New Ger

This is my new pad, under assembly.

Mongolian Pit Bull

This vicious breed has been used since the time of Genghis Kahn for bear-hunting, pit fighting and gladiatorial contests. Its diminutive size lures its prey in a false sense of security before it strikes.

Terje

This is Terje National park, about 1 hour north of UB. You can probably guess what I am thinking...

Never wrestle a Mongolian

Mongolian Wrestling


You will lose...you will lose badly.

Geburtstag

The handsome young fellow in this picture turns 70 today. Happy Birthday Dad!

Nadam movie 1

Nadam movie 1



Ogna wins his bout

Nadam

Nadam is the biggest holiday and festival in Mongolia. This year the celebration is especially big because it is also the 800th anniversary of the Mongolian state. Nadam celebrates the “three manly sports”: archery, horse racing and wrestling. Archery is actually participated in by men and women, and children race the horses. Wrestling, however, does seem to be a manly endeavor. For three day the country shuts down for the games, ceremonies and parties.

For those of us unfortunate enough to get stuck in camp, we had a wrestling tournament. I wrestled in the first round for about ten seconds before being introduced to the ground (video to follow).

Dog and Hog

Camp dog molesting a family of hedgehogs.

Disco, Hour 1

Disco, hour 2

The crappiest bicycle in central Asia

This wonder of Chinese engineering is two months old and had less than 100 km on it. I have trashed a bike or two in my time, but I have never seen one of such poor quality that it actually falls apart on its own.

Although myself and the other Canadians have given up on these death-traps entirely, the locals have discovered bicycling for the first time. In the beginning they would look at us strangely when we took the bikes out in the evening. Now the bicycles are hugely popular. All night long people ride around the compound in circles. The security guard uses a bike for his rounds. They are the vehicle of choice for getting from one side of camp to the other. I only wish we could bring some real bikes over so that the Mongolians could enjoy some little luxuries like breaks and seats…

Ger and Sky

I apologize for the lack of posts lately, it just that nothing interesting has happened in a while. For lack of anything more exciting, here is picture of my ger after a rainstorm we had the other day. Ger's don't smell so good after the felt get soaked. Sort of a cross between wet-dog and gym socks.

Hot

It hit 43 degrees C here today. Ger's should have AC...

Canada Day

Canada Day in Mongolia was pretty low key. The number of people that knew the anthem was fairly limited and there are no gas stations around from which to buy fireworks.

We drank a toast to Canada with Airag, the local beverage made from fermented Mare’s milk. Airag is supposed to be good for the stomach. If by that they mean it can by used to induce vomiting, then yes, it is good for the stomach.

I hope everyone at home enjoyed your cold beers, BBQ’s, swims in the lake etc… Not that I feeling sorry for myself or anything…

S.

Sandstorms Blow

This one happened while I was away. Our weather gadget recorded gusts of up to 80 km/hr.

Snake Extraction

Snake extraction, the movie...

Back in Camp

I have made it back to camp, after a long trip. My journey was more or less uneventfull, but James, my travelling companion was not so lucky. Every ticket agent, border gaurd, customs officer or other self-important petty official felt the need to harrass the poor guy. Must be bad karma for killing a snake or something...

Mal, the suit of armour in the picuture, I bought it for our living room, hope that is okay :-)

Cheers,

Stef,

Korea

I am back in Seoul. So far things are going okay. James's bag didn't make it from Vancouver but they delivered it to our hotel later on. The aggrevation factor was high this morning, checking in out flight to UB. The shoving, cutting-in and general chaos of the check-in line up was more than usual. We make it through eventually. I might have to drink on the flight however.

Cheers,

Stef.

Erika and Rowie

Here are the kids in the outfits I brought back for them. Erika liked her dress, but Rowan would have definitely have preferred a truck.

Back to Mongolia

I am leaving for the Gobi again today. The trip takes three-four days depending on which flights I get; and I used to complain about my downtown commute...

It was great seeing everyone again! I'll be back around August 4th.

Cheers,

Stef.