Christine & Filiep on a trip.: 4. MONGOLIA.

First town on the road after the border: Olgii. To get there, half the distance is a dirt road and the other half is asphalt. Works are in progress all over Mongolia to pave the main dirt roads in the name of tourism and progress/cash flow. The beginning of the end of an era?
From the first 100 metres in Mongolia, herds, ger's and men on horseback are visible in the distance.

Olgii had a déjà vu sensation. A mosque at the entrance of the town, unpaved footpaths, dusty streets, walled gardens/compounds, … the Middle East/ North Africa. Mainly populated by Muslim Kazakhs and ties with Turkish Muslims explained the riddle.
We camped at the Blue Wolf compound in the centre of the town : a bit run down but clean and free wifi. If you end up in Olgii one day, eat at Pamukkale, a Turkish restaurant with decent wifi.

Daily progress: Olgii (A), Lake Achit Nuur (B), Zuungov (D) with the kids,
Tes (E), Harboom (F), Ikh-Uul (H).

Since the area west of Olgii (Altai Tavan Bogd National Park) had been closed for the hoof and mouth disease and the area North of the lake Achit Nuur was flooded and un-passable, the only option to the mountains and Ulaangom, was via a dirt road east of the lake Achit Nuur. As soon as we were out of the town, the road started climbing. Green - brown rocks with scarce vegetation on the left and on the right on the other side of the track, a river with abundant vegetation made the scenery unreal.

Left side of the track.

Right side of the track at the same spot.

We arrived at the lake Achit Nuur and made camp on the beach. A fresh wind was blowing over the lake and a police post (in a tent) and some ger's were close by. The sun was setting, the wind dropped and clouds came in, … of mosquito's and all other flying stuff with a name. We had to run. We headed further north till 21:00 hrs and at an altitude of over 2.000 m, we had a peaceful night in the middle of nowhere. For the people living at the lake, it must be torture every day. The kids were covering their faces with their jackets.

Just before the invasion.

Next day we passed the Ulaan Davaa pass (1972 m) with on top a big Ovoo or sacred pile of stones. Some nomads were moving and at the Ovoo were performing a ritual. The man and woman were walking 3 times clockwise around the Ovoo. The man was throwing vodka on the mound and the woman little stones.

Ulaangom is a little town about the size of Olgii, but more welcoming, friendlier...

On our way to the village of Züüngov, we got lost in the maze of tracks and ended up in Maltschin. Maltchin is nothing more than a hand full of ger's spread over a square km or so but there is also a rudimentary sign post. With this post and the gps on the Panasonic, we found our way back. We stopped for the night in a valley and were surprised with the total absence of insects. At roughly 500 m around the car several ger's with herds of goats, sheep and horses. In the morning we were visited by a young boy on his horse. On our request he made clear that he was Mongol and not Kazakh and in full gallop showed his riding skills singing at the top of his voice. Impressive!

Our first visitor, 16 years old and almost all day on his horse.
Glued to the saddle. The family gers in the distance.

In the evening, at 19:00 hrs sharp, we were the attraction of all 7 kids of the surrounding ger's. The boys arrived on horseback in full gallop and the girls were walking and brought some ger-made cookies and goat cheese. We gave the kids chocolate bars. The cheese was eatable, but the cookies (at least: we thought it were cookies) had the same taste …

Christine "teaching" the boys.

Next morning a man made a detour on his way to the next ger and we treated him with tea and sweets. We sat down on the soil and after some sign language he padded me on the shoulder and probably said: « I'm off, I have work to do ». He walked away on his short legs. Unbelievable that this friendly people were once the terror of Asia and Europe.

He: tè noa huntre.
Me: moa vint toh.

We shopped in Züüngov and moved on to Baruunturuun. Just before this village there is a river crossing, but no bridge. We drove first in wheel deep water, but in the second half of the river the water was up to the hood.

In Harboom, in the morning we were visited by two men on horses and as usual in full gallop and one was singing out loud. Both man had rifles. They made the quacking sound of ducks when I pointed to the guns. Pfffff. The oldest one was very inquisitive and went through the toilet bag of Christine. He asked for some perfume and Christine sprayed him from top to toes with her deodorant. He was a happy man. Later in the day two of his four daughters tried to cross the river without doubt to get some sweets. They could not swim and therefore no sweets. The dog came over and was promptly attacked by the yak cows, sending the dog back over the river. The bull was massive but was more interested by a young cow than any potential danger. Priorities !

