Train to Ulan Bataar
The train was much the same as the previous one, but a new cast of people made for a more interesting train ride. There were a lot more foreigners on this train. We were joined by Spaniards, Italians, Swedes, grumpy Germans and plenty of Mongolians. No Russians this time but the train was full. Pete was sharing with the Spaniards and an older Mongolian man. Pete had been told he was very important, but his card suggested he was some sort of mining consultant. Pete had also been told not to give him any vodka. Unfortunately nobody had told the man in the leather jacket and hat (who we think was responsible for all of the fruit hidden in every nook and cranny of the train.) He spent the day plying the "King of Mongolia" (can't get any more important than that) with vodka. When he left the King started getting into the Spaniards vodka supply too. As would be expected after too much vodka, the King was sick all over the floor of Pete's room. We were very pleased it was not our room. Not everyone we met on the train was a problem. There was a lovely Mongolian girl of about 7 or 8 who took an interest in Marcus' t-shirt (New Zealand of course) and stopped to talk every time she went past. (She didn't speak English and we spoke no Mongolian so talking is perhaps a bit of an exaggeration.) She seemed very happy with the little tiki which we gave her and immediately found some string so she could wear it around her neck. The other major event of the day was the crossing of the border from Russia to Mongolia. We aren't sure why. but this exercise took 5 1/2 hours on the Russian Side and 2 1/2 on the Mongolian side. The process involved a lot of sitting on the carriage (with the toilets shut the whole time.) Every now and then someone with an official looking uniform would come through and take your passport, check your passport and search the room. The man in the leather jacket and hat seemed to follow these officials around very closely. We assume he was working out how much bribe was necessary to get his fruit (and who knows what else) across the border. This whole exercise took much more out of us than our usual traveling. Luckily there was plenty of noodles and instant mash potato to keep us going. We hit the sack pretty early. We were due to arrive at 6am the next morning!
Ulan Bataar - Day 1
After a terrible sleep we were awoken the usual hour before arriving in Ulan Bataar, Mongolia. The Mongol attendants were fortunately much better than the Russian Babushkas. The train traveled through the valley and we watched the sun rising in the distance. The first signs of civilisation were Ger tents which became more and more clustered, eventually with their own fenced sections and satellite dishes. These were increasingly replaced by buildings until we arrived at the train station. We loaded into the van which was waiting for us with our honcho, Gerlee, and quickly arrived at our hotel. It was a proper hotel with separate rooms, en-suite bathrooms and TVs. Luxury! Unfortunately the hot water was broken, so a shower was not currently an option. More sleep was necessary, so we went back to bed for a couple of hours before trying to find some breakfast. It being Sunday morning, Ulan Bataar was pretty closed and with a chill wind blowing it wasn't long until we retreated back to the hotel for some very tasty pancakes.
We met up with our honcho who took us to the post office and then to the main square of the city. The square has the Mongol Parliament on one side and in front of it a huge statue of Chingis Han (that's the Mongolian way to say it) in the middle, with smaller ones of his son and grandson (Kubla) on either side. Genghis Khan is an English version of his name but it is not correct. There is also a big statue of Sukh Bator, the founder of modern Mongolia, in the middle of the square. Gerlee also explained the meaning of the Mongolian flag, I've forgotten most except the blue is for the forever blue sky in Mongolia. Which proved to be pretty true (apparently 260 days of clear sky a year) - blue sky doesn't mean its warm though. What seemed out of place was the ultra modern skyscraper (referred to as the pregnant building due to its curved front.) It reminded us a little of Warsaw as the city seemed to have very modern buildings next to dingey dives.
After that we caught the bus out to the monument on the hill overlooking the city. The bus stopped at the bottom of the hill so we still had to climb up it. Before we did we checked out a large Standing Buddha statue. Mongolia is 90% Buddhist. The climb up the hill was hard work and we needed to stop half way to catch our breath and check out the giant falcon. Pretty cool but we weren't game for him to sit on our arms. The view was worth it once we reached the top. It was much more compact than we would have expected for 1.4 million people, 60% all live in one area which doesn't have plumbing. The monument had been erected by the Soviets and showed how much they had helped Mongolia over the years. Propaganda was still alive and well. After catching the bus back we stopped at a local bar for lunch. It was meat wrapped in pastry and a beef and noodle stir-fry. Very tasty. Maybe our blog should be called the dumpling trail or perhaps the pancake trail? After lunch we took another break and spent some time showering (hot water was on), reading and napping before heading out for dinner. Still pretty full from lunch, sandwiches did us just fine and then it was back to the hotel to sort our bags before going to bed.
