Jul 16, 2012 - July 11 -Tsenkher Hot Springs

Back on the road today for the drive to Tsenkher Hot Springs, about 6 hours over bumpy dirt roads again, where we will stay for 2 nights. But the scenery as usual was magnificent. Driving along a green valley with large hills each side, dotted with the white gers of the nomads and their herds of sheep, goats, cows and yak. On the way we stopped at a large town, the major town in this aimag (county) where we got to see some of the Nadaam events. Nadaam is held each year and is like a big show with archery, horse racing and wrestling, plus...

Jun 8, 2008 - White Lake - Tsetserleg

Bart spent a lot of the night puking and was not feeling good at all when we got up in the morning. He's lucky we only have about 5 hours driving today but I doubt he feels very lucky. First stop was the crater with its small lake at the bottom, a short walk from the road. Bart didn't try it. 5 hours later we got to Tsetserleg. Bart went straight to the ger to lie down while the rest of us found the Gost Tavern and ordered lunch (definitely not mutton) and a beer. Tsetserleg feels even rougher than Ulaan Baatar. The ger owner is a...

Jul 14, 2005 - Into Mongolia - Tsetserleg and Ikh Tamir

Chimge points at another phrase from her Communist-era English to Mongolian phrasebook. We'd been through "Comrade!" and "I am an atheist", now it was the turn of "What political party are you a member of?". Again infectious giggles break out around the kitchen ger where Mum, Narun Zetsig, is busy distilling tsaganach, an alcoholic spirit made from fermented cow's milk. It's 10pm and, the day's final milking of the horses done, several other members of the extended family crowd in to meet with their guest for the evening - me - to practice...

Jul 10, 2005 - Tsetserleg

It has warmed up now and the daytime sun is fierce. Relaxed by a river and bumped into German film crew making a documentary reenacting a yak caravan (which is how most Mongolians used to move camp twice a year). Had a lovely first wedding anniversary waking up in our own tourist ger, watching the 30km horse races at Nadaam festival in the local village then cooking wild mushrooms and rhubarb for pudding which we found in a gorge for lunch. The evening was less romantic ending up in Tsetserleg - another communist horror of a town and in a...