Mongolia #27 Day 15 of the Trek (10/10/15)

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We woke to a cloudless and cold morning but no frost in our peaceful campsite. But it wasn’t peaceful for long.

Everything had to be packed up, the camp and our personal items. We were all reminded that we couldn’t take more than 15kg (33.1lbs.)… and that included carry-on bags… unless we were prepared to pay an excess baggage fee.

Meanwhile, gifts and tips for the crew were being worked out. ‘This and that’ went into this bag while ‘that and this’ went into another bag, and so on. At last everything was worked out and the presentations took place. I think everybody was happy.

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Our full crew of drivers and cooks

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Our drivers got ready to take us on one last drive together… into Khovd town for a little extra time to look around and perhaps do some last minute shopping.

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There was only room in my pack for something very, very small…

a ‘Mongolian boot’ keyring for our Christmas tree!

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For a town so far from UB, Khovd punches above its weight.

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It even had a “Pizza Hut”… but we didn’t eat there.

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We had lunch at a restaurant before heading to the airport on the edge of town, there to await our flight which was scheduled to take off at 14.30.

It was weigh in time… the moment of truth! I think we all went over the limit but we were pleasantly surprised to find out that the limit was in fact 20kg. The sting in the tail came when we were told that the airline going back to Ulaanbaatar charged a higher rate per kg than the airline that flew us from Ulaanbaatar. My excess cost AUD6.90 – but that’s not a fortune in anybody’s language!

Tim told us not to get our hopes up about the flight being on time. He said that the flight was more often than not delayed, sometimes for up to 12 hours or more! We were most thankful when we received our boarding passes which showed some faith on the airlines part that the flight was ‘on time’. And so it was – we left only about 20 minutes late.

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The wind sock hung limply on its mast. The wind was not going to help our 13 year old Fokker 50 get off the ground!

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I’ve never seen the wheel-bay flaps used for advertising before.

It was a 3 hour flight to UB plus we lost an hour.

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Mongolia is a big brown country.

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Surprisingly, there are many lakes scattered across the country.

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But there are also many sand dunes.

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The last light of the day cast long shadows.

On arrival in UB, we went straight from the airport to a restaurant for our farewell dinner. We ate at ‘BD’s Mongolian Barbeque’, a place I’d eaten at when I was last in UB in 2008. The place hadn’t changed much… except for the fact that photos and videoing was not allowed any more at the bbq area. But, it was still a good feed. There was a huge range of types of food to select from. You took what you wanted to a large circular hot plate where the chefs cooked your selection as one mixed up meal. A repeat visit to collect more goodies and have them cooked was a tempting option. But I resisted.

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Tim had written a short summary about each of us. He read these out, often to our amusement! It was around 23.00 by the time we got back to the Tuushin Hotel to check in and collect anything we’d left in storage whilst away on the trek. It was after 01.00 before I was ready to have a much needed shower and feel the comfort of a proper bed. Oh… but it was good!

And the next day, it was time to say farewell to Tim and to my trek companions. It was time to think about heading back home.

Members of the group started leaving UB during the early hours of the morning heading for all sorts of places to continue on either straight home or via some other exotic destination. I didn’t have a flight until 17h55 so had all the morning to wander around. Michael wasn’t leaving until the next day so we decided to walk to the Government Department Store to have a look around. Eventually we found out that the top floor was the place to be to find all things Mongolian. A few tee shirts and a couple of Christmas tree dingle dangles later we left. Michael had all day so he went his way and I headed back to the hotel.

I got a little lost on the way back to the hotel but this was no problem at all as it took me along some streets I hadn’t been on before. Eventually I arrived in Chinggis Khan Square at noon. I was so pleased I’d got ‘lost’ as I arrived in time for “The Changing of the Guard” with all the pomp and ceremony of such an event.

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An impressive ritual took place.

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Very smart, colourful uniform.

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He was watching me!

Formation marching; from video

The guard goose-stepped off duty,

no doubt part of a drill left over from the “Russian” days.

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Very colourful, very precise, very impressive.

After that little interlude it was back to my room for some last minute packing.

DY; from video

And so that really is the end of the saga of my Mongolian trek with Tim Cope.

Well almost. There’s just one thing left to do…

DY shaving; from video

I just needed to shave off that seventeen day beard!

Especially since it was all white!!!!!

DY from video

And as I finish this task, there’s just more one thing to say…

Thank you for joining me for the journey

on this trek through the vast landscapes of far western Mongolia.

