Sep 3, 2017 - Ulan Bataar to Temnik

Our final day in Mongolia. This morning we went on a city tour of Ulan Bataar, which took in some of the more outlying attractions of Ulan Bataar. We started with Gandan Khiid, the largest monastery in Ulan Bataar. No photos allowed inside as the monks were performing a 3 hour chanting ceremony. The monastery seemed fairly plain and basic in contrast to other Buddhist monasteries in Asia. However, Buddhism was outlawed by the communist regime, so has only been actively practised again since 1990, with 60% of the population being Buddhist. A...

Sep 2, 2017 - Terelj National Park to Ulan Bataar

Raining this morning which put a dampener on our archery lessons, but still gave it a go. I wasn’t very good – our Mongolian guide called me a princess and agreed I should stick to making dumplings. On our way back to Ulan Bataar we stopped in the national park to see some yaks. This afternoon is a free afternoon in the city. A bit of a museum afternoon. Visited the National Museum of Mongolia which was really interesting, covering Mongolian history from the Bronze Age to current day. Discovered a lot I didn’t know such as involvement in...

Sep 1, 2017 - Ulan Bataar to Terelj National Park

Drove out in a mini bus to the Terelj National Park passing through the suburbs of Ulan Bataar on the way. We are staying in the National Park in a ger camp – not as touristy as I had expected but not really an authentic experience either. Quite comfortable with 3 people to a ger. In the afternoon there were 2 different hiking options: a 1 hour hike or a 2-3 hour hike (10km). We are at 1600m altitude, so while not high enough for altitude sickness, high enough to make breathing more difficult and climbing hills more of a struggle. 4 of us...

Aug 31, 2017 - Chinese/Mongolian Border to Ulan Bataar

I think we all had a sleep in this morning after our long night at the border. We continued through the Mongolian steppes until we reached Ulan Bataar at 1430hrs. Changed some currency at the station before going on a quick orientation walk around the city centre. 2 million people live in the capital in a relatively small area and there is no metro system, resulting in heavy traffic congestion. The architecture is a peculiar mix of styles including extremely modern, Soviet era ugliness and more classical styles. Around the edges of the city...

Jul 15, 2017 - 15th July - last day in Mongolia

We started the day by hiring the guesthouse driver to take us to the Museum for Intelligence. When we arrived, it was closed - 3000 tugriks for nothing! So we walked along Chinggis Avenue, and over Peace Bridge, to the Winter Palace. This was definitely a highlight of my time in Mongolia. It used to be a monastery, and now is a museum - very controversial for the locals. Fascinating buildings, intricate art works, a museum of weapons, one building (that was the home) set up with period furniture and thrones, carriages, and clothes. Also a...

Jul 14, 2017 - Bus back to Ulaan Baator

Today was an 8 hour bus trip from Tsetserleg back to Ulan Baator This is our shiny red bus that took us today. This is a town that we passed (view from my window) Another view of the countryside from my window

Jul 13, 2017 - Mountain bike riding

Today we hired mountain bikes and set out to explore the district on our own. We rode to a river 5km away. The area was really beautiful. The ride was not our favourite time of our holiday. In Mongolia, a man makes his own road - literally. It was so bumpy!! The actually riding was very easy as the district is fairly flat. I had not ridden a mountain bike before, and although very different to my bike at home, th large wheels were great. The bikes also had 21 gears - a step up from my 3 gears at home. We were also fortunate to have...

Jul 12, 2017 - Hiking

Today was basically filled with a hike up a valley that started near town. There was a stream that we crossed many times. A visit to a stuffed animal museum before the climbing started. It was a good walk, with great views. We discovered some small waterfalls. In the afternoon we met 2 interesting couples. The first was a German couple who live in London. They are pushbike riding from from Sydney to London. They left Sydney two years ago. They have seen so many interesting things, that they spent one year in Australia, and another year...

Jul 11, 2017 - Naadam second and final day

Gordon has given me permission to post this email he wrote yesterday - I thought it described our day very well: Went to national festival today (Naadam). Weird wrestling, weird dancing, weird singing, various games and archery - where the judges stood next to the targets(!) and, in some cases, actually tried to snatch the flying arrows out of the air! The big event is the finish of a long horse-ride - kids ride a very long way bareback(!) with no protective gear, and thunder over the finish line. A very tough and unforgiving path to...

Jul 10, 2017 - Naadam

Today was the first day of Naadam - the national festival celebrating manly sports - although women can now compete also (not in the wrestling). There are 4 venues for the activities, with a 50 minute walk from the horse racing to the other activities. We walked there and back twice today. We were basically out from 9.30am (we missed the 6am horse race) till 8.30pm. Then we went out at 9pm for the city party in the central square. A lot of people have come to town for Naadam, and there are more horses (with riders) on the streets than...

Jul 9, 2017 - Ger Photos

Today was a fairly quiet day. Church from 11am - 2.30pm. We didn't understand a word. Then a quiet afternoon. Followed by an evening walk from 8.30-9.30pm, to see the local children playing in the parks. I have had a request from Elias and Callum for more ger photos, so here goes: Ger number 1 in the Terelj National Park: Inside our ger - the material on the ground at the left is our couch. The doors are very short in gers Ger 2 - we stayed here for 3 days Inside ger 2: Inside ger 2 - -the single light bulb is not actually connected...

Jul 8, 2017 - Orkhon Waterfall

Today started with a visit to the beatutiful Orkhon Waterfall. I climbed down through a crevice in the rock cliff, to the valley at the base of the waterfall. It was very peaceful. Next stop was a pop-up Naadam Festival, where we saw this family on a motorbike - the father was in traditional clothing. We continued the 5 hour 4WD trip back to Tsetserleg. This is how the locals refuel when they run out of petrol - no petrol stations out here. Actually - there are not roads to put petrol stations next to. Our 5 hour drive was through...