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This Saturday has been one of the best days I've enjoyed since being here in Mongolia. I piled into a micro-bus with Carrie and some of the school kids and we headed to Terelj. Along the way, we instantly blew a tire and the experienced drivers (flat tires are notoriously common on Mongolian roads) had the tire changed in 5 minutes. Then we spent an hour winding through the beautiful countryside, eventually coming upon the Terelj valley. We paid the National Park costs and once inside the park immediately came upon a couple who waited on the side of the road with two camels and a large hawk, who glared at us and ruffled his wings in irritation. He was truly a formidable predator and when the man brought the hawk to his arm, the bird was nearly half his size with a wing span equal to the man's height. Amazing.
Then we immediately lined up and rode the camels for a brief bit. Sitting on a camel is not the most comfortable thing, the space between its humps being of a hard cradle of cartilage or bone. But it was quite exhilarating, as with their tall legs and loping
stride, every movement is quite exaggerated. Descending a small slope is quite like a violent downturn on a roller coaster. This is especially true of their kneeling and rising, which pitches you forward so severely that for a moment you feel that you might tumble and break your neck. Loads of fun! :-) They are also quite comical looking, especially with their molting coats and pierced noses. It was a bit unpleasant to watch their handlers yank on the reins attached to their piercing but it seemed to be the only way to get such large and lazy animals to move. I also learned an interesting bit of trivia. The dinosaur sounds in Jurassic Park were actually camel noises, with a bit of electronic amping. I could really appreciate this as one of the camels was quite vocal throughout the rides!
We then headed on toward Turtle Rock and when we arrived, I was instantly impressed on the beautiful and stark landscape, huge tracts of undeveloped land dotted with ger camps for tourists. I could instantly appreciate why this is a popular tourist attraction. While there I felt that I really grasped the intangible nostalgia that Mongolians have for
Camnel butts!
Molting camel butts. Hawt :-) their countryside. Leaving the city is like stepping back in time and we were surrounded on all sides by camels, dogs, horses and Mongolians who spend every summer living off the tourist dollar. We climbed the formidable Turtle Rock and from atop it, the view into sloping valleys was very impressive. We then rented two horses for two hours and rode them non stop, the kids taking many turns upon their backs. It was much fun to ride one and I felt more confident than I thought I would have, since I haven't ridden a horse since I was 10 or so. But these horses were very personable and responded easily to my clumsy direction. They even galloped which was very exciting, as most horses you ride in the states are so worn that they hardly trot, much less gallop. But by the end of the two hours, one of the horses was irate and exhausted I'm sure, lunging at one boy every time he walked back. This was especially amusing as I had witnessed this same boy throw rocks at a dog and flog the horse into running time and time again. Apparently horses are great judges of character!
Then one of the horse lenders invited us back to his home and I was impressed by the stables he had constructed and he told us he owned 25 cows, as well as the horses. I also saw my first kitty since I've been in Mongolia. They had 4 baby calves which the kids enjoyed immensely. The adults visited with the man's parents and they clearly had a bit of wealth as they boasted a large satellite dish, a very nice TV and VCR. Their small daughter also carried around a Winnie the Pooh walkman, listening to Mongolian pop music. I got to taste my first authentic Mongolian milk tea (heavily salted, with milk, and tea) and was surprised by the faint undertones of grass and woodlands. The grandfather had stunning blue eyes and they seemed to have quite a lovely life, nestled between large hills and surrounded by trees and natural beauty. It was very romantic :-)
Then we headed home and I investigated my sunburns (I now have a farmers tan, ugh.) Then I was endlessly entertained by the precocious children who belted out a variety of songs. An especially hilarious rendition of “Old McDonald” took
place.
Old McDonald had a farm
Eei-eei-O
And on this farm he had TREES
Ee-I-Ee-I-O
With a chuck chuck here and a chuck chuck there... (I wasn't aware that trees made a “chuck” sound but it was quite hilarious.)
The farm quickly progressed into having gorillas and stinky men. What happened to barnyard animals?! It was especially humorous listening to the kids try and invent noises that gorillas would make. It eventually boiled down to “I'm a hairy ape!” Then Carrie distributed candy and pandemonium broke loose with kids having to perform various acts of hilarity to get candy.
Upon waking up this morning, my leg muscles are SORE!
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*grins*
FINALLY, you got out of the city! *smiles* Now you are starting to get a taste of why I truly love Mongolia.