Finally...I'm in Ulaan Bataar!!! Land of togrogs, smiling faces, beautiful weather, and mutton galore. Except for the mutton bit, UB is everything that I'd hoped it to be. =) After another 2 nights on the train and a grueling 8-hour border stop, we arrived in the city this morning and spent the entire day being "super tourists". We saw a monastery, a former palace, a Mongolian dance/song performance, and most importantly...we tried the local mutton specialties. I did not like mutton before I came to Mongolia, and the fatty/tendon-y bit I ate today has not convinced me otherwise. Lauren, on the other hand, seems to really be enjoying the local cuisine! The Gandantegchinlen monastery was absolutely gorgeous -- a giant golden Buddha dominating the central temple, beautiful hand-painted wall scrolls, silver prayer wheels around elaborate stupas,
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