Sangay Jamtsho is the Bhutan Editor at Spring, where he explores Bhutanese life, culture, business, and the balance between tradition and change. Originally from Pemagatshel, he studied Environmental Management at Royal Thimphu College and has experience working with organizations focused on youth empowerment, sustainability, and community development. Nothing inspires him more than working with young people and engaging deeply in the field of social science.
Life is not some perfectly paved highway. Anyone who says they've cruised through life with zero bumps, no gut punches, or painful goodbyes are probably trying to sell you a bridge in the desert. They’re either a monk in a parallel universe or lying so hard even their ancestors are confused.
Life feels more like an unsupervised hiking trip where your Google Maps don’t work and your snack bag fell off a cliff. The older you get, the more life feels like a boss-level video game. Responsibilities start dropping like a hailstorm in monsoon season with endless checklists: school, college, maybe a PhD, then snagging a job, making some money, finding a partner, starting a family. But oh, the delightful, chaotic mess that happens in between!
Sometimes, I wish I could hit the rewind button and be a baby again. Eat, play, sleep. No landlord knocking, no "last 100 bucks for groceries" panic, no family counting on you when your bank account is in limbo. That kind of pressure makes you want to sprint barefoot across the hottest desert and scream from the tallest mountain.
Chasing dreams without a map, through turbulence and wonder.
If my life were a blockbuster, it'd probably be a box office flop, watched only by my mom. God bless her, she's the only one who still believes a sinking ship can float if her son was on it. My career is no better. My first job vanished before I figured out where the bathroom was. The second felt like a "Mission Impossible" movie, except I was the guy falling off the building in the first five minutes. I was gasping for air, lost in a fog, half-expecting life to shout, "Checkmate!"
Through all the chaos, I crossed paths with so many people—but only a few have truly stuck around. One friend, in particular, never gave up on me. So when her parents—an amazing couple living in Dubai—invited me to join a coaching course at The Coaches Training Institute (CTI), I smiled and said, “Sounds great!” But inside? I was freaking out. My brain was doing somersaults yelling, “Wait, what? Me?!” It felt unreal—like a daydream I didn’t dare believe—until my birthday came, and a visa to Dubai landed in my hands. Best. Birthday. Ever.
This wasn't just my first solo adventure; it was my first flight. My heart staged a rebellion during takeoff. Landing was ticklish terror as if my heart was being reeled in by a fishing line. But oh, gazing down from above the clouds, watching the vast, endless Indian Ocean stretch out was something else. It hit me then: how ridiculously tiny we are, just a speck on this magnificent planet. And from up there, there are no borders, no boundaries – just one big, beautiful Earth.
Stepping out at Dubai International Airport felt like an ant trying to find its way in a colossal, buzzing anthill. People everywhere, zipping, zooming, rushing. Elevators, escalators, trams – it was a futuristic frenzy. Planes landing and taking off every minute. That's when I realized those crazy movie scenes were real and you live them here.
First time in Dubai — culture shock in full motion.
My host family welcomed me like one of their own, and became my personal tour guides. Despite their own whirlwind lives, they carved out time to show me the best of Dubai in just a few days. The Dubai Mall, the towering Burj Khalifa (that thing touches the sky!), the mesmerizing Dubai Aquarium, fancy movie theaters, and restaurants at Atlantis The Royal – Dubai. My stomach went on a global culinary tour, from Italian to Turkish to Korean. It was in shock with all those new flavors, but I didn't care; I devoured every bite. No real favorites, but enjoyment all around.
The coach training I went to Dubai for was a game-changer. It wasn't just about coaching; it was a deep dive into discovering my own hidden superpowers, testing the limits of what I thought I could do. Meeting new people, soaking in their cultures, getting to know them beyond a handshake was fascinating. The big takeaway was understanding myself better, and helping others find their "aha!" moments.
The Burj Khalifa: Proof that humans can touch the sky—and strain their necks doing it.
In Bhutan, we are more at home scaling mountains than doing laps in a pool. Parents in Western countries might toss their babies into the water at three months, but back home, a 15-year-old wanting to swim might just get a "blessing" from a stick on the head. Yet, every morning in Dubai, I was marching into the sea, pretending to be a seasoned swimmer. However, my balance was non-existent. I sank like a potato and thrashed around like a wet chicken. We'd crack jokes about the "fish from Bhutan" learning to swim. I was a mountain goat trying to be a dolphin. A jellyfish sting was a quick reminder that some things feel the same across oceans: I felt like I was getting attacked by a spiritual cousin of Bhutan’s nettle plants.
Dubai is a futuristic playground of innovation, tech, and AI. It's a melting pot where people from every corner of the globe come to hustle and thrive. But what truly bowled me over was the sheer social acceptance – the incredible embrace of different cultures and ways of life. Dubai felt surprisingly open, refreshingly less conservative. It’s a beautiful mosaic of people, cultures, and religions, all living side-by-side. Fair warning though: it’s pricey. The roads are a fashion show of cars, from humble commuters to gleaming supercars. The skyline is a jungle of skyscrapers, and day or night, it’s hard to tell the difference. Shops are always open, restaurants hum 24/7. Back in Bhutan, we roll up our shutters at 11 AM and close by 9 PM. Time in Dubai is a precious, high-speed commodity, packed with appointments and deadlines. Everyone's on a mission. If you're an entrepreneur or investor, Dubai is a buzzing exchange for ideas and making dreams happen-or just breathe the air. It smells like ambition and overpriced perfume.
Two worlds, one journey.
Dubai and Bhutan are two different planets. Bhutan is raw, untouched nature, pristine mountains, serene landscapes – everything as it's been for centuries. Dubai, on the other hand, is a breathtaking testament to human ingenuity, where things are meticulously designed and crafted by brilliant minds. It's a city born from the desert, a living, breathing defiance of the impossible.
Bhutan, too, is embarking on an exciting new chapter of development, guided by our King's visionary dream to build a city based on our unique philosophy of Gross National Happiness (GNH). But this trip cemented one powerful thought for me: if Dubai could burst forth from the desert, then the Gelephu Mindfulness Project (GMC) can rise from our mountains’ peaks. As Bhutanese, we don't need to ditch our identity for progress. A little twist, a strategic push in our economy, and our entire nation can reach new elevations. Nothing swells my chest with more pride than being Bhutanese and wearing my Gho in a foreign land. Dubai taught me a hundred things in a blink; I could write endless volumes, but for your sake, dear reader, I’ve kept it short and (hopefully) sweet!
Leaving Dubai: A bittersweet farewell and a longing for home.
As I waved a bittersweet goodbye to my host family and boarded the flight back to Bhutan, I was no longer a nervous first-timer. It felt like I'd arrived in Dubai with an empty bottle and was now leaving with it overflowing. I wasn’t just leaving a city, I was leaving a different version of myself. My new version dreamed a little bigger, failed a little harder, and learned that even if you feel small, you can still take up space in this world. Dubai didn’t just change my view, it expanded it.
From my quiet Bhutanese hills to this wild city of lights, I realized miracles do happen, you just need to stay positive and say “yes,” even when your brain is shouting “no way.”Mountain goats and sea dolphins can coexist. It’s all about understanding and respecting each other's habitats. Nothing felt more magical than flying back through the majestic Himalayas, finally touching down in the place I call home.