Keep your hand off my ... you little ...

A little further down the road at a big Ovoo on a mountain pass we just completed our ritual (I offered vodka – ouch - and Christine was chucking little rocks on the sacred pile) when two overlanders from Brisbane – Australia made a stop as well. They shipped the trucks to Kuala Lumpur and came through China. They confirmed what we heard from two Swiss overlanders : the road east of the lake Khövsgöl Nuur was impossible and to the west, the road had been closed. So we changed plan and started moving south to Tsetserleg with the aim to visit the monasteries and other places of interest on our way to Ulaan Baatar.

A new unsealed road has been constructed between Tosontsengel and Tsetserleg. This road is supposed to be one of the main roads leading from Ulaan Bataar to the west of the country, with Tosontsengel serving as a hub to the different directions of the country. However, there is no maintenance to the new road and the speed is reduced to a ridiculous crawl of 10 km/hr on the better parts. We were intercepting trucks at this speed! The result is that all locals drive on dirt roads on both sides and adjacent the new road and apart from the big trucks, nobody uses the new road. Probably somebody got very greasy palms in Ulaan Bataar.

The ger camp in the National Parc (C) at the White Lake (Tsagaan Nuur).
Khar Balgas: the ruins of the Turkish fortified city (D). Tsetserleg (E).

After two days bouncing around in the car and covering a staggering 100 to 120 km/day on the better lateral dirt roads, we took two days off in the Khorgo – Terkhiin Tsagaan Nuur National Park, near the town of Tariat. In the park we hired a ger for one night at the Khorgo Ger Camp. The ger had a wood stove and two beds and in the evening we had dinner in a big ger with Italians and Swiss tourists. There is a difference between a tourist and an overlander. A tourist is found around the highlights of the country, guided and announces the better infrastructure. An overlander is more a nomad roaming the country but can also be found around these highlights, although this is not necessary.

A thunderstorm was roaring and bouncing of the valley walls while the wood stove heated the ger. Snug. It was pouring, but in the ger not a drop. At more than 2.000 m above sea level it can be cold in the night.

Next day we walked up the volcano that until 1920 was a sacred site with restricted access. Today several Ovoo's are worshiped by the locals and there are several attractions at the base of the volcano.

Traditional clothing from the Mongol Empire.

Hey Missy, you want a leg or a wing?

The crater.
Top left: people.

Time to move again after two days in the region. Driving towards Tsetserleg: SURPRISE! About 50 clicks east of Tariat, the road is sealed. We covered the remaining 70 km of that day in one hour and camped for the night at the Taikhar Chuluu. An enormous rock sitting in the middle of a plane. The following morning we met two Mongolian youngsters and were invited for a "brunch": noodles with boiled mutton and fermented mare milk.

After nature in all its glory, time for some culture: the Buddhist monasteries and temples from Tsetserleg, Karkorum and Shankh and the Turkish citadel Khar Balgas.

In Tsetserleg we slept in the yard of a local family. The wood planked/fenced compound contained a house, a ger and for the night they brought in 5 horses. The horses were tied up to the fence and farted all night. I did not know there was so much methane in a horse. It surprises me that they are not ballasted with stones to avoid their asses floating up ... maybe that is why they tied up horses?

For the winter, the family will move to the ger,
easier to heat than the house.

We visited the Museum of Arkhangai Aimag housed in the Zayain Gegeenii Süm temple complex. Notwithstanding the 1937 Stalinist purge and the consequent destruction of all monasteries, these temples still exist because at the time they were turned in to museums. On top of the hill, the Galdan Zuu Temple. Christine adopted two motorcycle overlanders and chatted non stop to the French guy. I bet his head is still ringing. Baptiste and his bike Ginette only had a map and got lost several times for hundreds of km at a time. Robert the German-Croat had a winch on his bike, clever and a first for me.

Part of the Zayain Gegeenii Süm temple complex.

To Khar Balgas. Khar Balgas is a mud brick citadel built by the Turkish civilization around 751 AD. The civilization flourished between 750 and 850 AD. Not much has been spared by the elements. On our way to the ruin, we were waved down by 4 individuals having problems with the UAZ truck, loaded with hay for the winter. I lent the jack to change the tire and helped them to reload the hay they unloaded during the attempt with their own jack. We were invited to visit the ger and were treated with fermented mare milk and some indefinable snacks based on goat milk. At dusk we went to unload the hay at the winter stables. Just another place in the steppe. As we understood: the families lived all year in the gers.

