Postcards from Paro, a photo from Paro, West

Photographer's Note

This is Rinpung Dzong, built in the 17th century and the administrative and religious center of Paro district in western Bhutan. I took this photo from the bridge I showed in my last post.

There is a dzong similar to this in almost every district of Bhutan. They contain the offices of the local administration and the district's most important monastery and temple. Usually the district court can also be found in the dzong. In Bhutan politics and religion are closely intertwined, so having civilian bureaucrats and monks working side by side is perfectly natural.

Some scenes in the 1993 film Little Buddha, directed by Bernardo Bertolucci, were shot inside Rinpung Dzong. The bridge seen in my last photo also featured in that Oscar winning movie. You can enter the courtyard of this magnificent complex if you drag the little yellow Google man to the coordinates 27.42694 89.42294.

The building seen further up the hill is Ta Dzong, a former watchtower built in 1649 and since 1968 housing the National Museum of Bhutan,

A third dzong on another hillside outside Paro can be seen in the workshop. Both photos were scanned from Kodachrome slides.

Here is a larger version of the main photo.

ikeharel, ikeharel, papagolf21, pajaran, alvaraalto, snunney, tyro, Fis2, Royaldevon, jean113, jhm, notrap, macjake, COSTANTINO, worldcitizen, adramad, mcmtanyel, ChrisJ, pierrefonds has marked this note useful

Critiques | Translate

pajaran (115891) 2018-12-30 1:23

Dobar dan.
Lep pogled, interesantan i dobar tekst ...
Dobar rad sa lepom fotografijom u radionici, lepo poakzano, dobra perspektiva i kontrast, lepe boje.
Lepa reka i zeleno drvece na obali, lepa arhitektura.
Zelim vam lep dan za odmor, sve najbolje.
Paja.

Good day.
Nice view, interesting and good text ...
Good work with nice photo in the workshop, beautifully crafted, good perspective and contrast, nice colors.
Beautiful river and green trees on the shore, beautiful architecture.
I wish you a nice day for rest, all the best.

papagolf21 (152607) 2018-12-30 1:24

Bonjour, cher Gert,
Des archives toujours appr馗i馥s car le d駱aysement est garanti. Il est plaisant de d馗ouvrir des lieux, des architectures, des modes de vie diff駻ents.
Les notes sont parfaites pour mieux appr馗ier les diff駻entes vues.
Amiti駸.
Philippe

alvaraalto (42804) 2018-12-30 1:26

Hello Gert,
With so many beautiful photos in your archive, all of which have to be digitized, you almost do not get time to take new photos.
The blue here is perhaps a bit predominant, but the quality is amazingly good again.
Excellent presentation
Have a good Sunday, groet Rob

snunney (130967) 2018-12-30 1:39

Hello Gert,
A not so old image from your archive, perfectly composed and very well realised. The dzong is very well placed and the river rushing past gives depth and perspective to the composition. Good colour contrasts and excellent sharpness.

Tue (92360) 2018-12-30 1:42

Hej Gert,
Et imponerende syn af denne hvide bygning t誥 p� flodkanten. Kompositionen er meget st誡k med floden i forgrunden og dens hurtigt strmende vand. Farverne var meget rige p� denne solrige dag.
Lars

tyro (30513) 2018-12-30 1:55

Hello Gert,

Once again, a fascinating and very informative note - I have to confess that I had never heard of the word "Dzong" but now I can understand. Thank you so much too for including those co-ordinates - I was able to spend some time in the courtyard exploring some beautiful architecture and decorations there - and I also "walked" across the covered bridge which you showed in your last post. Did you actually go inside the dzong yourself and did you take any photos in there?

A wonderful note and two excellent photographs making a perfect upload for TE!

Fabulous!

