerland
03:44Is caught between the old world and the new
03:47Located between India and Tibet, Bhutan about the size of Switzerland
03:51Is caught between the old world and the new
03:56Timpu is Bhutan's capital and largest city
03:57It has a rapidly growing population of 100,000
03:59As Bhutanese have begun the inevitable move away from a rural agrarian country
04:02It has a rapidly growing population of 100,000
04:04As Bhutanese have begun the inevitable move away from a rural agrarian lifestyle
04:08Where the time of tourism was only allowed, the time, the time of the country
04:10Time to visit Bhutan and Antarctica
04:11Glancing on the region
04:12And where the city is left in the South
04:13A young electorate is not about the size of Switzerland
04:14Is caught between the old world and the new
04:15Timpu is Bhutan's capital and largest city
04:21it has a rapidly growing population of a hundred thousand as bhutanese have begun
04:26the inevitable move away from a rural agrarian lifestyle
04:35tourism was only allowed starting in the 1970s the amount of foreign visitors each year is
04:41strictly limited to protect bhutan's culture and environment there are no starbucks no kfc's
04:49no king or clown basically they don't want you to come here at least on mass
05:00watch your head yeah right wow what do you think of the altitude how you feel i'm here because of this
05:07guy my friend the film director darren aronofsky fresh off the unjustifiably horrified reaction
05:14to what i think is his masterpiece mother but you've studied the effects of high altitude you
05:20know your blood gets thicker and thicker until it's like freaking marmalade all right we'll be dying
05:25slowly awesome mother is an angry and thinly veiled warning that we are destroying our planet and
05:34policy-wise bhutan is something of an environmental wonderland
05:39we want to protect the country from being overly influenced by foreign value culture you know all
05:45the bad stuff that happens with tourism has anyone made a film here i don't know it's got to be hard
05:49to work here yeah plus talk about contaminating the values of the local culture i mean i don't that'll
05:55hollywood doesn't do that our first meal becomes our go-to favorite for the rest of the trip
06:01if i'm not on camera chances are i'm somewhere eating these bad boys momo's plump flavorful often
06:12quite spicy dumplings filled with meat cheese or veg did i mention darren is a vegetarian god damn
06:20these good they are really good chili cheese mama pardon chili cheese mama chili cheese
06:29wow that would be smart good thing to do okay all right here we go
06:37mm that's excellent yeah that's spicy that is yeah i'm feeling that
06:45i feel it in the back of my head it's enlightenment it's your third eye opening man
06:49i can't i can't even tell what we're talking about i'm like so high from the altitude
07:05morning in bhutan's capital a kingdom that has existed contentedly in a state of self-imposed
07:20isolation for centuries
07:28some forms of buddhism very much this life does not matter at all it's about the next next
07:33but on the other extreme it's all about today right now
07:39the form of buddhism practiced here is the middle path middle part mayana tantic buddhism
07:44is
07:48buddhism consider the next life yes and always just your karma and karma whatever tragedies fall on you
07:56that's in the family of karma it's all about an attitude pick up and move on
08:01Once His Holiness, the Dalai Lama, told me every day when you rise up, you try and be
08:16as good a human being as possible.
08:19That's more important than being religious.
08:31Beautiful day today.
08:51Winter days are normally like this every day.
08:54In the good old days, we used to have snow falls about four or five times a year.
08:59But over the last decade or so, it's decreased a lot.
09:03Noticeably, really.
09:04Some glacial lakes have disappeared completely.
09:06Dasho Benji Durji is known as Bhutan's godfather of environmental conservation.
09:12And in tantric Buddhism, is there a respect for nature?
09:15There is a lot of respect.
09:17You don't mess with nature.
09:18Yeah, you don't mess with nature.
09:20This is a traditional welcome drink, it's an arah.
09:23It's a raw alcohol.
09:24The normal toast is Tashi Dele.
09:26Tashi Dele.
09:27Tashi Dele.
09:28Good fortune be with you.
09:30I'm a retired alcoholic, so I will not join you.
09:33Okay.
09:34Pretty good.
09:35Yeah.
09:36Kind of a warm sake, but made out of wheat.
09:37Yeah.
09:38Yes.
09:41Can you tell us a little more about the chef?
09:43Oh, she and her husband are both colonels in the Royal Bhutan police.
09:47Oh, wow.