David

If you enjoy these armchair travels, please pass our site onto others

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more of our travel stories and photos can be found on

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Mongolia #26 Day 14 of the Trek (09/10/15)

Dec9

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It was a warmer night – with no frost. For the first time, I slept under the sleeping bag rather than in it. Mind you, it was still only a few degrees above freezing.

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Soft pre-sunrise hues over the bay beside our campsite.

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Finally the sun hit the far side of the lake.

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…then it was our turn to receive some warmth from the sun

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The sun highlighted these fluffy seed heads.

There was an option this morning to go for a walk and be picked up along the way… or to stay in camp. This came about because we had to wait for two of our vehicles to return from Olgii where the con-rod in one and a broken leaf in the other car’s suspension were being fixed. Some of us decided to stay in camp and have some time-out. We kicked the remains of the camp fire into life and sat around it, chatting and relaxing until midday. The vehicles reunited, we drove on until we found the walking group. Our destination for the day was Khovd where there’s an airport. This would be our point of departure from far west Mongolia; the end of our trek.

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On the way, we came across a rather impressive, very Russian styled memorial. As with many things with a Russian influence, there appeared to be plenty of money for building, but nothing ever set aside for maintenance. Built and then forgotten.

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Yaks grazed contentedly on the wide open steppe.

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Our cars left a dust trail as we drove down into the town of Khovd.

(Elevation 1405m, 48.02N, 91.57E)

Khovd is the capital of Khovd Province, approximately 1580km (982mi.) from UB. The town’s population of 81,479 (in 2015) is made up of more than 17 nationalities and ethnicities all of which have their own traditional dwellings, dress and cultural differences.

The climate is harsh with the summer temperature regularly reaching 40°C (104°F) and falling to as low as -30°C (-22°F) in winter. The weather is dry with an annual rainfall of only 122.8mm (4.8in.) per annum. Despite this harsh climate, over two million livestock are herded here and, quite amazingly, the area around Khovd is famous for its watermelon production.

At present Khovd is connected to the Russian electricity grid and its prone to blackouts if the town falls behind in its payments! So generation of hydro-electricity from the abundant snow melt is becoming more important. It’s hoped that new projects will generate enough electricity not only for Khovd’s needs but also for the power needs of the adjacent aimags (Provinces) of Uvs and Bayan-Olgii.

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We drove a short way out of town to find a camp site beside a swiftly flowing stream. This was our last camp site for this Mongolian trek with Tim Cope.

Dinner tonight was a bowl of soup followed by a lamb dinner with potatoes and carrots. It was cooked in a pot with hot stones. Really delicious.

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After dinner we were entertained by three Kazakh performers in national costumes.

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The instrument played was the traditional morin khuur. I say traditional, but under the Stalinist regime, musical instruments had to be standardised and ‘modernised’ using different materials and construction methods. The top and bottom of the traditional morin khuur was made of skins. The sides had ‘sound holes’. Today, the instrument has a wooden soundbox, f shaped holes and a soundpost. Bows were traditionally made of horse hair. Todays strings are made of nylon.

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The firelight flickered over the face of the throat singer.

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These performers brought to an end the final night of a memorable trip.

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Before I turned in, I repacked my bag. And now, I have to let this biscuit have the final say in this diary of our trek. I bought it in a pack of biscuits way back on my first day in China on 6th September. That biscuit pack lived in my backpack, all day every day, one or two biscuits being nibbled at from time to time. They were not overly hard, nor overly sweet, yet at the same time rather nice in flavour. I wasn’t hungry between meals during the Walk on the Wall, nor between meals in Mongolia. So now, after all of that time, there was still one biscuit left in my pack. And it was not broken! There must be something very special about those biscuits!!!

And there had certainly been many things special about our trek. I was able to muse over them as I fell asleep in my tent on my last night under the Mongolian stars.

David

If you enjoy these armchair travels, please pass our site onto others

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Mongolia #25 Day 13 of the Trek (08/10/15)

Dec8

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It was another cold morning, -10℃, (14℉) with frost on my tent. My toes were still frozen! The sky was almost cloudless above our picturesque camp site.

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The sun began to creep over the hills and into our valley.

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Breakfast was the usual scrambled eggs with bacon but with a few extras in the form of orange slices and dried apricots. Very nice.

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Before we set off for the day, our driver, Pujee, posed with my travelling companion, Michael from London, alongside Pujee’s trusty Toyota HiLux.

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Leaving our drivers to pack up camp, we began to walk for about half an hour to the site of four standing stones… well, two standing stones, one ‘leaning’ stone and one definitely tired, lying down stone! There’s a growing problem in the steppe areas of the standing stones being stolen and sold to museums, smashed or indeed used to help get a car out of a bogged situation. Perhaps, respect for the stones is waning.

