Mongolia - Time For A Holiday
We were up early for the first day of our tour and looking forward to a good hotel buffet breakfast. Colin was especially happy when he saw the egg chef and had his best breakfast omelet of the trip so far. Most of the other hotel guests were COP 17 attendees, many of whom were dressed in National costumes. We sat on a table next to a Bolivian lady wearing a wide layered skirt.
We met up with Onoh and our driver Ganselem and climbed into the comfortable Mitsubishi Delica that would transport us around the roads and tracks of Mongolia for the next 10 days. It was a gloomy drizzly day as we left Ulaanbaatar.
Our first destination was Kustai National Park where we hoped to spot the last wild horses in the world. Once extinct in the wild, these hardy little horses were successfully reintroduced to Mongolia and now roam freely across Khustai's mountains and grasslands. As we pulled up at the park entrance the weather had really set in, and it was so wet and misty we were told not to waste our time driving around the park as it would be highly unlikely we'd see any of the horses or other wildlife. We did get to see a film on the park and had a quick look in the information centre. The park has countless species of plants, birds, animals and insects - definitely a place worth a visit in good weather
We continued on towards the mini Gobi where we visited an old Buddhist monastery - the views in the valley were beautiful. Our driver didn't speak English, but he was always very attentive to our comfort. He and Onoh had worked together before, and although we didn't know what they were talking about, they had a nice easy rapport going on and they both shared a love of horses, and would slow down as we passed a herd to assess them and discuss.
We had a walk up a hill by the monastery for sweeping views over the valley.
We continued on and bypassed the touristy mini Gobi to head to a tourist Ger camp - the drive in the early evening sun was stunning. We almost felt like we were driving across African plains and half expected to see lions. The Ger camp felt very remote and our driver seemed to be asking locals for directions as the choice of tracks seemed endless. When we finally reached the camp we had a nice dinner and comfortable Ger to spend the night.
We got to know Onoh our guide a bit better over dinner. He is an incredible young man. He was an orphan who was abandoned by his mother in the 1990's which were hard years for Mongolia after the collapse of the Soviet Union (as it was for so many of the countries we have visited in this trip). He grew up in an orphanage run by an American Christian group and he now gets involved in running events for groups of orphans when he is not being an inspiring guide. He is a very mature 28 year old and seems to have his head squarely on his shoulders, although we did find it amusing when he referred to us as 'bro' and sis' after a few days - well it beats Grandad which is what other guides have referred to Colin as.
Day 2 started with a cool misty morning. After breakfast we were waved off by the the Ger camp family then drove a short distance to visit a nomad family. It looked like we’d caught them by surprise - they stuck their heads out wearing jeans and sweatshirts then reappeared a few minutes later in more traditional gear.
We were invited in for a cup of milky tea and some cheese, then asked questions about their lifestyle through the guide. The couple were in their 50s and had 5 children - only one was living the nomadic life, with 3 now living in the city and one has become a monk. They had grandchildren staying with them for the summer. They had around 1,100 animals (horses, cows, sheep & goats) and made a living selling milk, meat and cashmere wool.
They brewed some fermented yoghurt alcohol for us - it was 30% proof but surprisingly smooth to drink if not a bit dangerous. We gave them some gifts including McVitees chocolate digestives as an example of a British favourite food with a cup of tea.
From here, the drive across the steppe was magical - green huge landscapes. The smell of the air was also so lovely and fresh. We passed a group of vultures (a wake?) feeding on a carcass - a common sight in Mongolia.
Our destination was Karakorum, the former capital of the Mongol Empire. We reached the city at lunchtime and after lunch we visited some monuments on the hill overlooking the town with beautiful views, before visiting the museum which gave more information on the history of the local area, with archaeological finds including pottery, coins and metalwork.
Karakorum was founded by Genghis Khan in 1220 and was developed by his son in the 1230's. It was once one of the most important cities in medieval Asia being a major centre for trade, religion and administration. The city was abandoned in the late 13th century when the centre of power of the Mongol Empire was moved to present day Beijing.