09:48We have to use the finger, touch, so that the flavors come out.
09:52These recipes, where do they come from?
09:54They come from the farms, from all the local houses, just passed down.
09:59These nine grains have a very historical and spiritual significance.
10:03There was one saint called Tupakinle.
10:05He's known as the madman.
10:06The divine madman.
10:07Yes, of course.
10:08So when he came to Bhutan, he carried the nine grains.
10:12This is the Hyde, the Yak Hyde.
10:15Yes.
10:18Hot Sichuan pepper.
10:21Lots of tomatoes to turn down the pepper.
10:25This is the Yak Hyde.
10:27It's a delicacy.
10:28And then this is the green one is the orchid flower.
10:36Oh.
10:37I always think it's very exotic, the orchid.
10:39But they say it's good for your health.
10:41Mmm.
10:42That's really amazing.
10:43Can you tell us about the famous gross national happiness?
10:47Oh, well, you have in your constitution the pursuit of happiness, the right of every individual.
10:53Yeah, but we don't actually believe that, but please proceed.
10:58I do believe in gross national happiness, good governance, human rights, justice for all, education, health.
11:07It is not a wealthy country.
11:09The average daily wage is very low.
11:11Yes.
11:12But would you say that the average person living in Bhutan is reasonably happy and content?
11:17Most people, yes.
11:19Bhutan is a good welfare state where the health of people are taken care of.
11:23You know, and taken care of very well.
11:53It's a two-and-a-half-hour drive from the capital to the picturesque mountain village of Punaka.
12:13This is a must-see destination and one-time home to Bhutan's revered and beloved Drukpa Kinley, known as the Divine Madman.
12:37Beep beep.
12:38Beep beep.
12:39Beep beep.
12:40Beep beep.
12:41Beep beep.
12:42Beep beep.
12:43Okay.
12:44There you go.
12:45Wow.
12:46Uh...
12:47See, I mean...
12:48I really kind of got nothing to say.
12:55Now, dear viewer, Bhutan is a very devoutly Buddhist country, and in such circumstances I always do my very best to be respectful and restrained, shying away from my usual toilet humor.
13:07Never in the history of television has a host faced a greater challenge, how to talk about what's happening without, uh...
13:17Well, without making the obvious joke.
13:21God, give me strength as we wander through the valley of the low-hanging dick jokes.
13:26I'm trying to be respectful of a five-century religious tradition here.
13:30For centuries, Bhutan has celebrated the, um, phallus.
13:35Um...
13:36I'm not sure about the teeth.
13:38This...
13:39This is the necklace one.
13:41Ooh.
13:42I'm trying to think of a circumstance if you wear that around your neck.
13:44You see them everywhere here.
13:46Oh, jeez, it's a cock-a-latch.
13:49You can make a chess set out of them, huh?
13:51Really?
13:52Yeah.
13:53My dick takes your...
13:54Exactly.
13:55Yeah, that's a little...
13:56Yeah, that's...
13:57That's making a statement of something.
13:58Yeah, it is, it is.
13:59Yeah, it is.
14:00All right, I'm gonna go for the sad one.
14:03And you're going for a sort of...
14:04It's a rainbow.
14:05Rainbow dick.
14:06Five, six.
14:07I want to see you disappearing on the budget, by the way.
14:09Exactly.
14:10How do you write this off?
14:11Do I add a little tip?
14:12No.
14:15Do we have a bag?
14:16Can I pass this along?
14:18I'm not walking around with you.
14:19You know what I mean?
14:20I'm holding tips.
14:21I feel like I'm...
14:22So what are they...
14:23Tell me what they represent.
14:24Uh...
14:25Embarrassment?
14:26All right.
14:29All this is the legacy of Drukbach Hindley,
14:32a Lama and holy man who lived 500 years ago
14:35and spread the tenets of Buddhism
14:37along with a healthy skepticism
14:39for the institutions of power.
14:41We are sitting just below the Chimilhagam,
14:44which is a temple built in the honor of Dupakindle.
14:47The temple is also known as the temple of fertility.
14:49He reveled unapologetically in casual sex,
14:52the copious use of spirits and seduction,
14:55smiting demons and making frequent friends
14:58with what is referred to as his flaming thunderbolt of wisdom,
15:03which is a term you and I are unlikely to get away with.