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A nearby small lake reflecting that huge blue Mongolian sky.

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After our vehicles caught up with us again, we drove on to see a “Silent Village”. It looks like a village in the distance but it is in fact, a cemetery… hence ‘silent’. Tim had told us that these villages had tricked him when he was on his big trek. Can you imagine, trekking along on your own and you see what you think is habitation… people… company… and a chance to share a meal. But no! Not here.

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We ventured closer to have a look. These were relatively new graves within a walled area. The ground is very hard and rocky so a mound is built over the body. At a later date a stone surround might be built.

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An older grave with surround.

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A much more substantial grave site.

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Now there’s a grave site with a pretty spectacular view.

Pity the incumbent isn’t able to enjoy it!

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There wasn’t a lot of vegetation except for a few tufts of White grass.

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Wonder of wonders… here in the “Silent Village” one of our drivers managed to get phone reception! The driver was still vertical so it wasn’t a call on the “royal telephone”! The silence is broken! Modern technology.

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We drove on through stark countryside under the clearest of blue skies.

The sky here really is amazingly blue.

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When we came to an ovoo on a pass, of course we had to make the obligatory stop and perform the, by now, well known ritual of walking around the ovoo three times clockwise, each time adding another stone to the ever growing pile.

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Oh oh! More vehicle problems. And no habitation in sight anywhere. Just as well our drivers were fairly knowledgable as mechanics… at least we hoped they were.

Up and running again, we set off back to Olgii. We stopped there for a while, long enough for me to finally get to a bank that had both power and people, both at the same time. Finally I got my hands on some more Mongolian money.

With local money in my pocket, we wandered off to the Italian coffee shop… I’m not sure whether the coffee or the free WiFi was best! Nonetheless, we partook of both.

Others managed to find some shops! We had lunch at a restaurant, climbed aboard our vehicles and set off towards the town of Khovd… but not for long.

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On the very outskirts of Olgii, one of the cars dropped a con-rod, or something like that, and it wasn’t going anywhere fast. The passengers from that car were unloaded and shared around the other cars… a bit of a squash but that’s how it had to be. We drove on leaving the ailing car stuck on the side of the road looking a little ‘down in the mouth’.

It was around 19.15 before we came to a lake where we could camp for the night. As I got out and walked around our vehicle, I could hear hissing from a back tyre. A rock we’d driven too close to, just before we stopped, had sheered of the valve! This was the only problem our vehicle suffered throughout the trip due mainly to Pujee’s careful driving and the good condition of the vehicle when we’d started. The corrugated and rock strewn roads really do punish vehicles in these parts.

The light faded but it wasn’t too cold… there was a good cloud cover. So, after dinner, most of us sat around a fire while Tim read from ‘The Silent Steppe” by Mukhamet Shayakhmetov, a first-hand account of the genocide of the Kazakh nomads during the 1920-1930’s under Stalin. It was 22.00 before we went to bed after what had been another eventful day in the far west of Mongolia.

More anon

David

If you enjoy these armchair travels, please pass our site onto others

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Mongolia #23 Day 12 of the Trek (07/10/15 am )

Dec6

I woke at 06.45 but stayed in the warm sleeping bag (the one I’d borrowed from Tim) for an extra 45 minutes. It was still -9℃ (15.8℉) and no one was moving yet.

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When I did emerge, the scene was magical… an absolutely cloudless sky above snow capped mountains which were reflected in the still clear waters of the lake.

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And there, by the lake, was my little tent with Tim’s sleeping bag airing on top. It could stay there in the sunshine while I had breakfast… such as it was! Just watery porridge; the muesli was running out. No wonder I lost weight on this trek.

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Before we headed out for the day, Tim explained something about this wonderful Tsambagarav mountain and glacial region that we were experiencing.

The Tsambagarav National Park has an area of 110,960 hectares (274,188 acres). The permanently snow-capped Tsambagarav Mountain is 4193m (13,737 ft.) high and is sacred to Mongolians. Several other peaks are also permanently snow-capped. Many glaciers and numerous glacial lakes dot the park. Deep rocky gorges and waterfalls are common. There are petroglyphs and Turkic standing stones to be seen as well.

We would need to keep our eyes peeled for the wildlife of the area. It was possible, though not at all probable, to sight elusive Snow Leopards and other endangered wildlife including Argali sheep, Ibex, Rock Ptarmigan and Altai Snowcock. We would be more likely to spot an Altai sheep, the largest wild sheep in the world. An adult male can weigh in at over 35kg (75 lbs.).