Ulan Bataar to Ger Camp
After a very tasty breakfast of savoury and sweet pastries at the Korean Bakery we met up with Gerlee who was taking us to visit the Gandantegchenlin Monastery. The trip was on the public bus and the bus driver only had two speeds, stopped and full speed which sent Marcus flying down the length of the bus. Pride injured more than anything else we walked past run down buildings until we reached an ornate gate which marked the entrances to the temples. Gerlee gave us a crash course in Buddhism and we went into the temple. It was buzzing with monks chanting and people coming and going to perform their rituals. We didn't really understand what was happening but there were all sorts of things going on. Gerlee was lucky enough to take part in a ceremony where there is a scarf which is draped over lots of people's shoulders. By joining together this increases the strength of everybody's prayers. After this we entered another temple, this one the site of a 26.5 metre tall gold standing Buddha (there is some dispute about whether this is the tallest standing Buddha in the world). The sheer size of the statue combined with the people worshipping really gave you a sense of how spiritual the place was.
After a less dangerous bus trip back to the hotel we met our driver and piled into the van for the trip to the Ger Camp where we would be staying in traditional Mongolian style. As we drove through the city we got a good sense of what a ramshackle place Ulan Bataar is. There are brand new glass skyscrapers, big concrete communist blocks, ornate Chinese style buildings and completely run down hovels, all situated within spitting distance of each other. The roads are an even sorryer state of affairs, full of potholes. Driving in a straight line is not an option and our driver did an admirable job of dodging holes, other cars and pedestrians to get us out of the city in one piece. As we left the city on the main road things got even more dire. Potholes were the size of tables and in some places the road had simply crumbled away altogether. We bounced away along in the van and were very pleased at the opportunity to step out at a shamanist prayer mound. It was a pile of rocks decorated with colourful material. It is a cross between an ancient shamanist (pagan) religion and buddhism, both of which are prevalent in Mongolia. We circled the mound three times while making our prayers and then piled into the van to bounce our way to the Ger camp.
We had imagined ourselves all staying in one big tent but instead we had a whole Ger to ourselves, and it wasn't what you would call basic, with ornate carved wooden furniture, a sink and a fireplace to keep us warm. The dining Ger was even more luxurious, with a TV, Karaoke and even a chandelier. We ate a hearty meat rice and vege lunch and then jumped in the van again for a rattly ride out to Turtle Rock, so named because it looks like a giant turtle. After that we visited a local lady who was living in a Ger in the traditional style. She told us, via Gerlee, about Ger life and Mongolian practices. She served us milky, salty tea, fried bread, curd and shared some snuff with us. She then took us out to see her 3 newborn calves, all of them less than a week old. Cute but a little disconcerting when their moos sounded like baas. It was a lovely experience and we were pleased to have had the chance to do it. Still needing to work off all that food and drink we went for a walk up the nearby hillside. London flatness meant we weren't at out best but we made it as high as we could without having to do proper rock climbing. We got a good view into the neighbouring valley, with more Ger camps and rock formations. However, the wind was blowing hard so we scrambled down and chilled out before dinner. Dinner was another hearty meal and then Gerlee opened a bag of magic. Ankle Bones! We were captivated for hours, flicking, throwing, balancing and racing sheep ankle bones. After all that excitement it was time to retire to a luxurious and warm, thanks to the fireplace, Ger.
Ger Camp
There was trepidation as today started. We were off on a pony trek, but with Ellie being the only one who had ridden a horse before there was a risk it could all go wrong. Luckily when the horses arrived they were pretty small, and many of them were sporting 80s glam rocker hairdos. Jess managed to get Bon Jovi. Marcus scored a ride with Double Brown. Sami just looked terrified. A talk between Gerlee and the herdsmen and we were off, dressed in our silly helmets and shin guards. Our fears proved ill founded as the horses plodded down the hill and across the nearby paddock before turning around and coming back. The Mongolians sing to their horses to let them know it's race time. We weren't game enough to try singing even when our attempts to speed up the pace with shouts of "Choo Choo!" were met with indifference by the horses who went at their own pace until we got back.