15:07People from all over the world come here to buy wooden penises
15:10and to hear the stories of the Divine Madman.
15:13It comes from the palace, the phallus palace.
15:15The phallus palace.
15:16They bless you with a...
15:17With a phallus.
15:18Yeah.
15:21Kungasup Tenzin Durji is a journalist and radio host
15:24who knows a few things about the Divine Madman.
15:26The phallus has been a symbol in Vajrayana Buddhism
15:29long before Drupakindle came around.
15:31It's just that because he was such a character,
15:33it's come to be associated with him.
15:35The Divine Madman was a rebel,
15:37questioned his own religion, his own... his fellow monks.
15:41So the monks hated him, of course.
15:43Right.
15:44The establishment hated him.
15:45But the people took readily to him
15:46because he was a guy who came to your house.
15:48It didn't mean that, you know, like other monks
15:50you had to prepare a special meal for him.
15:52He probably wanted your latest batch of ara,
15:55you know, the local rice wine.
15:57And maybe he'd hit on your daughter and your wife as well
16:00in the process.
16:02So you could imagine in 16th century Bhutan
16:04a person who was known to have performed miracles
16:07would strike the fancy of anyone.
16:09What were his miracles?
16:11Well, things like shooting an arrow all the way from Tibet
16:13and landed in a house that's about a few kilometers from here.
16:17But he did exist, right?
16:19Yeah, yeah.
16:20Then the first thing he did when he got to the house
16:21where the arrow had landed was to hit upon the lady of the house.
16:25Yeah, I wouldn't fly these days.
16:28This is one of the most difficult things to understand about Drupakindle
16:31because he breaks our own, our notions about what is right
16:36and what's proper.
16:37This man was essentially saying we should make love.
16:39True.
16:40We should drink.
16:41We should feel pleasure.
16:42Oh, well, not necessarily that.
16:44I think what he was trying to say is that, you know,
16:46all these things that you hold dear to your heart,
16:49such as, you know, your wife and your kids and your house
16:52and all of this, in the end it doesn't really matter.
16:54So you're saying the divine madman was bringing people towards enlightenment?
16:58Yes.
16:59So should I be getting drunk more and having more casual sex?
17:02Will I be more enlightened?
17:03Not just because of that, I'm sure not.
17:06Until about 15 years ago, the east-west highway was the only road in Bhutan.
17:24Bisecting the country, it twists through some pretty gnarly mountain passes
17:29with at times crumbly cliff face on one side
17:34Wow.
17:35and harrowing freaking drop-offs on the other.
17:45The road is undergoing a major expansion with plans to have it fully paved by, well, soup.
17:52He's carving this out of the mountain.
17:53Unbelievable.
17:54How many workers do you say working this?
17:5640,000.
17:57Respect for the natural world is fundamental to Bhutan's spiritual identity.
18:02More than half the country is off-limits to development or timbering.
18:06A whopping 50% of Bhutan's GDP comes from hydropower.
18:11Amazing, huh?
18:12So where are we?
18:13What is this place?
18:14This is the Puna Thangshu hydropower dam.
18:17So this is one of the biggest hydropower dams in Bhutan.
18:20It's about 1,200 megawatts.
18:21How much is that?
18:22That's a lot of refrigerators.
18:24I heard there's going to be a second...
18:26Second dam further down.
18:27So they're going to capture power twice.
18:29If you have already destroyed one river, you know, might as well use it.
18:32Keep the most out of it.
18:33Yeah, get the most out of it.
18:35Dr. Nawang Norbu is the director of the School for Field Studies' Bhutan program.
18:40And what country is building this?
18:42It's mostly India.
18:43Do the Indians build it and then get the power to pay it?
18:45They get the power.
18:46We sell it to them, and then we sort of liquidate the loans away.
18:50We have five such dams which are operational.
18:53Five.
18:54And I think six being constructed at the moment.
18:56You know, obviously there's a lot of destruction.
18:58It will stop some of the fishes from migrating up and down.
19:01We're also talking about a lot of transmission lines.
19:03But obviously for Bhutan, I think when we started on the path of development,
19:07I think we were left with few other options.
19:09And I think this was the best thing for us to do.
19:11The water that comes through this dam, is it an inexhaustible supply?
19:15It's all glacier water.
19:16We hope so.