We would also probably come across more of the Kazakh and Uriankhai nomadic herders who live in the area during summer.

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Time to leave. But we didn’t get very far at all. Dirty fuel again stopped one of the vehicles. So we decided to walk until the problem was fixed.

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Very soon, we were up to the snow line again.

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The edges of the river were frozen.

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After walking for two hours of following the stream up the valley, we came to this dwelling. The people who live here are not Kazakhs but Turvans, displaced/refugees from Tuva. I’d never heard of Tuva before and that’s not surprising… it was only recognised as an independent state by two countries; Russia and Mongolia… and that only from 1921 until 1944.

We stopped to ask directions and were promptly invited in for tea. So hospitable.

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This little one wondered what was going on.

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The inside of the house was lined with colourful rugs, lino and plastic sacking. We shared our lunch of a delicious soup which had some extra flavour added… a little of the sheep that our crew had killed the night before!

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The lady of the house…

backed by the wall rug and plastic coverings for the walls.

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The man of the house.

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Another member of the household.

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There were some handcrafted mats, rugs, bags and clothing for sale. Margaret bought a couple of small rugs from the home owner who seemed very pleased.

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An image of Genghis Khan was knotted into the pattern of this large wall rug.

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Finally, it was time for us to bid these hospitable people farewell and leave them to eke out their survival existence in this harsh, inhospitable landscape. Meeting people like this in their home, in their environment, made us all so thankful for our own way of life. How very fortunate we are… and may we always be grateful for that.

motor bike

Meanwhile, our drivers were testing their 4 wheel drive skills getting to us. They had to ford the ice covered stream near the herder’s dwelling. One of the locals showed the way across on his motorbike.

car crossing stream

After all of our vehicles had crossed the stream, it was time to climb on board and head higher up in this wintry wilderness. More of that anon.

David

If you enjoy these armchair travels, please pass our site onto others

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Mongolia #22 Day 11 of the Trek (06/10/15 pm )

Dec5

After lunch near the river in Tsengel, we headed up a valley, intending to cross a pass, but the snow was too thick. So we had to go back down and try a parallel valley.

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And in that valley, we stopped to ask advice from a local horseman who was looking after his flock. They all looked like silhouettes against the snow.

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The view back down the track that we’d just followed up the pass.

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Looking ahead, the track was getting icier and the prospects for getting over this pass were not looking good. Would we have to turn back yet again?

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Finally, we made it over the pass and came upon this delightful meadow and pond.

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Animals grazed peacefully in this beautiful valley.

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And the view just seemed to get better and better, the further we went.

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It was decided to camp for the night beside a quiet lake, surrounded by snow covered mountains. It was cold but it was stunningly beautiful.

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We marvelled at what we found down at the edge of the lake just a short distance from our campsite. This was a photographer’s dream find!

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Fantastic ice sculptures had formed as spray from the lake had frozen on plants.

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Crystal clear ice surrounded plant stalks.

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The ice crystals followed exactly the shape of the plants.

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In other places the ice hung like stalactites.

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Extra layers of ice were added each time the wind blew. The temperature didn’t rise above zero during the day and so they didn’t melt… and who cares about the cold with such delightful sights to enjoy.

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Layer upon layer of ice on one stalk. It was very difficult to stop taking photos… each piece was so unique, so beautifully sculptural.

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The spring and summer grass had been harvested to be kept for winter feed.

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A local paid us a visit; just looking; checking us out.

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It was indeed a beautiful campsite.

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Having stopped early, there was time to go for a walk before dinner. Fences are very uncommon in Mongolia. This stone fence guided stock to the water’s edge.

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And this timber fence may have been built to keep animals from the water.

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A yak herder came over to our camp to look us over.

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One of the yaks was also curious.

rock hopping

We’d set out to walk around the lake but our return to the camp was cut off by streams running into the lake. Some of us rock hopped across the stream, trusting that we’d get to the other side without wet boots.

4 wheel driving!

Some of the vehicles came to the rescue, but first they had to rescue themselves!

4 wheel driving 2

One after another the cars crossed through the slippery mud.

4 wheel driving 3

Would he make it? Of course. It was a Land Cruiser. I have one at home!

After all of this drama, we had dinner; chunky vegetable soup. It warmed us up as it was very cold and the cold was making my nose run. The next activity could have possibly made my eyes run with tears… if I was a vegetarian. But I’m not.

sheep

Tseren had bought a sheep for the crew to kill in the traditional Kazakh way.

