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Published: April 11th 2008
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Playground
The little playground behind my apartment Ahh I feel much better today than i did yesterday after waking up with extreme nausea which progressed into a migraine at the end of the night. But yesterday was quite enjoyable even tho I wasn't feeling at my top. Zaya and I had arranged to meet up for dinner so as I waited for her out in front of Nomads (a tourist and expedition company) I saw this tiny girl clutching the railing outside of a Korean restaurant next door. I kicked myself for not having my camera because she happened to be the cutest thing I've seen in UB so far. She was wearing a headscarf and when she looked at me I waved at her. She waved back and correspondence developed into “stick your tongue out and make pig noses” at each other. She could not have been more than 4 or 5 years old and I fear that I have now imprinted her with a naughty habit as she then ran around sticking her tongue out at everyone who walked by! It was VERY amusing! Her mother eventually emerged and I was surprised, as she was NOT Mongolian but looked very Eastern European. As the girl turned
away I saw that beneath her head scarf her hair was dirty blonde tho her face to me had been very strikingly Mongolian. Just goes to show I suppose :-) I was sad to see her go.
Then Zaya showed up in a taxi and ushered me inside. It was good to see her and she was just as personable as I remembered. We arrived at, get this, an IRISH PUB AND RESTAURANT with a big picture of Chinggis Khan at the side! It was very silly but as she had said this was one of her favorite places to go, I felt I shouldn't mock. We walked inside and it was... very Irish. Right down to the Irish flag in the back and gleaming tankards hanging up at the bar. It was also filled with a healthy assortment of foreigners and Mongolians. I could instantly see why foreigners were attracted here as everyone spoke English and at night, bands would play. But when we arrived, nothing but old American pop music crooned over the speakers. It was very charming and made me feel a bit at home, though the pop music was a bit disconcerting (I kept having
Gers nearby
These are some gers that I pass on my way to work. I think this is a district? Junior high flashbacks.) They turned out to have a very impressive menu with lots of “western” food (including Ravioli!) but some Japanese and other types mixed in. There were also lots of drinks and you could also purchase cigarettes. Zaya ordered me a beer in Mongolian and I didn't want to break it to her that I didn't like beer so I drank the damn thing anyway. It was Chinggis Khan beer so I feel it was a cultural sacrifice and I was happy to make it. I also ordered a Long island ice tea. So the food was very good and I learned a lot about Zaya and i must say she is very interesting! She currently goes to University in Singapore but also did a 6 month stint in London (she did not like it, it was dirty and had lots of crime) and was back in UB visiting family before returning for another year at university. We talked a lot about Singapore and even about tourism. I told her the story about the guy who tried to sell me two bobby pins for 800MNT and she was most disappointed. She said “that's very bad,” though I tried
to assure her I had no hard feelings about the experience. Her boyfriend is in Korea for work and we talked about marriage, as I was very curious about Mongolians take on the whole thing. Zaya is 24 and she said she was not planning on getting married until she was finished with school (she has been dating her boyfriend for 3 years) and that her parents also said she should not get married until she is over 25. So I was very happy to hear that she is sticking to her academics and that there wasn't family pressure to marry early. She also asked me if I was religious at which I lifted my hands and shrugged my shoulders, to which she nodded and said “I understand!” She is not religious herself but we chatted a bit about evangelism and Buddhism. I also discovered that every April her family goes to live in the countryside for the summer, as summers in UB are apparently very hot and uncomfortable. She described their summer dwelling and it sounds very beautiful. She encouraged me to go to the countryside and assured me that I would find camels out there. Overall the dinner
A new building
One of the newer buildings constructed in UB. was fabulous and tho I had a splitting headache by the end (a mixture of beer and cigs methinks) I was very pleased. She then paid for dinner tho I tried and tried to stop her! The dinner, the drinks, and the cigs came to about 38,000 MNT (approx $33) but she said to me, “you are in my country, therefore I must pay!” This did NOT make me feel better and I tried to explain American guilt and the need to pay but she just shrugged, ignored me, and paid anyway. I felt much indebted as she had also paid for the taxi both ways! So then she dropped me off at home, I ran upstairs, downed some Tylenol PM and went to bed, feeling very sick with my headache.
Today I will bring my camera to work and attempt to take some pictures along the way. I am also bringing my passport so I can make a copy so as I won't be wandering about without any sort of identification (just in case.) Yes well, off to work I go!
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Vicky
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OMGPON1ES!!!!111!!1!1!
LINDSAY IS IN MONGOLIA WTF!!!?!?! That is the coolest thing EVAR!!! It looks like you are adjusting to things well, you are doing awesome! I'll be studying abroad this fall in Japan for a semester, and I understand!! Learning the basics of the language when you get the chance will help (just yes, no, want, thank you, etc) but you'll pick it up in time. I hope you have an awesome time, I'll keep reading your blog, its very well written and -fascinating-! PS. Your washer/dryer has directions in Chinese, not Japanese. ;P