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Ger up the yard!
A Mongolian Ger tent. No need to spend much time in Listvyanka, is the Lonely Planets take on this tiny remote Siberian Village on the shores of Lake Baikal. Not a very comforting read when you have just booked three nights stay there and the weather is closing in. Unnerved, we set off from Irkutsk and bolted up in our small rented apartment. We were staying there with our latest acquaintance, Lars from Denmark - an extremely worldly wise young man from Jutland. We took in Hovercraft rides across the lake, short hikes to observation towers and plenty of smoked fish suppers in our short stay. All that mixed with the local Baik Vodka resulted in a really relaxing weekend. With that, our Russian adventure had come to an end and we were back on the train heading for Mongolia. What a amazing week lay ahead!
The adventure began with a lengthy border crossing and a two night train ride to Ulaan Baatar. Waking up on day two we really weren't prepared for the amazing scenery that lay outside our cabin. Fresh snow lay on the ground and solitary ger tents were scattered around the sparse landscape. We stayed for three nights at the
UB Guesthouse in Ulaan Baatar, a bustling hostel filled with all nationalities. We had been tipped off that the guesthouse had an apartment close by that could be rented (thanks Neil & Anna!!), so we had a lovely comfortable base for three days.
Ulaan Baatar is a really interesting and relaxed capital city with a population less than 1 million that live in a mix of ger districts and communist style apartment blocks. The first thing that hits you coming from Russia is just how friendly and relaxed the Mongolian people are. We were so happy to see people smiling and joking on the street and so many of them still wear the national costume. We spent a couple of days just seeing the sights and chatting to the locals. The Mongolians are a fiercely proud nation and seem to celebrate their former glories at every available opportunity. Sukhbaatar and Chinngis Khan (not to be called Ghenghis here folks!) appear everywhere - from the currency to the bars and street names. You can even enjoy a Chinngis beer or vodka!
After a couple of days exploring we set off on a five day trek out into the countryside.
On the road
Our transport for our trip to Western Mongolia. In Russia, we had been told Mongolia has no roads, just directions. This turned out to be almost completely true as we set out from Ulaan Baatar in a small Russian Army van for our trip. Within an hour of the city we were on dirt roads and being well and truly shaken around by our veteran driver. On board with us for the duration was William from the USA, a "James Bond" like surgeon who had spent the last few years working as an aid doctor in Afghanistan, Cambodia amongst other places. Our destination was the stunning White Lake "Terkhin Tsagaan Nuur" on day three and we were to be staying in nomadic ger accommodation along the route.
The scenery of Mongolia is like nothing we have ever seen before and almost completely unspoilt. So many times we were blown away by the rugged landscape that it is so hard to express it in writing. In just five days we traversed baron steppe terrain, bone dry volcanic valleys, stunning fresh water lakes, snow capped peaks and dry sandy desert. The weather conditions seemed to switch almost instantly from warm sunny afternoons to freezing cold nights and angry sand
Canyon
Scenic stop on the way to the White Lake. storms. We were welcomed every night by locals into their ger camps and were fed home cooked Mongolian delights such as rice (with ketchup!!!) noodles (with ketchup!!!) and dry dumplings (without ketchup!!!). The friendliness of the local people is legendary and so many people had stories of locals who welcomed them into their home.
So taken with the trip was William, that he decided to stay on in Tsetserleg, a small town near the ancient, one-time Mongolian capital of Karakorum, and spend a few more days hiking and exploring the area. Our ever smiling driver and ourselves made the last leg of the trip alone, until somewhere along the way we dropped into a ger and collected an elderly Mongolian man and continued our journey back to Ulaan Baatar. Washing facilities had been limited (unless you could brave the freezing lake!) and 5 days without a shower made for some serious dodgy hair, so it was a pleasant relief to arrive back to the apartment and relax for an evening before heading to the train station for the last leg of our trans siberian adventure.
Every journey is different and brings varying personalities and nationalities together and this
one was no different. We shared our kupe to Beijing with "full on!" Craig from Tasmania and Oka, a teenager from Ulan Baatar. Oka probably gave us more of an insight into Mongolian life in the 30 hours we spent with him that the last 8 days since his English was outstanding and his wit so sharp! We had an amazing time on the last section of the journey; playing cards, spotting camels in the passing Gobi desert and generally having a total riot!
We reached Beijing on Friday afternoon. So much to see, so much to do, stay tuned!!
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Bob T
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Jealous - you bet !
Images of Lake Baikal just as I'm about to start an audio conference about MIS reporting - you gits ! Keep up the stunning work with these blogs - they are really brilliant ! Cheers....Bob (at least I'm off to the Isle of Man next week)....