Tim

Tim explained the process as we watched on in fascination… even if some were a bit squeamish! To begin the process, a small incision was made in the animal’s chest just below the sternum – an area known to be rather devoid of nerve endings. A hand was inserted into the pleural cavity and the aorta snapped. Death was instantaneous. This method of killing means that no blood is spilt as it all remains in the cavity to be scooped out later. These people are Muslim Kazakhs and, for them, the spilling of blood onto the ground as sacrilegious. The skinning, gutting etc. was then a little more familiar but I was surprised at just how easily the skin came off.

So this is how you get your meat for dinner out on the steppes. It doesn’t come from the supermarket already nicely packaged and ready to cook. It’s a hands on job.

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Back out on the steppe near the camp, yaks grazed amidst stunning scenery. And that was just one of the wonderful scenes from this day to ponder upon when I turned in to sleep in my tent under the stars. Sleep came easily after a truly memorable day.

More anon

David

If you enjoy these armchair travels, please pass our site onto others

www.dymusings.com

more of our travel stories and photos can be found on

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More of our travel photos are on

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Mongolia #21 Day 11 of the Trek (06/10/15 am )

Dec4

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We woke to a still and clear, cloudless sky. I was up and outside by 07.00 to find our hosts already milking their yaks.

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Our host with his wonderful fox fur hat.

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A nearby house was similar to the one owned by our hosts.

The smoke of the morning fire wafts across the fields, bringing the house to life.

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Barren hills, yaks and rider on a modern ‘horse’!

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A more settled form of Mongolian farming with mud brick houses.

There aren’t many trees for building but there is a lot of dirt for making mud bricks!

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Mud brick wall construction.

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A little face in a doorway.

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The little one’s father.

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Another local

By now the animals had been milked and our morning tea was ready for us – three milky bowls of it. All very well except we had to follow the local custom and add some curdled cream to it. It wasn’t too bad…. I managed three bowls of the stuff.

Tseren had left earlier to drive the 28km (17.4 mi.) back to Olgii to get our passports and permits which would allow us to proceed into the National Park.

So after a breakfast of watery porridge (muesli wasn’t on offer) the usual scrambled egg with ‘bacon’, dry bread and cheese and a cup of tea), we started walking.

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We managed to walk about 3km before being picked up by our vehicles.

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In this barren landscape, I was surprised to see a small group of larch trees in their golden autumn colours. They are definitely survivors in this harsh climate.

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Nearby, on a broad stony plain, stood this large traditional Turkic stone. In a project that lasted from 1007 to 2012, a group of archeologists and scientists studied these stones across many of the countries where they occur. Their conclusions can be read in their project notes;

‘The Stone Guards of the Great Steppe’. http://balbal.kz/en

They found that many of these stone sculptures face East. The reason for this is that “the ancient Turkic tribes and nations adhered to the Tengrian faith – veneration of the Immortal Blue Sky – in their belief and traditions. The setting up of the stone sculptures … often signified that a well-known person of ancient Turkic society is buried there.”

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The indigenous Old Turkic name for these stones is “badiz”; a figure, carved in stone. As seen here, Turkic stones usually have a bowl or a bottle of vodka carved into the base, possibly to provide the liquid needed in the after life. This stone would appear to have been placed on a mound, very likely a burial mound.

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The stones inevitably stand in the middle of BIG landscapes. The authors of the project make the comment that; “centuries later, it seems as if these monuments hand us a message from our ancestors: ‘We preserved these lands for you, and your mission is to pass them on to the next generation, so that they stand the test of time.” A sage message for all of us no matter where we live, especially today as we witness the effects of climate change on our world.

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Oh oh! Another flat tyre slows our progress.

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We were now getting closer to snow again and feeling colder!

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We drove into the small town of Tsengel. It was really good to get out of the cars, go for a walk and try to capture some of the essence of this place with my camera.

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Most of the houses were simple design, functional, made of timber and mud bricks.

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Three little girls, all rugged up against the cold wind, smiled a warm welcome.

DSC02245 © DY of jtdytravels

Cuties, aren’t they!

DSC02248 © DY of jtdytravels

The hinges on this metal door are made from a discarded rubber tyre.

DSC02250 © DY of jtdytravels

The washing out to dry… innovative clothes line!

DSC02252 © DY of jtdytravels

A timber bridge crosses the river that runs through the town. Low in water during the autumn period, the river obviously carries a lot of water in the time of the spring thaw.

DSC02254 © DY of jtdytravels

What water there was in the river was frozen over.

DSC02255 © DY of jtdytravels

Large ice crystals formed near the river’s edge.