We left our horses to carry the second Vodkatrain, who had arrived that morning, and chilled out some more by taking a walk up and down an even steeper hill before lunch. After lunch it was time to dress up in Royal King and Queen costumes. The girls looked very cool. The boys looked ridiculous. Nonetheless, all dressed up we tried our hands at Mongolian archery. Unfortunately none of us had the knack to hit the target. Luckily we didn't have to try it from horseback. Back in our normal clothes we had some more time to chill out for the rest of the afternoon. Our attempts to find somewhere sheltered from the wind to read and write but nature foiled us. Jess retreated to the Ger and Marcus had a long chat with Gerlee about life in New Zealand, life in Mongolia and everywhere in between. We all met before dinner to get our appetites up with a few rounds of ankle bones before tucking into some tasty dumplings. After checking out the unobstructed night sky we made our way back to the toasty (or some might say stifling) ger for our last night at the camp.
Ger Camp to Ulan Bataar
The other group had already left by the time we got away in the morning.Their honcho seemed to be a bit
of a task master, barking orders left right and centre. We were pleased that ours was more relaxed. We took the van on the bumpy road past (and through) fields of cows, sheep, goats, horses, yaks and ground squirrels to arrive at a seven storey high statue of Chinngis Han mounted on his horse. It is intended to be the middle of a large tourist centre. Right now there is nothing else nearby. Gerlee had done some preparation over night and gave us a lot more information (what an effort!). We didn't feel the need to climb to the top, as there was nothing to see. Instead we rumbled our way back to the Ulan Bataar while Gerlee tried out the jokes she had Googled. She wasn't sure what was funny or not, must be hard to understand humour when English is your second language.
We did a quick trip around the Museum of Mongolia to get some history through the stone age until now. Not quite enough time but that is how it works sometimes. We met Gerlee for a trip to UB's largest market, the Black Market. It was certainly big, and filled with anything you could want from sneakers, jeans and traditional Mongolian attire to seafood batteries and fake watches. We didn't buy anything but it was good to look. We caught taxis to and from the market. In Mongolia anyone can be a taxi. You just wave down any car, agree a price, and they take you where you want to go. We had time for a quick trip to the State Department Store for train supplies and souvenirs and then we were off again, this time to a Mongolian cultural performance. It was cool to see traditional Mongolian dancing, music and singing including the somewhat freaky traditional throat singing. No idea how they do that. Also somewhat mind boggling was the contortionist who bent in ways you couldn't conceive. Are you able to sit on your own head? Sufficiently cultured it was time for dinner. Mongolian BBQ. Actually it was an American invention but the Mongolians love it. Pick your meat, veges and sauce and they cook it all up for you. Marcus ate too much but there was so much to try!
Train from Ulan Bataar
We left Mongolia in the early hours for our final leg of the Trans-Monoglian Railway. This time the train would be 1 night and 2 days. An hour and a half on the Mongolian side of the border and around 4 hours on the Chinese side because of the bogie (wheel) change. There was some inital confusion over berth numbers but once I swapped with Pete we got the set up we expected. So much for vodka train's promise that you would always be with the person you booked with. Luckily there were no oranges to be seen. The train was a little older with harder bunks but not too different from the other trains.
The trip was relatively uneventful and as departed UB we tried to spot some more yaks. We moved through the Gobi Desert and there was not much to see except for the dust storms which were blowing hard outside and somehow managing to get the sand through the windows into our compartment.
That evening we went through 2 sides of the border, fairly quick and efficient on the Mongolia side. The customers weren't a problem on the chinese side either but we had to stay on board for 4 hours while they changed the bogie. For some reason the size of the tracks/wheels are different between Russia and China. We watched the men working and I think they were pretending to argue for our amusement by using animated hand gestures. For 4 hours weren't able to use the toilets, we were prepared for it but obviously some of the other passengers weren't.The change completed about 1am so after a quick rush to the station toilet we boarded on the train again for some sleep, waking the next morning in China.
