the tea stall on the border of India
waiting for a brilliant idea
ten cups of chai later, reading a map
almost nodded out for a nap

wanted to visit Bhutan
as a world traveler and the fan
twelve years planned the visit
but on the border without a permit

from Mumbai to New Jalpaiguri
the Gitanjali Express didn't hurry
crossed India from west to east
the train ride was a visual feast

arrived at the north-east gateway
connecting four countries within a day
just sat in a tea room now stalled
sweaty with the squirts and appalled

had been there all alone
a man with a bald head like a dome
sat for some chai and rice
a friendly look on his face

ask if he spoke English
but he could only speak a bit
yet understood my plan
offered to take me to Bhutan

being a Buddhist lama there
he even paid my bus fare
to enter by the city Phuentsholing
the city of Bhutan's queen and king

passed through the Bhutan Gate
festooned with dragons paintings
high up on a Himalayan foothill
the monastery like a jewel revealed

he took us up in a Suzuki van
the elevated view was like heaven
visited his Karbandi Monastery
the beginning of a new story

Buddhist lama & Christian priest
are likewise the earth's tourist
tuned together by the universal sign
no wise person could malign











2.8 10/10