Blogs from Ulaanbaatar, Mongolia, Asia - page 14

Tuesday 20th July Overnight train from Beijing to Ulaanbaatar, Mongolia We caught the 7.45am train to Mongolia and as luck would have it, we had the 4 berth carriage all to ourselves. There was an American / German family travelling with their 2 kids and Leo was 8 years old with similar interests to Sid. They spent their day discussing how to defeat various characters in their DS games and helping each other to move up through the levels. They got on so well that Sid asked Leo’s Dad if he could sleepover in our extra bed in our room…… and I’ve no idea why he didn’t let his son stay with complete strangers!!!! At 10.30pm the train stopped at the Chinese boarder and it is there the wheels get changed so they can fit the ... read more

Arriving into Mongolia Written by Luke whilst on the train from Mongolia to Beijing. This time we have air-conditioning and there’s not a Mongolian smuggler in sight. Bliss! Here’s a summary of time in Mongolia… As we crossed the border out of Russia and started rolling through the Outer Mongolian plains my mind was wondering. For so many years I’d bundled this place together with other places such as Timbuktu, Antarctica and Wales. All very far away, other worldly and where strange creatures might lurk. Well, now I’m here I can certainly confirm that Mongolia is indeed very far away, but it is neither other worldly nor a place of strange creatures unless camels or goats count. Ulanbaatar Our first stop was Ulaanbaatar (or “UB” if you’re down with the locals), the capital of Mongolia. Whilst ... read more

Il pleut a saut ce soir a Pekin alors j'en profite pour ajouter une petite entree sans photos par contre. Je les ajouterai un peu plus tard. Alors, apres Irkoutsk, on a pris le train pour une autre trentaine d'heures. Je n'ai pas parle beaucoup des trains jusqu'a present alors puisqu'il n'y a pas enormement a dire sur notre 24 heures en Mongolie, je vais commencer par ca. Le trajet total de Moscou a Pekin fait environ 8700 km. Il est possible de le faire sans arret de Moscou a Pekin ou de Pekin a Moscou. Le trajet dure un peu moins de 7 jours. Nous avons rencontre d'ailleurs deux Francais sur le dernier troncon qui en etaient a leur 6e jour consecutif de train. Ils semblaient un peu amoche, mais leur moral semblait encore en ... read more

Jeetje, 2-1 tegen Brazilie... Wie had dat gedacht? En wie had gedacht dat we deze wedstrijd op het platteland van Mongolie niet zouden missen? (Nederland-Japan ging namelijk gedeeltelijk aan ons voorbij vanwege een dronken mongool die tegen ongeveer de enige electriciteitsmast in het dorp aangereden was...) Vanuit Tibet ging de trein richting Mongolie en zo passeerden we met tussenstops: Golmud, Xining en Hohhot. In Hohhot verbleven we een week om goed uit te zoeken over het hoe en wat van Mongolie, maar ook omdat we er zo lekker van de straat konden eten en maar geen afscheid konden nemen van de Chinese keuken. De grensovergang van China naar Mongolie was nog even lastig, we hadden een visa van Tibet mee, dus daar moesten de Chinezen nog even goed, nog een keer goed, en nog een keer ... read more

My time in Mongolia was great. I met up with the two British guys that I had met in Russia and we decided to go on a tour of the Mongolian countryside. It was much cheaper of a trip with the more people you had. They had also found a Dutch couple, so there was five of us on this five day tour that was set up by our hostel. I had a day in the city before leaving for the country and Ulaanbaatar was very dusty giving the city a dirty look to it, although I am not sure it was just from the dust. It was a very poor looking city. A review on the internet about our hostel was that a guy was stabbed with a screw driver outside the hostel. I learned ... read more