The landscape was different in China with power plants and fields that Paul Thereoux described well when he said that you couldn't go for 5 minutes without seeing someone do something. The scenery was nice as we got closer to Beijing through a series of tunnels which meant being in pitch black - not able to do anything and then stunning cliffs and valleys. We weren't able to see the Great Wall though. Didn't stop the other Vodka Train people from fighting for the best spots for taking photos. We were pleased we weren't in that group.
https://picasaweb.google.com/JessicaLMcMillan/April2012Mongolia
The train was much the same as the previous one, but a new cast of people made for a more interesting train ride. There were a lot more foreigners on this train. We were joined by Spaniards, Italians, Swedes, grumpy Germans and plenty of Mongolians. No Russians this time but the train was full. Pete was sharing with the Spaniards and an older Mongolian man. Pete had been told he was very important, but his card suggested he was some sort of mining consultant. Pete had also been told not to give him any vodka. Unfortunately nobody had told the man in the leather jacket and hat (who we think was responsible for all of the fruit hidden in every nook and cranny of the train.) He spent the day plying the "King of Mongolia" (can't get any more important than that) with vodka. When he left the King started getting into the Spaniards vodka supply too. As would be expected after too much vodka, the King was sick all over the floor of Pete's room. We were very pleased it was not our room. Not everyone we met on the train was a problem. There was a lovely Mongolian girl of about 7 or 8 who took an interest in Marcus' t-shirt (New Zealand of course) and stopped to talk every time she went past. (She didn't speak English and we spoke no Mongolian so talking is perhaps a bit of an exaggeration.) She seemed very happy with the little tiki which we gave her and immediately found some string so she could wear it around her neck. The other major event of the day was the crossing of the border from Russia to Mongolia. We aren't sure why. but this exercise took 5 1/2 hours on the Russian Side and 2 1/2 on the Mongolian side. The process involved a lot of sitting on the carriage (with the toilets shut the whole time.) Every now and then someone with an official looking uniform would come through and take your passport, check your passport and search the room. The man in the leather jacket and hat seemed to follow these officials around very closely. We assume he was working out how much bribe was necessary to get his fruit (and who knows what else) across the border. This whole exercise took much more out of us than our usual traveling. Luckily there was plenty of noodles and instant mash potato to keep us going. We hit the sack pretty early. We were due to arrive at 6am the next morning!
Ulan Bataar - Day 1
After a terrible sleep we were awoken the usual hour before arriving in Ulan Bataar, Mongolia. The Mongol attendants were fortunately much better than the Russian Babushkas. The train traveled through the valley and we watched the sun rising in the distance. The first signs of civilisation were Ger tents which became more and more clustered, eventually with their own fenced sections and satellite dishes. These were increasingly replaced by buildings until we arrived at the train station. We loaded into the van which was waiting for us with our honcho, Gerlee, and quickly arrived at our hotel. It was a proper hotel with separate rooms, en-suite bathrooms and TVs. Luxury! Unfortunately the hot water was broken, so a shower was not currently an option. More sleep was necessary, so we went back to bed for a couple of hours before trying to find some breakfast. It being Sunday morning, Ulan Bataar was pretty closed and with a chill wind blowing it wasn't long until we retreated back to the hotel for some very tasty pancakes.
We met up with our honcho who took us to the post office and then to the main square of the city. The square has the Mongol Parliament on one side and in front of it a huge statue of Chingis Han (that's the Mongolian way to say it) in the middle, with smaller ones of his son and grandson (Kubla) on either side. Genghis Khan is an English version of his name but it is not correct. There is also a big statue of Sukh Bator, the founder of modern Mongolia, in the middle of the square. Gerlee also explained the meaning of the Mongolian flag, I've forgotten most except the blue is for the forever blue sky in Mongolia. Which proved to be pretty true (apparently 260 days of clear sky a year) - blue sky doesn't mean its warm though. What seemed out of place was the ultra modern skyscraper (referred to as the pregnant building due to its curved front.) It reminded us a little of Warsaw as the city seemed to have very modern buildings next to dingey dives.