Kind Regards,

John.

mesutilgim (0) 2018-12-30 2:04

Hello dear Gert,
Again a topclass "oldie" in your gallery, this time from Paro in Bhutan. Very good pov and sharpness. Nice deep blue sky creates a perfect background. Interesting and usefull notes.
TFS and best regards
MESUT ILGIM

Fis2 (170747) 2018-12-30 3:03

Witaj Gert!
Your archive is a well without a bottom.
I like to view photos from places unattainable to me.
Thank you!
A very interesting building.
Excellent presentation.
Warm regards from southern Greater Poland!
Nice sunday my friend.
Krzysztof

Royaldevon (85932) 2018-12-30 3:43

Hello Gert,

Your archives must be like a travel book.
To access them must be like stepping back in time, not just to the scenes but, to your own life!

These photographs show amazing places, almost untouched by modernisation.
The styles and the materials, used by the populations, show their own individual character.
Again, the skill of composition shines through.

Do you remember words such as Rinpung Dzong or are they labelled on the slides?

My warm regards,
Bev :-)

Silvio1953 (221593) 2018-12-30 4:15

Ciao Gert, great POV on fantastic architecture, lovely composition with beautiful river in FG, wonderful colors, excellent clarity and splendid light, very well done, my friend, ciao Silvio

jean113 (27853) 2018-12-30 5:46

Hello Gert, a great point of view of the Dzong, (something that I have never heard of before.)
We get a good impression of its' size; amazing that it was built in the 1600s.
Very interesting note to support your picture.
I like the additional picture too.
Regards Jean.

jhm (211736) 2018-12-30 6:25

Hello Gert,

We see Rinpung Dzong on a very nice way.
Create very much depth and perspective.
You chose a nice angle, you create nice picture and sharp image .
Very well done, TFS.

Best regards,
John

BennyV (34748) 2018-12-30 7:24

Classic scene, lovely capture. Fine informative note too. Thanks, Gert. Best wishes for the new year.

Benny

rychem (72187) 2018-12-30 8:12

A very good archive photo, very well captured, the quality is perfect
regards Ryszard

Nicou (193806) 2018-12-30 8:25

Hello

quelle vue de ce centre religieux fantastique compo e tiamge quel 馘ifice et captage quel forme et rendu sur la pierre et ce rouge sur son 駱eron rocheux avec la rivi鑽e en fond fantastique cpatage et vue.
Bravo et belle soir馥
Nicou

emka (158156) 2018-12-30 10:16

Hello Gert,

I have read that Bhutan is the happiest country in the world and very beautiful. Unfortunately, the dzongs of Bhutan are not for the poor backpacker, it is also one of the more expensive countries. The minimum daily package cost for visiting Bhutan is $200 (or 250). These costs are based on a minimum group size of three people and the cost goes up if you want to book a private, one or two person, trip. Even if the most cost in already included (accommodation, transportation, guide), it is much too much for me. Fortunately, I can see the beauty of it on your pictures. Not so old picture - just the beginning of digital cameras.

Kind regrads Malgo

GyurMaster (24830) 2018-12-30 13:05

Dear Gert,

Its really a nice postcard, though with a good composition: the river bank in the right bottom is well-aligned to the frame. The workshop is an even more interesting composition.

I wish you a happy new year's eve & new year!
Gy.

carlo62 (81265) 2018-12-30 14:20

Ciao Gert
ottimo il risultato della scansione, la foto � ancora molto bella oltre che ben composta in origine.
Grazie per l'omaggio a Bernardo Bertolucci, penso che se lo meriti.
Buon anno
Carlo

ifege (48085) 2018-12-30 15:15

Hi Gert
Another good one from the archives from a fascinating country that I haven't been to.
Cheers
Ian

kasianowak (17676) 2018-12-30 15:51

Hi Gert
Perfect weather for photographing white dzongs on a hill. Direct sunlight enhances the green of the vegetation and the white of the building seems truly brilliant. Also, the blue sky makes for a perfect background.
Best wishes
Kasia

ikeharel (113345) 2018-12-30 22:56

Can only imagine the beautiful scenery that might be seen from this religious place, Gert.
This is a picture I always refer as TE mission par-excellence, as we get to see places that not everyone can/may go to see.
Wish you and your family a happy 2019 year.
Ike

macjake (98456) 2018-12-30 23:22

Hi Gert
something is wrong...very wrong...Gert posting a scenic Postcard and Craig posting a family scene...its the Bizarro World where everything is backwards! hahaha
Perhaps we are influencing each other in a sub conscious manner :) You know i'm going to enjoy this one. this scan came out very well, gotta be pleased with it. the blues are strong and make a bold statement, I like that. maybe made more so by the contrasting whites. easy on the eyes, flowing nicely through the frame, its a fine shot. cheers
Craig

