We spent three days in Beijing, revisiting the Great Wall, the Forbidden City and the Summer Palace. Then we boarded a China Airlines flight to Ulaan Baatar, the capital of Mongolia. After only two hours and 15 minutes we arrived.
Happily neither Filipinos nor US citizens need visas for Mongolia! We did need a letter of invitation, which our agents secured for us.
A pretty girl, Senders, met us; she had studied English in Russia of all places! At any rate we were relieved she was almost fluent in English. A large bus transported us with our luggage to a very new hotel named The Continental. Our rooms were very large with comfortable beds, mini bar and frig, and television set with CNBC in English via Singapore plus local Mongolian programs. Bathrooms, definitely Western with tubs and showers. With the exception of a lack of English at the front desk and Mongolian staff, we might have been in any four-star hotel in the US! Tourism has shrunk the world and sadly, the American style of jeans for everyone and American songs on radio are copied everywhere in the cities. Perhaps we are perceived as a superpower or a super race to be emulated.
There was time for a visit to Zaisan Hill for a panoramic view of the city. Although Mongolia is on a landlocked plateau, a large river, the Tuul, runs through Ulaan Baatar and offers an escape for the city dwellers to go fishing or rafting. We saw a few factories and the single railway, the Transiberian Express, traverses the city from south to north. But joy of joys – no pollution!
I marveled then and kept saying all throughout our tour, "Look at the sky!" It was an intense sapphire blue (dotted with fluffy snow white clouds) no matter where we were – desert, steppes or cities. The average altitude of the country is 1,580 feet, about the same as Denver. This was not noticeable until we’d climbed about 20 steps to a monastery and we were panting!
That evening, we were taken to a good restaurant of French cuisine and treated to wine. Our tours in Mongolia were basis full board; wine was a bonus.
Nest morning, we visited Gandan, a functioning monastery which was very much like the monasteries I visited in Tibet.
Mongolia’s roots are in Shamanism which was the major religion in the ancient Mongol states until Tibetan Buddhism was introduced in the 13th century. Tibet’s Dalai Lama is the region’s spiritual leader. Now 90 percent of the people are Buddhists.
And finally at 11 a.m., it was time to go to the main stadium for NAADAM, their National Day around which our tour was planned. The main stadium filled up by 11:30. Then the President, Mr. N. Bogabandi, opened the festival with a speech in Mongolian and then in English. A tremendous parade featuring hundreds of adults and children (representing all Mongolia’s ethnic groups) was led by riders dressed as Chinggis Khan’s entourage and acrobats. A complete ger (nomad’s hut) was paraded around the field mounted on a giant platform. It was led by mounted soldiers and fluffy white yaks.
All of a sudden, 24 skydivers floated down from helicopters into the center field waving their national flag. Then came the parade of wrestlers – over 1,000 in all (the contestants came on the field flapping their arms like eagles)! The contest lasted all day until only one was left who was proclaimed the LION for the year.
We left the stadium for another delicious meal – this time, mostly Chinese dishes.
In the afternoon it was time for the horse races. We were driven an hour into the country where a barbed wire fence held us back 300 yards from the finish. The riders were boys and girls aged from six to 12 and the distance raced was about 30 kilometers. This year, about 12 horses lost their riders and one horse died. The winner was a 10-year-old boy. It was while watching the race that we noticed how sweet the air smelled – it took a few minutes to realize the source was the ubiquitous ground cover of steppes – our guide told us it was rosemary – the popular herb!
That evening we were treated to a gala dinner with a show of European and Mongolian classical dancers and musicians. Our guide told us they were very fond of classical music and indeed, the operatic duet from Verdi was excellent.
Next morning, we left early for Bayangobi where three different landscapes merged – the Gobi Desert, the Russian-type steppes and forest steppes. We stopped at the Ovgoni Temple in Hogno Khan Mountain which housed a small gold Buddha. Then on to the camp near Kharakorum. Tourists were housed in the nomads’ huts originally called yurts. However, this was the Russian term and about five years ago, the Mongolian word ger was adapted.
The ger is collapsible. It is made of wooden frame with a thick felt cover and an outer white canvas. Each ger has a smoke hole for a pipe from a small wooden stove and small tables and stools painted tomato red with gold and green designs. Ours had three single beds and a small dressing table. The door of the ger is always on the south side facing the sunrise which provides more light. The doors are painted yellow – many with a fancy design.
There were two larger gers, one served as our dining room, the other as our bathroom. Both were nicely decorated and kept spotlessly clean.
All meals were really excellent, of course, with the preponderance of lamb dishes.
Next day we drove on and visited some remains of Kharakorum, the ancient capital of the Great Mongolian Empire of the 13th century, and Erdene Zuu Hiid, the first Buddhist monastery in Mongolia erected in 1586 and built on the ruins of the ancient capital.
By noon, we reached our second ger camp in Kharakorum, nestled in a valley surrounded by velvet hills in all shades of green. Mongolia is unbelievably beautiful!
In the afternoon we visited a horse-breeding family to learn about their daily life. Strict rules govern the gers – upon entering the door, men keep to the left, and the women turn to the right or eastern side. The horse gear, male belongings and the host’s bed are on the west side, while the kitchen utensils and the women’s and children’s belongings occupy the east side.
We were seated in the women’s area. Mongolians are very hospitable and like to invite strangers to enjoy their special drink – fermented mare’s milk. As the tour leader, I was offered a large bowl of it to drink first. I must have looked a little green as our guide whispered, "Drink a few mouthfuls and pass it on." Well, it might not have been bad were it not for the odor, which was difficult to overlook while sipping, but my buddies and I rose to the occasion and all sipped the mare’s milk!
After that, the men in the family took us out to see their horses and watch the milking process. One young son aged 10 was presented with pride on his winning mount; he had won the local Naadam race two days earlier!
We overnighted in the Kharakorum camp which was also good but not as comfy as Bayangobi.
Next day, en route back to Bayangobi. We visited Shakh Hiid, one of the oldest monasteries founded in 1647. Of the 23 temple halls originally built, there were only a few buildings left with broken roofs which were used as warehouses during the turbulent years of Soviet domination from 1924 to 1990.
Mention must be made of the ubiquitous piles of stones that dot the landscapes atop hills and passes. These are the ovoos, abodes of the local spirits. Local custom dictates one must circle an ovoo three times and add a stone on each pass.
We visited the sand dunes before dinner and arrived back in our first camp in time for "desert storm." A furious wind shook our ger (Mary Lou and I shared one ger, with Isabel and Jessie in another). We opened our door a few inches to see a solid sheet of sand blowing by – we waited about half an hour and then all was quiet – we looked again and saw clean, clear air. A light shower had dissipated the sand and cleansed the air; the camp was sparkling.
We gathered outside in one of the small kiosks made for guests to relax in for a glass of wine and happy toasts to our last night on the rosemary-covered steppes.
Next morning, it was back to the Continental and a visit to the National History Museum in the capital city and the local department store. Great buys were cashmere sweaters in all shapes and colors. We’d seen flocks of Kashmir goats on the plains and joked, "There go our sweaters."
That evening in town, we attended the local folklore show at a theater made for the purpose. The performers were beautifully costumed – talented dancers, singers and musicians. It was a perfect ending for an unusual trip – one we will repeat and wholeheartedly recommend.