After that we caught the bus out to the monument on the hill overlooking the city. The bus stopped at the bottom of the hill so we still had to climb up it. Before we did we checked out a large Standing Buddha statue. Mongolia is 90% Buddhist. The climb up the hill was hard work and we needed to stop half way to catch our breath and check out the giant falcon. Pretty cool but we weren't game for him to sit on our arms. The view was worth it once we reached the top. It was much more compact than we would have expected for 1.4 million people, 60% all live in one area which doesn't have plumbing. The monument had been erected by the Soviets and showed how much they had helped Mongolia over the years. Propaganda was still alive and well. After catching the bus back we stopped at a local bar for lunch. It was meat wrapped in pastry and a beef and noodle stir-fry. Very tasty. Maybe our blog should be called the dumpling trail or perhaps the pancake trail? After lunch we took another break and spent some time showering (hot water was on), reading and napping before heading out for dinner. Still pretty full from lunch, sandwiches did us just fine and then it was back to the hotel to sort our bags before going to bed.
Ulan Bataar to Ger Camp
After a very tasty breakfast of savoury and sweet pastries at the Korean Bakery we met up with Gerlee who was taking us to visit the Gandantegchenlin Monastery. The trip was on the public bus and the bus driver only had two speeds, stopped and full speed which sent Marcus flying down the length of the bus. Pride injured more than anything else we walked past run down buildings until we reached an ornate gate which marked the entrances to the temples. Gerlee gave us a crash course in Buddhism and we went into the temple. It was buzzing with monks chanting and people coming and going to perform their rituals. We didn't really understand what was happening but there were all sorts of things going on. Gerlee was lucky enough to take part in a ceremony where there is a scarf which is draped over lots of people's shoulders. By joining together this increases the strength of everybody's prayers. After this we entered another temple, this one the site of a 26.5 metre tall gold standing Buddha (there is some dispute about whether this is the tallest standing Buddha in the world). The sheer size of the statue combined with the people worshipping really gave you a sense of how spiritual the place was. After a less dangerous bus trip back to the hotel we met our driver and piled into the van for the trip to the Ger Camp where we would be staying in traditional Mongolian style. As we drove through the city we got a good sense of what a ramshackle place Ulan Bataar is. There are brand new glass skyscrapers, big concrete communist blocks, ornate Chinese style buildings and completely run down hovels, all situated within spitting distance of each other. The roads are an even sorryer state of affairs, full of potholes. Driving in a straight line is not an option and our driver did an admirable job of dodging holes, other cars and pedestrians to get us out of the city in one piece. As we left the city on the main road things got even more dire. Potholes were the size of tables and in some places the road had simply crumbled away altogether. We bounced away along in the van and were very pleased at the opportunity to step out at a shamanist prayer mound. It was a pile of rocks decorated with colourful material. It is a cross between an ancient shamanist (pagan) religion and buddhism, both of which are prevalent in Mongolia. We circled the mound three times while making our prayers and then piled into the van to bounce our way to the Ger camp.
We had imagined ourselves all staying in one big tent but instead we had a whole Ger to ourselves, and it wasn't what you would call basic, with ornate carved wooden furniture, a sink and a fireplace to keep us warm. The dining Ger was even more luxurious, with a TV, Karaoke and even a chandelier. We ate a hearty meat rice and vege lunch and then jumped in the van again for a rattly ride out to Turtle Rock, so named because it looks like a giant turtle. After that we visited a local lady who was living in a Ger in the traditional style. She told us, via Gerlee, about Ger life and Mongolian practices. She served us milky, salty tea, fried bread, curd and shared some snuff with us. She then took us out to see her 3 newborn calves, all of them less than a week old. Cute but a little disconcerting when their moos sounded like baas. It was a lovely experience and we were pleased to have had the chance to do it. Still needing to work off all that food and drink we went for a walk up the nearby hillside. London flatness meant we weren't at out best but we made it as high as we could without having to do proper rock climbing. We got a good view into the neighbouring valley, with more Ger camps and rock formations. However, the wind was blowing hard so we scrambled down and chilled out before dinner. Dinner was another hearty meal and then Gerlee opened a bag of magic. Ankle Bones! We were captivated for hours, flicking, throwing, balancing and racing sheep ankle bones. After all that excitement it was time to retire to a luxurious and warm, thanks to the fireplace, Ger.
