Why I Got Pissed Off at Bhutan and the Subsequent Birth of ‘Adventure Travel Bhutan’

Before I headed out on my recent 4th trip to Bhutan to help put on the Bhutan International Marathon, I noticed I was a tad irritated and reticent. I was spending yet another big chunk of money and time going back to the same place in which I had already spent 6 months volunteering and roaming about. I’d see the same people and work with the same organization for an event that I believed had taken us much too long to bring to fruition. The sameness of it all just wasn’t my MO. And for that, I was feeling a bit, well, pissed off.

A few months later, another soul-opening trip behind me and the silly pissed-off feeling in the distant past; I’ve decided to double my time in Bhutan in 2015…Go figure.

Though I appreciate the luxury and comforts of routine and familiarity just like the next American, my passions tend to thrive when I change things up. I’m the self employed person who regularly creates new projects and challenges and the endurance athlete who changes up training routes weekly. I even tend to drive different ways to get to the same place, just for the change in scenery. Even the act of choosing the new route or thinking about the new project excites me. And as a go-big traveler when it comes to adventure, my resume exposes that I’ve experienced a broad variety of countries and geography. New cultures, the unknown, off-the-beaten path travel schedules all continue to happily satisfy my curiosities.

So when I created then put in motion Expedition Bhutan, I could have never imagined—even via my love-at-first-sight experience in that country—that I’d go back again and again. Getting to Bhutan is a big trip, as big trips go. Why would I keep spending my precious time and money in the same remote spot when there are so many more places that carry intrigue? Perhaps this past trip would just need to be the final one. Repeated commitments (I created) there were cramping my life style!

Though I feel like an ungrateful bitch in even writing this down and laughed well with my Bhutanese colleagues when I shared all of this with them prior to my leaving the country, there is no denying that I have steady and unending passion for helping the country of Bhutan and sharing that unique country with many others. It is as bafflingly tranquil, accepting and jovial as the glossy photoed books say. And though Bhutan is small and steady and simple, it is never the same. Each trip is as expanding and soul-filling as is traveling to a new land. So for now, I’m going with it and I’m going all in.

So in 2015, I’ll be offering three tours for outsiders to experience the country through endurance events and an epic Trek via Adventure Travel Bhutan. The trips will be wrapped around the Bhutan International Marathon, the Tour of the Dragon and the Snowman Trek. I’ll be volunteering with the two races and using the Snowman Trek and a subsequent trek to introduce running camps in various settlements throughout the country.

In the meantime I have continuous dialog going with the Bhutan Olympic Committee about unequal prize money in the country, equal growth in sport for boys and girls, and the ins and outs of organizing and putting on events. Upon my return to Bhutan I’ll also be doing some additional talks and clinics.

My dear friend Karma believes that I must have lived in Bhutan in a past life and so I am continually drawn back to my roots. As for me, I’m not exactly certain of my repeated draw to this back-in-time local and for once—I’m not trying to figure it all out. Won’t you join me in Bhutan?!