19:17There are many studies which are showing that the Himalayan glaciers will disappear in about 50 to 60 years.
19:22Whoa, whoa, whoa.
19:23That's soon.
19:24Yeah.
19:25Yeah, but nobody knows for sure.
19:26I mean, the science is debatable.
19:27Are we talking about the difference between 50 years and 100 years?
19:30Maybe.
19:31Or are we talking about whether it's happening at all?
19:32No, it is happening.
19:33There's no doubt about it.
19:34There's no doubt.
19:35And you're not only talking about energy production, but you're also talking about agriculture.
19:39You know, you have less snow means you have less water to feed.
19:42So climate change is going to have a serious impact.
20:05More and more, you'll see.
20:07But how are we talking about the people here?
20:08No, no, they're not coming to us.
20:09You're too hung up.
20:10I can't wait to see.
20:12I can't wait to see.
20:13Then we're not going to see.
20:14You're too hung up.
20:15What's different from the people here?
20:16You are far too hung.
20:17I don't know, amely.
20:18I don't know.
20:19I do think so.
20:20My friends, they're going to have to lift them up.
20:21I don't know.
20:22You're a bit too discouraged.
20:23You're a bit too old and I'm really disappointed.
20:24I can't see you too.
20:25You're too old and I can see you.
20:27You're too old and easy.
20:29I'm doing too old and easy.
20:32I'm doing too late and I can't see you.
20:33As we head further and further east, road conditions get sketchier.
21:03Whoa.
21:16Wow.
21:18Caught in the landslide.
21:21That whole thing collapsed.
21:23That's not encouraging.
21:25What if our car did that?
21:28That's a big, freaky...
21:30Oh shoot, he's gonna have to move that whole thing?
21:33I think we're gonna freeze out here like rats tonight.
21:44Whoa!
21:52He's looking as though he's going into the big one. Here he goes.
21:55Whoa.
21:57Whoa.
21:59Hey, he's through.
22:04I think that's it.
22:05Saddle up.
22:06That song about the road.
22:15Ah.
22:16Hmm.
22:17It says almost heaven, West Virginia, Blue Ridge Mountains.
22:20Country roads.
22:21John Denver?
22:22That's where my head went first.
22:23Wow.
22:24That's where my head went first.
22:25Wow.
22:26The roots.
22:27That's where my head went first.
22:29That's where I think my head went first.
22:30How could I do that?
22:31How could I do that?
22:33That's where I was there.
22:34I was born then.
22:35I was nicked, right?
22:36Yeah, I was born there.
22:37It is considered enlightening and therapeutic to think about death for a few minutes a day.
23:01Yes. You are reminded time and again not to take things too seriously.
23:08This is in fact an illusion, isn't it? Life is but a dream.
23:12Yeah.
23:31Pailala Pass, the gateway to central Bhutan.
23:54Here, nomadic herders and their yaks come down from higher elevations to spend the winter months.
24:10And from the yak you get meat?
24:12Meat.
24:13The fur?
24:14The fur, milk, cheese.
24:15Butter?
24:16Yeah.
24:17This is butter tea.
24:19Yak tea.
24:20Yeah, with yak butter.
24:21Have you had this before?
24:22Never.
24:23You're either going to love it or you're not going to love it.
24:32It's very unique.
24:34Ooh.
24:35It's like yak jerky.
24:40Yak meat and some spinach.
24:43You'll like these greens, man.
24:44They are spicy.
24:45Do I have yak?
24:46Is this yak meat?
24:47Yeah, that's yak meat.
24:48Okay, I got to avoid the yak meat.
24:49And then these are dried chilies which are boiled.
24:54Ah, the yak cheese with boiled dried chilies.
24:57Yeah.
24:58I'm all over that.
25:01This is excellent.
25:02Yeah.
25:03Excellent.
25:04Really good.
25:07So yak herding is dying, we're starting to hear.
25:10People are giving it up.
25:12Why?
25:13Better opportunities, I suppose.
25:14Yak herding is a difficult life.
25:15She herself has given up now.
25:16Galut today.
25:17So she has given all her yaks to her sisters.
25:20So she's now, she has a shop and she's gone up the ladder.
25:24She is in charge of the business and she makes the decisions for the family.
25:39In Bhutan women are the boss.
25:41Women inherit whatever the parents own.
25:43It's not the sons.