DSC02257 © DY of jtdytravels

The bridge across the river also marked the boundary of the National Park, the destination we had been seeking for a couple of days now! As we crossed the bridge, our papers were checked at a rope barrier strung across the bridge. Before entering the park proper, we stopped in a grove of larch trees for lunch… well, what purported to be lunch! We were offered three small apples, one of them tart enough to suck the inside of your cheeks together for a week, a small mandarin and a chunky shortbread-like biscuit.

DSC02260 © DY of jtdytravels

Lunch over, we said farewell to this neat timber and mud brick town with its colourful corrugated iron roofing… it could be used as part of a Colourbond roofing advertisement! Our next activity was a walk in the National Park… more of that anon.

David

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Mongolia #20 Day 10 of the Trek (05/10/15 )

Dec3

It had been dark when we arrived at the home of the ‘bath lady’ in Oglii so it was interesting to investigate our surroundings in the morning. The sky was heavily overcast with a little light rain falling off and on but the wind of the previous two days was all but gone.

DSC02188 © DY of jtdytravels

The small compound was filled with our vehicles. Our rooms were in the buildings on the left, the brown building at the far end housed the kitchen and the room where we ate.

It was a slow start to the morning. Items that had been blown around the day before were being looked for and found, sometimes stuffed in the most unusual of places. Socks, gloves, jackets, thermals, you name it… these were anywhere other than where they used to be, or indeed, where they might have been expected to be. In the panic of the wind storm, they’d been stuffed just anywhere to prevent them from being blown away any further and lost.

DSC02189 © DY of jtdytravels

Our accommodation was in this dusty street, little more than a back lane way. Just out of view, in this photo, lying beside a lamp post, was a goat’s head. I can’t understand why it wasn’t eaten; everything else is!

DSC02190 © DY of jtdytravels

Further along the street, some colour brightened up what was a dismal part of the town.

The plan for the day was to drive out to a National Park and do some walking. But, first, we needed permits to enter. All of our passports were collected and taken away to who knows where. This takes time in Mongolia, so we headed for the centre of town, firstly to visit the National Museum and then to fill in some more time with a little extra last minute shopping.

Now shopping costs money as we all know… or a valid credit card. I can’t remember whether I mentioned earlier that, unbeknown to me at the time, my credit card was hacked a day or two before I left Australia. The first thing I knew about it was when I received an email from my bank asking if I’d bought a pair of shoes in the States. No! I hadn’t. And I’d told the bank where I would be and when… the USA was not on that list.

By the time I received the bank’s email, I was in China and I soon found that fixing that sort of thing was not as easy as I would have hoped. My return email to the bank did not sanction the purchase, of course, and so my card was immediately cancelled, of course. So no credit card! Fortunately both the Chinese and Mongolian tours were all paid for so the only cash I needed was for incidentals and a few tips. I had enough USD and AUD to cover those expenses. In China I’d had no problems as the banks were able to help me. However, in Mongolia, except for in UB, the situation was slightly different. And by the time we got to Oglii, I’d run out of Mongolian money. I needed some more.

The saga of the money began in Oglii the day we went to the market. I finally found a bank that could/would change foreign currency notes. Just as I got to the teller, the power went off. Therefore, no money transactions possible. So now, while in the town centre, I went to the bank next to the museum and… again the power went off. I went back after the museum visit to find the bank closed… it was lunchtime. Oh, well, who needs money anyway?

After our sortie into town we went back to the ‘bath lady’s’ house and had lunch; soup and dry bread. After lunch we were ready to set off on our travels again but not before a quick stop at a supermarket for some last minute nibbles and snacks. It was 15.00 by now. A late start!

DSC02192 © DY of jtdytravels

Not far out of town we made an unscheduled stop in this valley. Why? There was a nomad lying in a gully just off the side of the road. Was he dead or alive? His trusty horse and eagle were waiting nearby for their owner to sober up. He’d obviously enjoyed the Eagle Festival.

By now, it was blowing a gale again, so there was no chance of camping by the lake that we were heading for. Instead, we prevailed upon a group of nomads and ended up being shared around a few families for the night.

DSC02193 © DY of jtdytravels

Michael and I ended up together again in a flat roofed house that had about 6 rooms. We were shown our room; large with rugs on the floor but no beds. This wasn’t a problem as we had our Thermarest mattresses etc. and we’d been sleeping on the ground anyway. Having put our stuff away, we ventured into the kitchen/living room which was opposite our room.