Ger Camp
There was trepidation as today started. We were off on a pony trek, but with Ellie being the only one who had ridden a horse before there was a risk it could all go wrong. Luckily when the horses arrived they were pretty small, and many of them were sporting 80s glam rocker hairdos. Jess managed to get Bon Jovi. Marcus scored a ride with Double Brown. Sami just looked terrified. A talk between Gerlee and the herdsmen and we were off, dressed in our silly helmets and shin guards. Our fears proved ill founded as the horses plodded down the hill and across the nearby paddock before turning around and coming back. The Mongolians sing to their horses to let them know it's race time. We weren't game enough to try singing even when our attempts to speed up the pace with shouts of "Choo Choo!" were met with indifference by the horses who went at their own pace until we got back.We left our horses to carry the second Vodkatrain, who had arrived that morning, and chilled out some more by taking a walk up and down an even steeper hill before lunch. After lunch it was time to dress up in Royal King and Queen costumes. The girls looked very cool. The boys looked ridiculous. Nonetheless, all dressed up we tried our hands at Mongolian archery. Unfortunately none of us had the knack to hit the target. Luckily we didn't have to try it from horseback. Back in our normal clothes we had some more time to chill out for the rest of the afternoon. Our attempts to find somewhere sheltered from the wind to read and write but nature foiled us. Jess retreated to the Ger and Marcus had a long chat with Gerlee about life in New Zealand, life in Mongolia and everywhere in between. We all met before dinner to get our appetites up with a few rounds of ankle bones before tucking into some tasty dumplings. After checking out the unobstructed night sky we made our way back to the toasty (or some might say stifling) ger for our last night at the camp.
Ger Camp to Ulan Bataar
The other group had already left by the time we got away in the morning.Their honcho seemed to be a bit
We did a quick trip around the Museum of Mongolia to get some history through the stone age until now. Not quite enough time but that is how it works sometimes. We met Gerlee for a trip to UB's largest market, the Black Market. It was certainly big, and filled with anything you could want from sneakers, jeans and traditional Mongolian attire to seafood batteries and fake watches. We didn't buy anything but it was good to look. We caught taxis to and from the market. In Mongolia anyone can be a taxi. You just wave down any car, agree a price, and they take you where you want to go. We had time for a quick trip to the State Department Store for train supplies and souvenirs and then we were off again, this time to a Mongolian cultural performance. It was cool to see traditional Mongolian dancing, music and singing including the somewhat freaky traditional throat singing. No idea how they do that. Also somewhat mind boggling was the contortionist who bent in ways you couldn't conceive. Are you able to sit on your own head? Sufficiently cultured it was time for dinner. Mongolian BBQ. Actually it was an American invention but the Mongolians love it. Pick your meat, veges and sauce and they cook it all up for you. Marcus ate too much but there was so much to try!
Train from Ulan Bataar
We left Mongolia in the early hours for our final leg of the Trans-Monoglian Railway. This time the train would be 1 night and 2 days. An hour and a half on the Mongolian side of the border and around 4 hours on the Chinese side because of the bogie (wheel) change. There was some inital confusion over berth numbers but once I swapped with Pete we got the set up we expected. So much for vodka train's promise that you would always be with the person you booked with. Luckily there were no oranges to be seen. The train was a little older with harder bunks but not too different from the other trains.
The trip was relatively uneventful and as departed UB we tried to spot some more yaks. We moved through the Gobi Desert and there was not much to see except for the dust storms which were blowing hard outside and somehow managing to get the sand through the windows into our compartment.
That evening we went through 2 sides of the border, fairly quick and efficient on the Mongolia side. The customers weren't a problem on the chinese side either but we had to stay on board for 4 hours while they changed the bogie. For some reason the size of the tracks/wheels are different between Russia and China. We watched the men working and I think they were pretending to argue for our amusement by using animated hand gestures. For 4 hours weren't able to use the toilets, we were prepared for it but obviously some of the other passengers weren't.The change completed about 1am so after a quick rush to the station toilet we boarded on the train again for some sleep, waking the next morning in China.
The landscape was different in China with power plants and fields that Paul Thereoux described well when he said that you couldn't go for 5 minutes without seeing someone do something. The scenery was nice as we got closer to Beijing through a series of tunnels which meant being in pitch black - not able to do anything and then stunning cliffs and valleys. We weren't able to see the Great Wall though. Didn't stop the other Vodka Train people from fighting for the best spots for taking photos. We were pleased we weren't in that group.
https://picasaweb.google.com/JessicaLMcMillan/April2012Mongolia
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