COSTANTINO (116490) 2018-12-30 23:44

Hello dear Gert and have a nice time
and a many wishes from me to you
personally for a Happy New Year
2019 with happiness and health
This religious center of Paro seems
as name with Paros island in Aegean sea
welldone
regards
Costantino

dkmurphys (79209) 2018-12-31 1:41

Hello,
Very attractive image from that exotic country. How interesting a visit there must be!

Enjoy a great new year!

Daniel

jmdias (115156) 2018-12-31 5:08

gert

in some aspects its shapes an "pose" remind me the castle of toledo in spain. nice details of the buildings and the special natural environment around.
take care and happy 2019
jorge

worldcitizen (16072) 2018-12-31 8:47

Hello Gert,
Great postcard! The water and greenery in the foreground are lovely, and the stately dzong sits proudly atop the hill. I learned something new from this post, since I had never heard the word dzong before. I'm sure it will come in handy in a word puzzle or trivia game in the future. :-)

adramad (72978) 2018-12-31 10:32

Hello Gert.
Imposing building very well preserved, whose style reminds me of some of Tibet's image, the landscape is great.
A magnificent color that gives a lot of chromatic richness to the image.
Very good management of lighting and sharpness.
Well done. I like it.
I wish you a great week and a very Happy New Year 2019, for you and your family.
Very best regards.
Luis.

lousat (139266) 2018-12-31 11:47

Hi Gert,beautiful memory from Bhutan to end this 2018! A very old building with an interesting and long history as i can read and still well preserves,taken in the best postcard style and excellent quality too. Interesting too the WS,taken in a curious way,like a stolen secret. Happy new year and thanks! Luciano

mcmtanyel (68503) 2018-12-31 19:31

Hello Gert,
Two lovely postcards from Paro. I think I would have cropped the WS photo such that the rightmost flag forms right frame of the photo.
I wish you a Happy 2019,
MT

Cricri (176) 2018-12-31 22:53

Hi Gert
Bon travail dans les d騁ails et couleurs de cette image ancienne, scanner, bien composer
Bonne ann馥 2019
cricri

ChrisJ (171822) 2018-12-31 23:05

Hello Gert,

The Buddhist Monastery looks Tibetan in style, although I have never been to either Bhutan or Tibet. Excellent sharpness and a fine upward pov. The meandering stream adds lead in lines and perspective. Tfs!

notrap (7812) 2019-01-02 3:16

Hello Gert,
as you surely know by now, I like postcards, and try myself to take as much postcard-pictures I can. In this case I agree with alvaraalto that the blue is a bit too much, but nothing that couldn't be fixed within a second in photoshop.
Kind regards,
Elvira

[workshop] [compare] +

pierrefonds (114448) 2019-01-02 7:35

Hi Gert,

You have captured well the speed of the current. The point of view is showing the details of the Rinpung Dzong building. The light is making the colours to stand out. Have a nice dya.

Pierre

jemaflor (147128) 2019-01-03 23:26

Hi Gert,
Beautiful landscape and composition with this building and the landscape around, lovely light well captured, pleasant colors, well made, tfs.

Ilonka1974 (10289) 2019-01-27 11:55

Hi Gert,
Very nice capture of this impressive building.
Unique style of architecture, very well defined in your POV.
Best regards
Janusz

Miguel82 (47110) 2019-05-23 12:49

Hello Gert, this dzong is located in a peaceful rural area. The river is flowing very close to the Buddhist monastery. The building houses administrative office and the monks. It's interesting to signal that in Bhutan religion and politics are intertwined. Instructive text

PiotrF (54666) 2020-10-24 15:18

Hello Gert,
A very nice view of Rinpung Dzong, unique place.
Great picture from your archive.
Photo with good composition and good quality.
Fine presentation.
Regards
Piotr