Bhutan’s national day is December17, the date of the establishment of the monarchy in 1907. Other important holidays are the king’s birthday on 11 November and Coronation Day on 2 June. The Black-Necked Crane Festival in Phobjikha is always held on 12 November, the day after the king’s birthday.

The New Year is called Losar and is celebrated according to the highly complicated Bhutanese calendar. Losar usually falls between mid-January and mid-March. To complicate matters further, there are different dates for the New Year in various parts of the country.

On an auspicious day near the end of the monsoon season, the people celebrate Blessed Rainy Day. This is the day when Khandroms (celestial beings) shower blessings on the earth in the form of rain to wash away bad luck. People wash their hair and shower to help wash off evil and sins.

On the first day of the fourth month, the Thimphu rabdey (district monk body) moves to Punakha. The procession includes the Je Khenpo (the Chief Abbot of Bhutan), the four lopons (senior monks) and the entire monk body. The Khamsum Zilnoen, a sacred image of the Shabdrung, and other relics are also moved with the monks. Local people line up outside the dzong to get blessed with the image and relics. The rabdey returns to Thimpu on the first day of the 10 ^th month.

The Tsechu - Most dzongs and many monasteries have an annual festival, the largest of which is the Tsechu. This is a series of dances in honor of Guru Rinpoche. The biography of the Guru is highlighted by a 12-episode dance drama. The dates and the duration of the festivals vary from one district to another, but they always take place on or around the 10 ^th day of the month in the Bhutanese calendar.

The dances are performed by monks as well as lay people. Many of the dances were established by Shabdrung Ngawang Namgyal or by Pema Lingpa. The dancers take on the aspects of wrathful and compassionate deities, heroes, demons and animals. The dances, known as cham, bring blessings, upon the onlookers, instruct them in the dharma (Buddhist teachings), protect them from misfortune, and exorcise evil influences. The tsechu is a religious festival and people believe they gain merit by attending it. Deities are invoked during the dances; through their power and benediction, misfortunes may be annihilated, luck increased and wishes realized. The tsechu is also a yearly social gathering where the people rejoice together, dressed in their finest clothing and jewellery.

During the dances, asaras (clowns) mimic the dancers and perform comic routines wearing masks with long, red noses. The name is a corruption of the Sanskrit acharya (master). During the intervals between the masked dances, elegantly dressed women sing and perform traditional dances.

During many tsechus a large thangka (religious picture) is unfurled before sunrise from the building overlooking the dance area. Large thangkas of this sort are called thondrols, and are usually embroidered rather than painted. Thondrol literally means ‘liberation on sight’, and it is believed that one’s sins are washed away simply by viewing one of these large relics. When the thondrol is rolled up again, old people chant to ensure that they will see it again the following year.

During some tsechus, a small fair is organized outside the dzong or goemba. Some of the stalls offer various kinds of gambling for astonishingly high stakes. Watch for fortune tellers with Tashi-go-mang, miniature, multistory temples with tiny doors that open to reveals statues of deities.