25:44Always.
25:45Yes.
25:46All inheritance goes to the women.
25:47Women.
25:48What is this?
25:49This is arah with some cordyceps in it.
25:52What?
25:53That is a cordyceps?
25:54Right there.
25:55That is the cordyceps.
25:56Which is?
25:57Essentially the cordyceps is a fungus which infects the larvae of the goose moths.
26:02A caterpillar that has been invaded by fungus.
26:05Essentially takes over the whole larvae, kills it, sort of mummifies the whole thing.
26:10Then in the spring it protrudes out again.
26:12Is there any caterpillar left at the end or is it sort of like fossilized?
26:15It's just a fossilized.
26:16Meaning it is not meat, it is vegetarian.
26:19Right.
26:20Cordyceps are the new profit center for a culture that used to revolve almost entirely around the yak.
26:27This stuff costs how much a kilo?
26:30On average it's about $20,000.
26:33$20,000 US.
26:34That's a lot.
26:35May I?
26:36Yes, please.
26:40What does this do for you?
26:41It's supposed to increase your virility.
26:43It's supposed to cure piles, even hepatitis.
26:46Really?
26:47Hepatitis?
26:48Piles, eh?
26:49What is piles, sir?
26:50Hemorrhoids.
26:51And the Chinese athletes have been taking it for quite some time.
26:54So they're doping on...
26:55They're doping on fungus.
26:56They're doping on fungus.
26:57They're doping on fungus.
26:58Yeah.
26:59It's pretty tasty.
27:00Yeah, it also says that you produce more semen.
27:04I don't know how probably it's true, but...
27:07What about the...
27:08What's his name?
27:09The Divine Madman.
27:10Maybe the guy was, you know, eating a lot of cordyceps.
27:13Exactly.
27:14It's getting hot in here.
27:27Well, no, it's not actually.
27:29It's you.
27:30It's you, man.
27:31What happens if you eat too many?
27:33What?
27:35What?
27:40What?
27:41I'm not hearing you all.
27:42I'd already try it for me.
27:43I'm not hearing myself as cell.
27:46I'm not hearing...
27:48No, no, no, no...
27:50No, no, no, no, no!
27:53No, no, no, no, no, no, no, no.
27:56No, no, no, no, no.
27:58I don't care.
28:00We are here on the east-west highway.
28:19After this pass, we were actually entering the Black Mountain Forest, some of the most
28:24pristine forests in Bhutan, but also supposed to be connected to a lot of evil spirits.
28:28With the last remnants of sun still with us, and the views, spectacular, enthusiastic amateur
28:36mixologist Darren suggests a pit stop.
28:38This is a cool spot, no?
28:40Yeah.
28:40To fortify ourselves against the reputed horrors ahead.
28:45So our main alcohol, aura?
28:47Is that what it's called?
28:48Take a whiff.
28:49Oh, jeez.
28:51Oh, Jesus.
28:52Oh, we have this, which is a bitter.
28:55Yeah, okay.
28:56It's like aftershave.
28:58Exactly.
28:59Should we put some orange in there?
29:01Yeah, we do have oranges.
29:04Have you had that spin in the air, catching the other hand?
29:08No, ladies.
29:10Oh, oh, hold on.
29:11What?
29:11Hold on, hold on, hold on.
29:14Dude, it needs a Yeti in it.
29:17The Bhutanese pepper.
29:18No, no, no, go for it.
29:19Really?
29:19What the scene's in?
29:20No, do it.
29:21Do it.
29:21Let's do it.
29:22Let's try it.
29:22It has a bite.
29:30Did you get it?
29:30Like, did you get a little sting?
29:31Oh, I'm getting it.
29:32I'm getting it.
29:33Actually, this is pretty good.
29:34Yeah, I could drink a lot of these.
29:36We decide, as travelers through demon-infested forests at night, all too frequently do, to stop by a welcoming roadhouse.
30:01We're a conversation with Gaurav Durji, our government rep, does little to steal us for the journey ahead.
30:08What are we drinking tonight?
30:09Uh, we are drinking K5.
30:11Called K5.
30:12K5.
30:13The whiskey is dedicated to the present king.
30:15He is fifth king in life.
30:17Do they still make K4 or no more?
30:19No, we don't have K4, just K5.
30:22Good, thank you.
30:22Okay.
