Chorten Kora

Chorten Kora stands on a flat beside the Kulong Chhu at Trashiyangtse, a large whitewashed dome built in the 1740s by a lama who is said to have modelled it on Boudhanath in Kathmandu, carrying a model of it back carved in radish, which explains some irregularities in the proportions. Tradition holds that a girl from Tawang was entombed alive in it as a willing sacrifice. Two circumambulation festivals are held in spring, the Dakpa Kora attended by people from Tawang across the Indian border and the Drukpa Kora by Bhutanese two weeks later, and both fill the site with pilgrims walking the stupa through the night. Trashiyangtse is also known for wooden bowls turned from burl, and the traditional arts school is here.

What to look for

• The white dome - a large stupa on the river flat.
• The spring koras - two circumambulation festivals a fortnight apart.
• Wooden dapa bowls - the town's turned burl-wood craft.
• The arts school - training in the thirteen traditional crafts.

When to go

March to May and October to November. The two kora festivals fall in spring, usually March, and are the busiest and most interesting times. The northeast is remote and the roads are affected by monsoon.

What to expect

Trashiyangtse is a long way from anywhere and the drive is hours from Trashigang, itself days from the west. Outside festival times the stupa is quiet and the visit is short. Accommodation in the town is very limited.

Nearby

Bumdeling sanctuary lies north; Gom Kora and Trashigang are south.

Key facts