DSC02195 © DY of jtdytravels

In the corner of that room was a metal, dung-fired furnace that was used for cooking and also to heat water which was piped through out the house to heat it. The lady of the house lit the fire and very soon a bowl of hot tea had been prepared. She made us feel very welcome.

DSC02194 © DY of jtdytravels

It wasn’t long before all of this food was laid out on the table. Apart from the colourfully wrapped individually sweets, wafer biscuits, and fried pastry (centre back), all of the rest of the food was of dairy origin – some soft and fresh, some rock hard.

This was the most important room of the house, particularly during the cold winters. It had a linoleum covered floor with cupboards along one wall. These appeared to contain household items. There was also a couch, a table and four blue-painted wooden chairs. Some cooking utensils hung on the wall near the furnace. The area around the furnace was tiled.

DSC02205 © DY of jydytravels

A TV took pride of place in one corner of the main room and there were family and wedding photos behind the telly. I was asked to take photos of these photos of the important people in their lives. The photos were rather faded to begin with, and behind cracked glass, but they at least gave a family ambience to the house and a sense of the couple’s personal history.

DSC02208 © DY of jtdytravels

Our hosts wedding photo… interestingly in western wedding clothes.

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Our hospitable hosts on the evening we stayed with them..

The main bedroom was off the living room and a clock ticked above the door. An ornate clock also hung above another door which led to a wide corridor that ran down the centre of the house. Amazingly, for a place where time matters little and the day is programmed by the length of the day, sun up to sun down, both clocks agreed with each other!

The roof of the building was constructed using rough poles as rafters cross-laid with planks, all still in natural condition. This added a certain warmth to the home.

DSC02196 © DY of jtdytravels

Before the day was over, I wandered out into the open area around the house. Just before sunset, the landscape and the animals glowed in the golden late afternoon light.

DSC02197 © DY of jtdytravels

Daylight was beginning to fade as I walked back to the house, enjoying the last of the view. I looked forward to a better night’s sleep. It had been a strangely uninspiring day after the excitement of the Golden Eagle Festival. However, that disappointment was tempered for me by the priviledge of meeting and staying with this Mongolian family. It was a real bonus.

More anon

David

If you enjoy these armchair travels, please pass our site onto others

www.dymusings.com

more of our travel stories and photos can be found on

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Mongolia #19 Day 9 of the Trek (04/10/15 )

Dec2

More competitions were organised for the Eagle Festival but we had woken to a wild, windy day with dust blowing everywhere. So the group decided that the morning could be better spent exploring Olgii town, particularly the market. I believe there was an ulterior motive on the part of some of the group… shopping perhaps!

DSC02150 © DY of jtdytravels

However, the ‘shoppers’ didn’t find much in this part of the market to their liking! They were soon off to see if they could find crafts and cashmere.

DSC02151 © DY of jtdytravels

I found the market most interesting. In the leather section, I even found tins of Korean made “Kangaroo Brand” shoe polish. It brought back memories of the last time I was in Mongolia. Damn good polish it proved to be as well.

DSC02152 © DY of jtdytravels

It was no use looking for cashmere amongst these rolls of brightly colourful linoleum.

This was not a market for tourists but for the locals… their needs paramount.

DSC02160 © DY of jtdytravels

So back to the Festival where there seemed to be a very relaxed atmosphere on this, the second day. It was possible to be right beside a competitor, their mount and their eagle.

goat tug of war 1

One of the more fascinating sports was a tug of war, on horseback, using a headless goat.

goat tug of war 2

Not only was the goat headless, but the legs had been cut off at the ‘elbows’. Made hanging on to the beast even harder.

Goat tug of war 3

It was a real test of strength and horsemanship. The galloping, turning horses combined with the strong wind made it very dusty on the field and not at all pleasant. But it was somehow quite mesmerising to watch this crazy ‘sport’. At least the goat was being tenderised!

pick up coins

Another competition required the rider to pick up a coin from the ground at full gallop! There was great skill required to perform this seemingly impossible task… many failed.

When all the competitions were over, it was time for winners to be announced. Since I didn’t really understand the announcements, I decided to take photographs of the more obvious reactions amongst the competitors during the proceedings. That was rather fun.

The chief judge soon had everyone’s attention… he had the all important list of winners.

A young competitor and his hooded eagle awaited the results… hopeful… maybe.

A worried looking owner. His eagle looked totally disinterested in the results…

maybe it was one of the ‘naughty’ eagles that soared in the thermals!

Other hopefuls milled around on their horses.

Finally, one of the winners was announced. For what, I wasn’t sure.

But big congratulations all round.

Will I, won’t I? Maybe?

Yes!!! They say: ‘winners are grinners’… and this grinner was indeed a winner!