30:29Most of the guys brought in from India?
30:31Most of them from India.
30:33Where do these guys live?
30:34They have small huts built at the construction site.
30:38In the mythology of the area, much of it likely predating even Buddhism, demons inhabit these forests.
30:45Nasty demons.
30:46Buddha had 1,000 lives.
30:48In one of his 500 good lives, he was exiled to Bhutan because this was the most dreaded place.
30:55Maybe that's why you were never invaded.
30:57Yeah.
30:57One of the evil spirits is called Yenadim, and she's supposed to be the commander-in-chief of all in the evil spirits.
31:08One of the most terrifying things you could ever see is her face.
31:12If you see her, you'd die.
31:14You dropped dead.
31:15You dropped dead.
31:15So if Darren has to, like, take a piss and, you know, go out in the woods, that would be not advisable?
31:20Ah, no.
31:21It's not advisable to go out at night.
31:23And no lumbering?
31:24No one's cutting down trees here?
31:25No one.
31:26Well, as long as we know, the whole mountain range is virgin.
31:30But what about putting the road through?
31:31I mean, you got to say a higher Indian.
31:33The road is on the other side of the mountain.
31:36We built it purposefully that way.
31:38Really?
31:39So, like, nobody's got a house or?
31:41No, nothing.
31:42Nothing.
31:42There's nothing like that.
31:43Even if people lose cattle, whatever, they don't go into that.
31:47Still?
31:48Still.
31:48Even to this day.
32:18Here in the mist-covered valleys and imposing peaks,
32:46it's easy to imagine what this place looked like
32:49before Bhutan first opened the door to outsiders.
33:08Boomtang is the end of the road for us.
33:10The spiritual heartland of Bhutan.
33:16Archery is the national sport, an important community event
33:25that binds remote villages together in fierce competition
33:29and in a rollicking good time.
33:31Today is the day of a match between Tramsa and a rival village.
33:46But first, food.
33:53Okay, you have to, you know.
33:56No, no, no.
33:57This way.
33:58See, this way.
33:58Oh, right.
33:59Okay.
34:00No, yours is too big.
34:01Too big.
34:01Too big.
34:02Yeah, okay.
34:03It's okay?
34:03When you put it in the mouth, you have to put it this way.
34:06Oh, okay.
34:08No, it's not bulging.
34:09Is it bulging?
34:10Oh, not bulging?
34:11It's not bulge.
34:12No bulge.
34:12Oh, yeah.
34:16I'm down with that, man.
34:17That's pork?
34:18Why is it translucent?
34:20They braise it rather than fry it so it becomes clear.
34:24This is, like, unbelievable.
34:27We eat everything.
34:29We don't throw it on.
34:30This is the bone.
34:31Bone.
34:32On the leg.
34:34Chop it and boil it.
34:36That's good, man.
34:41Yeah.
34:41That's just so good.
34:43I'm going with the pepper.
34:45Ooh.
34:49That's setting my hair on fire.
34:51This is dried turnip leaves.
34:53Oh, turnip greens.
34:56Turnip leaves is a delicacy inside.
34:59A little bit of butter and milk.
35:01Now, this is a yak no leg.
35:08Yak leg.
35:14So does meat eating go all the way back or what people vegetarian?
35:17All the way back.
35:18All the way.
35:19In fact, the Buddhists were considered cannibals.
35:22Say that again?
35:23Buddhists were considered cannibals.
35:25The only vegetable we had was potato and radish.
35:30That's it.
35:30Nothing else.
35:31Wow.
35:31People don't kill, but they would eat, you know, one another if somebody dies.
35:37We are not supposed to eat.
35:38You're not supposed to eat yak.
35:39No, no.
35:40We are not supposed to eat meat.
35:41You're not supposed to eat meat.
35:42Buddhism.
35:43I mean, hardcore Buddhism.
35:44But culturally, because of terrain, we had no choice.
35:47Right.
35:49Ooh.
35:50Is that beet nut?
35:50Yeah.
35:51Beetle nut.
35:51Oh, can I try?
35:52Yeah, yeah.
35:54I'm not having it.
35:55Have you done it?
35:56Yes, yes, I have.
35:59You asked for it.
35:59You chew up the green?
36:02Yeah.
36:02Everything chewed together.
36:03You know, you just...
36:04Like cod.
36:09Whoa.
