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Kharkhorin To White Lake, MongoliaJun 16, 2006
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The Walls of Erdene Zuu Khiid Buddhist Monastery
Erdene Zuu Khiid Buddhist Monastery
Phallic Rock And Vaginal Slope
| FRIDAY, JUNE 16, 2006. KHARKHORIN TO WHITE LAKE, MONGOLIA. 1n 1220, Chinggis Khan moved his capital from Khentii aimag (province) to Kharkhorin. Kharkhorin only served as the capital of the Mongols for 40 years before Kublai Khan moved it to Khanbalik, present day Beijing. Nothing is left of Kharkhorin, which was abandoned and then destroyed by Manchurian soldiers. However, Erdene Zuu Khiid, the first Buddhist monastery in Mongolia, was built using materials from the destroyed city of Kharkhorin. The monastery was started in 1586, but was not finished until 300 years later. A similar fate befell Erdene Zuu Khiid as did Kharkhorin: abandonment followed by destruction. Over the years, the monastery has been restored to undoubtedly only a fraction of its former glory. We spent the morning exploring the buildings and grounds, before making a brief stop at phallic rock and vaginal slope (Believe me, I can't make this up.) It was another full day of driving before we reached White Lake. The roads are all dirt and rock tracks. Our Russian minibus transferred every bump and dip in the road to its occupants. Hans and I had the pleasure of sitting in side chairs facing each other perpendicular to our direction of travel. It was difficult, if not impossible to sleep, due to all the bouncing about. I've learned, however, to read under these conditions. (I started "The Runaway Jury" by John Grisham, a book that I traded "Hawaii" by James Michener to a Scottish-Norwegian couple I met in Beijing.) On our drive to White Lake, we stopped at Tsetserleg town for lunch at Fairfield Café, a restaurant highly recommend in LP, which I suggested to my fellow travellers. After what we all agreed was a very good lunch, we stopped in town for a bit and continued our long drive to White Lake. We arrived in White Lake, called Terkhiin Tsagaan Nuur in Mongolian, in the early evening. The steppes surrounding White Lake were dry and barren. Before dinner, Inka, Nam, Hans, and I went for a hike into the hills overlooking the lake. From the top of one hill, we watched the sun set behind mountains to the west and admired the view of White Lake and our ger camp to the south. Our original itinerary was to spend two nights at White Lake. Lawyer, however, suggested that we spend only one night in White Lake and spend the extra day at Khovsgol Lake. As it was chilly, cloudy, and drizzly this evening, we all agreed to continue on tomorrow despite the fact that it meant more driving. |
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