Tsetserleg (A), Khar Balgas (B), Karkorum/Kharkhorim (C),
Did not find the entrance of the National Park (D).

Ruins of Khar Balgas citadel (751 A.D.).
Part of the defense perimeter of the city.

The clan (?) compound.

On top the clan leader.
On the left the father of the second family.
On the right an exploited migrant worker.

Inside the ger from the leading herder.
The wife and one of the daughters.
This ger had beds, some furniture and some ground cover.
The ger of the second family had no furniture and a dirt floor.

To milk the mare, the foal is brought alongside the mare.

Karkorum, once the capital from Mongolia (1250) and now a small town with a vast monastery compound Erdene Zuu (1586) with only 3 temples left thanks to father Stalin (yep: 1937). Once it contained between 60 to 100 temples and was populated by 1000 monks at its peak. Most of the monks were deported to Siberia ...

Also the museum of Karkorum is a visit more than worth. The Mongols had a vast empire and prove is displayed by golden coins from Constantinople and goods from India, found in the burial places.

Entrance of Erdene Zuu.

108 stupas forming the walls of the compound.
108 being a sacred or special number for the Buddhists.

Some of the remaining temples.

One of the many Buddhas.

Shank Kiid monastery in the village of Shank. We saw only monks, aged from 6 to 16 years : cleaning the temple, having fun with the motorcycle and joking around.

13/08/13 afternoon: arrival at the overlander compound Oasis in Ulaan Bataar. Laundry, shower, shopping at the mall only 5 minutes away, a "couple" of beers, and a chat with the other overlander's.

From Germany through Siberia.

Repairing the bike.

New style haircut.

Friday 16/08 visit to Ulaan Bataar:

National Museum of Mongolian History: display of artifacts of the different civilizations that once originated on what we call now: the Mongolian steppe. Huns, Turks, Mongols and other empires less known ...
Museum of Natural History: closed for ... 3 years due to structural problems with the building. So Grego, no pics from the dinosaur eggs and the skeletons of a Velociraptor in a fight with a Protoceratops.
National Academic Drama Theater: a short play showing the wedding procedures in costumes from some centuries ago (or still applicable?).

Saturday 17/08 visit to U.B.:

State Department Store: in search for some traditional music: throat singers, special instruments, ...
Gandan Khiid Monastery: a disappointment after the monasteries in Tsetserleg, Karkorum, ... Dusty buildings, pigeons soiling, overcrowded and as the rest of U.B.: a building wharf.
Souvenir shop on the Peace Avenue. Usual rubbish.
As standard tourists, in the evening we got robbed on the overcrowded bus from the centre to the compound Oasis.

Wedding on the central square.

Deer stone in the Mongolian History Museum.

All dressed up for a special occasion?

Costumes from the Mongolian empire in the History Museum.

National Drama Theater.

Gandan Kiid.

We left Oasis two days later than planned. Too much fun discussing with the other overlander's and being lazy. Before leaving Mongolia we wanted to visit the Amerbayasgalant Kiid monastery. Praised by all to be the most worthwhile to be visited. The benefit of this monastery is that only 10 temples were destroyed out of 37 and therefore the monastery gives an idea how the place looked like before 1937. Otherwise the visit is not worthwhile if you have seen the other monasteries. The place looks a little neglected and funds have been used to buy restoration materials that remain stacked in the compound. No works are on-going. More funds needed? Pigeons are trying to undo what has been restored before. Probably we do not understand a lot about Buddhism, but eliminating these birds would be beneficial for the buildings and probably also a welcome change in the diet of the monks... Pity.

Amerbayasgalant Kiid monastery (B).

Restoration materials.
Want a souvenir?

No scruples.
Poor Christians, Muslims, ...

If you will visit the Amerbayasgalant Kiid, do it on a rainy day, or better : do it when it has been raining for a day or two. You will learn how to drive on soap. The clay becomes extremely slippery and the constant 4x4 of the Toyota was not able to keep us on the right track. More than once we were facing the opposite direction in a blink of an eye, until we were driving in first low with the central lock on. On the way back, it took us more than an hour to cover the 33 km.

Next day : 20/08/13, heading for the the Mongolian/Russian border at Altanbulag/Kyaktha. Mongolia changed. Gradually birch appeared in the landscape and the herders became farmers with stone or wooden farms. No more gers. Industry in the towns we crossed.