36:10Oh, man.
36:12You getting a buzz?
36:13My whole mouth is numb.
36:17I gotta do something about this.
36:18Totally high off of that thing.
36:25Oh, jeez.
36:35Just stepped into a fresh loaf of shit.
36:37I'm right here.
36:48Oh, jeez.
36:51It's a serious distance.
36:53The rules are simple.
36:55Shoot your arrow the length of one and a half football fields high in the air, in this case
37:00across the East-West Highway, all the way, hopefully, into a small target.
37:04Good luck with that.
37:06It looks like you need a 50 caliber to hit that target.
37:08I could barely see it flying through the air.
37:11Can you see the arrows?
37:13No.
37:13Yeah.
37:14What's interesting is the other team is often standing by the target, and hanging out looking
37:34cool for as long as possible as an arrow flies in your general direction is standard practice.
37:39Yeah, yeah.
37:40When points are scored, there's singing and dancing and a fair amount of what can only
37:52be called playful taunting.
37:54Hit.
37:57The Bhutanese version of in your face.
38:02Brag dance.
38:06You're drinking, man.
38:07Yeah.
38:08What could possibly go wrong?
38:10One in a million shot.
38:20I love the little kid over there with the juice box 10 feet from the line of fire.
38:29Oh, they're screaming.
38:39You just want to distract, you know?
38:41Why?
38:42Not to hit in the target.
38:43So they're anti-cheerleaders.
38:45Yes.
38:45Why are they saying that?
38:47Oh, this short guy, he can't beat.
38:49So...
38:50They're calling him short?
38:51Yeah.
38:51I have a bald head and everything.
38:53Why are they dancing?
38:54Why are they saying that?
38:54Yeah.
38:56Yeah.
38:59Why are they saying that?
39:06Yes, yes.
39:08Why are they saying that they'd be like training to me?
39:11Why are they telling me?
39:11Exactly.
39:12I mean they're late for you.
39:12Oh
39:42This is very religious site it's called the burning lake burning lake a burning river the burning lake, but I think it's actually a river
40:09I see people are leaving prayer flags and these things these are called sasas these offerings
40:18Sometimes they're made out of clay and sometimes they're made out of actually the ashes of the dead
40:22Whoa
40:23Wow that's pretty awesome
40:27It's beautiful
40:29A little pile of incense
40:39Where do you think this country is headed?
40:47Honestly I don't know what I believe
40:48I don't know if it's good or bad
40:50It seems like Shangri-La
40:52But for the place that invented gross national happiness
40:55They're contented under two dollars a day
40:57Yes
40:58I don't want my child herding yak
41:00And I don't know that a lot of parents do
41:02Even here
41:03Having a fully paved road across this entire country
41:06This country is going to be a very very different place in five years
41:08The question is do they stay committed to happiness and not to consumption
41:13Getting off the plane when we got here there were many flat screen TVs
41:18First comes electricity then comes the television then come pop stars and materialism
41:23But maybe that's arrogant maybe that's just you know easy for me to say
41:27I don't know a lot of the people we talked to there's a tremendous amount to respect of what they have
41:32We've finally seen the effects of climate change in a terrifying way
41:35Which they're all going to be able to witness on their flat screen TVs
41:39You know I think people are going to really hold on to treasures like this
41:43I know it's beautiful
41:44I'm glad it hasn't been up yet by the world
41:57My later
42:04My father
42:06We've gotta hunt
42:07Sun
42:09Saut
42:10Il
42:11Il
42:14Il
42:17Il
42:18Il
42:20Il
42:21D
42:22Il
42:23Il
42:24Il
42:24Il
42:26And these are the same reason why I should find a way to find a way to look at them
42:31In the middle of the week, when the time was coming towards that
42:33They were just some of my friends, they were together
42:35They were just the same
42:36Speaking nonsense, we should go to Dubai
42:38Come out again, come out, come about
42:39Come out again
42:41Now we have to do the same time
42:43We will we will be very happy
42:45We will have to do the same before
42:47We will have to leave our heads
42:49Now we will have to make a like
42:51We will be very happy
42:56I'm supposed to put them somewhere where they'll last for a while and make a prayer.
43:26I'm supposed to put them somewhere where they'll last for a while and make a prayer.
43:56I'm supposed to put them somewhere where they'll last for a while.
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