Our ger camp for the night was near the town in a serene spot. We were in a deluxe ger with en-suite for our only night of the trip.
All the petrol stations in the city had long queues of abandoned vehicles, but no petrol. Our driver had been told a delivery was due that night, so he went off to spend the night in the queue at one of the petrol stations.
We started day 3 visiting the driver in his petrol queue. He was 36th in a long long line - the fuel had been delivered but they hadn’t started serving. He had kept himself busy playing cards with other tour drivers.
We walked down to the Erdene Zuu Monastery, Mongolia's oldest surviving Buddhist monastery. It was founded in 1586, and was later built using stones and other materials from the ruins of old Karakorum. Originally there were dozens of temples surrounded by a huge wall, but during the communist era in the 1930's the monastery was severely damaged and many monks were killed or expelled. Thankfully several temple buildings survived and have been restored. They are beautifully decorated and the complex had a nice calmness to it.
After our visit we met up with the driver who was looking very happy and relieved (after 18 hours in the petrol queue), as we were, that we could continue our journey with a full tank of petrol. We set off towards the Orkhon Valley, a UNESCO World Heritage landscape and said to be one of the most beautiful areas in Central Mongolia. We paused to look at a beautiful view at the bend of the river, but it had a tragic story - it was where the communists threw many monks to their death.
We stopped for a picnic lunch by the beautiful river then drove on to the Orkhon Waterfall.
The waterfall cascades 20 metres down over dark volcanic basalt rock, and it's setting is very picturesque.
Our Ger Camp was just a short drive from here in a beautiful spot. It was called an eco-camp which as far as we could see meant there was no electricity during the day, but a generator was fired up in the evening, when all the tourists rushed to get their phones charged.
We had a walk around the river near the camp. We had more activities to explore the valley lined up for the following day.
The sky darkened for a while as a storm blew past
We were treated to some musical talents from our guide and driver after dinner. We had the fire in our Ger lit which made it very toasty.
Day 4 was a full day in the Orkhon Valley. After a rainy cold night we were glad to see it was sunny with a nice warm breeze. We had yaks strolling past and were surrounded by herds and flocks - a wonderful sight.
We should have been visiting a nomad yak herding family first, but we’d left our gifts in the drivers car and he had gone off to queue for fuel again. Onoh said it wouldn't be good etiquette to visit the family without offerings, so said we'd see them later in the day.
We did a 2 hour horse ride taking us up to a hillside viewpoint over the valley which was very nice, then past the waterfall again. The young lad guiding us was staying with his grandparents for the summer, and said he much preferred it here to the city.
Back in the Ger camp after lunch there were rumbles of thunder all around then there was a heavy hailstone downpour. Our planned hike up the valley was delayed.
The sun came out again and we did a lovely 2 hour hike along the river, then across the valley to look at the lava flow rocks. We saw some rocks with petroglyphs. The valley is so beautiful - we could definitely have spent a few more days here. There were black lava rocks all along the valley making a striking contrast to the green. There were also eagles gliding gracefully above us at all times.
When we returned to the Ger Camp we sat in the sun with Onoh and our driver with a beer before dinner. Unfortunately the visit to the yak herders didn't happen as they weren't around late afternoon. We enjoyed another good meal that evening - the food at this camp was probably the best of our trip.
On day 5 we left the beautiful green Orkhon Valley behind and had a long drive to the Ongi Monastery.
The scenery became drier but still unusually green according to our guide as we reached the edges of the Gobi. The monastery site was just a short walk from our Ger Camp. There wasn't much to see at the complex, but there was a sad story attached to it. The monastery was founded in 1660, and at its height it was a huge religious centre with 28 temples and around 1,000 monks. During the communist anti-religious purge in the 1930's the monasteries were destroyed and more than 200 monks were killed with many others being imprisoned or forced into military service. After the fall of the Soviet Union, a small temple was rebuilt on the site with the rubble and there is a little museum containing artifacts recovered. Onoh said that they are looking for funding to be able to restore more of the site.
Back at the Ger camp we had a beer overlooking the river before dinner and were joined by a little frog in our Ger.
To be continued......
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