Bhutan: The Land of the Thunder Dragon and Its Unique Path to Happiness

• Bhutan is known as the "Land of the Thunder Dragon," derived from its official language Dzongkha, where it's called Druk Yul.
• The name originates from Druk, a powerful mythological thunder dragon, whose roar was believed to be the sound of thunder in the Himalayas.
• The thunder dragon is central to Bhutanese identity, appearing on its national flag, symbolizing wealth and perfection.
• Bhutan measures national progress through Gross National Happiness (GNH) instead of GDP, a philosophy introduced by King Jigme Singye Wangchuck.
• The country maintains a high-value, low-impact tourism policy and is carbon negative with 60% forest cover constitutionally mandated.