THE LAST SHANGRI-LA
Bhutan, the 'Land of the Thunder Dragon', is without doubt one of the world's most unusual countries. The last surviving great Himalayan kingdom has long turned its back on the rest of the world, favouring Buddhist compassion over Western capitalism and prioritising Gross National Happiness over Gross National Product.

ALL CHANGE
Yet change is afoot. In 2008 the country will not only crown a new king, Jigme Khesar Namgyal Wangchuck, but will also hold its first ever democratic elections and also celebrate the centenary of the founding of the monarchy. Workers have been preparing the site of Changlimithang in the capital Thimphu for lavish celebrations, which are expected to last throughout the year.

DEFINING EXPERIENCES
Hiking on pilgrim paths through tropical forest to a remote monastery, following pilgrims as they touch sacred rocks and perform sin tests, before heading back to your hotel for a traditional hot-stone bath and filling meal of ema datse (chillies and cheese) and red rice.

RECENT FAD
Über-luxury hotels such as the Amankora, Uma and Zhiwaling are popping up all over the country, attracting celebrities, royalty and the super-rich. This is Nepal for the jet set.

FESTIVALS & EVENTS
The Punakha Domchoe sacred festival is one of the most dramatic in the country, and will be celebrated from 11 to 15 February 2008.

The spectacular Paro Tsechu, the country's most popular masked dance festival, will take place in Paro 17 to 21 March 2008. You'll need to book your hotel and air ticket months in advance for this one.

Celebrations marking the centenary of the Bhutanese monarchy are slated for 17 December 2008. (The milestone was reached in 2007 but Bhutan's high lamas felt it to be an inauspicious year for celebrations.)

LIFE-CHANGING EXPERIENCES
Hauling yourself up the mountainside to the 'Tiger's Nest' at Taktshang, probably the world's most spectacularly sited monastery.

Hiking through lush forests of bamboo, past lonely chortens (Buddhist stupas) to a remote hermitage to receive a blessing from a reincarnate lama.

Trekking for days over high mountain passes, past views of sacred Mt Jhomolhari, into the remote lands that are home to the iconic bamboo-hatted people of Laya.

Spinning prayer wheels and shuffling past 7th-century religious treasures at the oldest temple in Bhutan, Jampey Lhakhang.

Holding your breath as your Land Cruiser swings past bottomless drop-offs at the sheer Namling Cliffs, along the wild roads of eastern Bhutan.

MOST BIZARRE SIGHT
Exterior house walls and entryways decorated with giant painted penises that are symbols of the drunken, promiscuous 15th-century lama Drukpa Kunley.

Otherworldly monks dressed in maroon robes transcribing ancient Buddhist texts into computers, or Bhutanese noblemen dressed in traditional Tibetan-style tunics and
Argyle socks sending text messages on their ultramodern mobile phones.

HOT TOPIC OF THE DAY
The current hot potatoes are the rate of modernisation (too fast? too slow?) and the abdication of the much-loved King Jigme Dorji Wangchuck, in preparation for the country's upcoming shift to democracy.

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Written by Bradley Mayhew

This is an edited extract from Lonely Planet Bluelist: The Best in Travel 2008 © Lonely Planet Publications, 2007.

Read a review of the book here. Top photo by Geoffrey Eu.