Bhutan, located in the eastern Himalayas, borders China to the north and India to the south, east and west. The altitude varies from 300m (1000ft) in the narrow lowland region to 7000m (22,000ft) in the Himalayan plateau in the north. The foothills are tropical and home to deer, lion, leopards and the rare golden monkey. The Inner Himalaya region is temperate; wildlife includes bear, boar and sambar and the area is rich in deciduous forests. Thimphu, the capital of Bhutan, lies at a height of over 2400m (8000ft) in a fertile valley. It resembles a large, widely dispersed village rather than a capital. The yearly religious Thimphu Festival is held in the courtyard directly in front of the National Assembly Hall. A visit to the Paro Valley and the Taktsang (Tiger’s Nest) Monastery clinging to the face of a 900m (2952ft) precipice is highly recommended. Restaurants are scarce and most tourists eat vegetarian food served buffet-style in their hotels. Cheese is a popular ingredient, the most popular being datse (cow’s milk cheese). Rice is ubiquitous and is sometimes flavoured with saffron. The most popular drink is souza (Bhutanese tea).

South Asia (between Assam in northeast India and China).

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38,364 sq km (14,812 sq miles).

2,232,291 (official estimate 2005). It should be noted that population estimates vary hugely for Bhutan - some are as low as around 700,000.

14.1 per sq km.

Thimphu. Population: 716,214 (official estimate 2002).

Bhutan is located in the eastern Himalayas, bordered to the north by China and to the south, east and west by India. The altitude varies from 300m (1000ft) in the narrow lowland region to 7000m (22,000ft) in the Himalayan plateau in the north, and there are three distinct climatic regions. The foothills are tropical and home to deer, lion, leopards and the rare golden monkey as well as much tropical vegetation, including many species of wild orchids. The Inner Himalaya region is temperate; wildlife includes bear, boar and sambar, and the area is rich in deciduous forests. The High Himalaya region is very thinly populated, but the steep mountain slopes are the home of many species of animals, including snow leopards and musk deer.

Constitutional Monarchy. Head of State and Government: Druk Gyalpo (‘Dragon King’) Jigme Singye Wangchuk since 1972. Recent history: Bhutan is a Buddhist Kingdom and there are close links between the Monarchy and the priesthood. Since the 1950s Bhutan has established some representative political institutions, including an indirectly elected 150-member National Assembly (Tshogdu Chhenmo) and elected village herdsmen, but there are no political parties. In 1998, the King gave up some of the Monarch's absolute powers and the Assembly elected a Cabinet for the first time. Ministers have a five year term, after which they face a vote of confidence. Elections for the National Assembly were last held on 28 June 2003. All six Cabinet Ministers retained their positions. A draft constitution is now with the King and his Ministers, and will soon be debated by the members of the National Assembly. The preservation of the environment and distinctive social, cultural and religious ways of life of the Drukpas is likely to continue to dominate policy formulation in Bhutan.

Dzongkha is the official language. A large number of dialects are spoken, owing to the physical isolation of many villages. Sharchop Kha, from eastern Bhutan, is the most widely spoken. Nepali is common in the south of the country. English has been the language of educational instruction since 1964 and is widely spoken.

The Tantric form of Mahayana Buddhism (Drukpa Kagyu) is the state religion; the majority of Bhutanese people follow the Drukpa school of the Kagyupa sect. Those living in the south are mainly Hindu.

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The lifestyle, manners and customs of the Bhutanese are in many respects unique to the area. The strongest influence on social conventions is the country’s state religion, and everywhere one can see the reminders of Buddhism and the original religion of Tibet, Bonism. There are no rigid clan systems and equal rights exist between men and women. The majority of the Bhutanese live an agrarian lifestyle. In 1989, it was made compulsory for citizens to wear national dress in public; the men wear a gho, a robe resembling a dressing gown with upturned white silk cuffs and knee-high socks, whilst the women wear a kira, a sari-like garment that is furnished with ornate brooches and worn over a wraparound skirt. Bhutan has also now outlawed the sale of tobacco products, and also banned smoking in public places. The political leaders of the country have also been religious leaders historically. For years the country has deliberately isolated itself from visitors, and has only recently opened up to the outside world, a policy which is now to some extent being reversed. But Bhutan continues to bear the hallmarks of seemingly peculiar customs borne from legacy and legend. Giant phalluses can often be seen painted onto walls, etc, in order to ward off evil spirits. Dogs are regarded as being the highest animal lifeform, with the best chance of being reborn as humans. They are treated with reverence and often run freely and noisily through villages.