写真

This young man rapidly escorts what I presume to be his younger sister through the courtyard of the performers at the annual Thimphu tsechu at the Trashi Chhoe dzong.

The pair are dressed in the very typical national outfits, the gho and the kira, which are customary if you wish to enter the dzong as well as in dealing with officials in daily life. The boy wears a gho, the traditional robe and knee length socks. An adult person would also wear a kabney for this special occasion. It is a white scarf that would be folded in an intricate way and tied over the left shoulder, the folding also indicating the social status of the person wearing it.

The young girl wears a kira, a dress folded and tied accompanied by a long sleeved blouse underneath. Again, for a formal occasion a woman would also wear a toego, a short Tibetan-style jacket, on top of it, as well as a coloured scarf balanced over the left shoulder, similar to the male kabney. The fabrics used as well as the patterns and colours will again point to the social standing of the wearer.

Although you will see people wearing ghos and kiras every day, going to the tsechu is a perfect opportunity to see all the people coming in their best clothes. Most of the time I found myself spending more time watching the people rather than the performance.

The title of this shot hints to my very limited understanding of dzongkha, and can be translated roughly to come on, let's go, hurry or something to that effect...