SIKHIM AND BHUTAN
a ceremony, as I understand that hitherto it has been the custom of the recipient of an honour to go to the Deb and head lamas to receive their blessings, while congratulations and presents are received at his private dwelling.
One of the pleasantest incidents during my stay in Poonakha was an expedition to the Norbugang and Ta-lo monasteries; but equally full of interest was the inspection I made of the fort and palace of Poonakha, which I will try to describe. Poonakha is a typical example of the Bhutanese forts, which throughout the country are built after one common plan. The site selected is always a commanding one, generally on a ridge, with the primary object of defence. In the case of Poonakha, however, the building is situated on a tongue of land running down between the rivers Mo-chhu and Po-chhu just above the junction, and as both rivers are unfordable three sides of the parallelogram are most efficiently protected from attack. Access to the Jong on the river side is by means of two substantial cantilever bridges, strengthened by strong gateways of heavy timber studded with iron, with strong defensive towers at each end, through which the roadway runs. On the only land side the fort is protected by a massive masonry wall, built from river to river, commanding the open plain, which the enemy would have to cross to approach the Jong. There are two strongly defended gateways in the wall.
Poonakha, lying between the rivers, is easily supplied with water, but other forts built on a ridge have some difficulty, and are in many cases, as at Dug-gye, obliged to build sunk passages zigzagging down to the valley, and protected by towers at each turning, to ensure a supply of water in the event of a siege. Where a fort is built on the side of a hill, as at Paro and at Tongsa, protecting towers are always built above it.
The plan nearly always followed in the forts is that of a rough parallelogram divided into courts. The main entrance in Poonakha is approached by a steep flight of
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