Another medal winner… slightly less ecstatic with his good fortune…but he couldn’t take

his eyes off his medal. Winners were also presented with a certificate.

And this was his medal.

Looking on with us was James, a friend Tim made here on a previous visit.

After a fascinating afternoon, we returned to our ger camp… and what we found was utter devastation. Crumpled gers and belongings everywhere. My little tent, although it lost one guy rope, was still standing (right of blue mess tent).

The very strong winds, strong enough to blow a person off their feet, had reeked havoc and blown three of the six gers over. Tim had never heard of this happening before.

A rescue operation was necessary to retrieve our belongings from the toppled gers and to disassemble the still standing gers. This took over an hour to complete.

With no outer felt and calico covering, this ger shows its supporting wooden structure.

Obviously it was just not possible to sleep the night where we were, so Tseren swung into action to find alternative accommodation in Olgii. As it turned out, the lady who ran the bathhouse had been asking Tseren to become a Facebook friend for some time. Now this was the opportunity to see what she could do for us. It just so happened that the bathhouse lady was trying to establish a guest house but she didn’t have any guests staying… even though the town was booked out due to the festival. Here was a real chance for her to make some money. She agreed that all seventeen of us, plus the drivers and cooks, could stay overnight. Somehow we all found room on mattresses and rugs on the floor in various parts of this lady’s house. It was rather amazing… her whole family had just up and left. Personal possessions such as pills and watches were still on shelves and ledges in the rooms… ’twas as if the owners had fled from some impending catastrophe. Perhaps we were that catastrophe?

It was not a good night’s sleep. But what can you do! That’s life.

More anon

David

If you enjoy these armchair travels, please pass our site onto others

www.dymusings.com

more of our travel stories and photos can be found on

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Mongolia #18 Day 8 of the Trek (03/10/15 Part b)

Dec1

The eagle competition was about to begin. This young handler, dressed in his elaborately embroidered clothes, had climbed up the rocky hillside with his eagle and awaited his turn to launch his bird. The stage was set for the main event!

Waiting to release eagle

The aim of the sport is simple really… the winner is the bird that takes the shortest time to fly from the point of release to the time it lands on its owner’s arm. When the starter gives the signal, the handler on the hill removes the eagle’s hood and sets the bird free. The eagle then SHOULD fly straight down to its owner on the horse and be reunited. The emphasis is on the word SHOULD! It doesn’t always happen that way.

[NB. I took lots of video but we are having no luck downloading it to WordPress at the moment…. so some photos taken from the video will have to suffice… my apologies.]

Eagle soaring

Several of the eagles had their own ideas about how to spend the afternoon… they soared the thermals giving spectacular flight displays. No prizes for that… but it was really good to watch these majestic birds soar overhead.

Eyes skyward… watching eagles soar! A wonderful sight.

Eagle landed

When those soaring birds finally came down to land, many decided to check out the crowd rather than return to their owners. It was fun for us … frustrating for the handlers.

correct landing

A few did as they were trained to do … they returned to their owner on the horse…

this to great cheers from the crowd and a possible chance to win the event.

Eagle returned to handler

Reunited… no winner… but the possibility of another chance on another day.

How do you remonstrate with a bird this size?

In amongst the crowd, I noticed this man with a wonderful face.

At times like this, I just wished that I could have understood his language;

heard his stories; learned so much more about his country, his people, his culture.

A grandfather with grandchild… taking in all the activity and the ambiance.

Perhaps, one day, this child will become an eagle handler… who knows?

In a nearby area, an archery competition was underway.

Archers, dressed in traditional archery garb, took aim with crossbows.

This is another sport taken very seriously by the Kazakhs, and other Mongolians.

Earlier in the morning, traders had arrived at the festival with there gers and their wares carefully packed onto their camels. They set up a market near the event ‘field’.

There were lots of small beautifully embroidered items for sale.

I resisted the temptation to buy; well, almost!

Just a small embroidered ‘dingle-dangle’ destined for our Christmas tree.

I had to remember that we had a 15 kilo limit for the plane.

Oh… and a key ring of Kazakh boots – again for our Christmas tree

But when it came to the wide variety of Kazakh embroidered rugs and mats, I looked, but for once, I resisted buying a rug! Beautiful though they were, and much as we love our floor rugs and carpets from many parts of the world, and even though Jennie’s favourite colour is red…. these colours just wouldn’t go with our decor at home.

Where ever there’s a festival, there’s always food. Lamb kebabs and fish were on offer.

After a great day watching something very different from anything that I’ve ever seen before, it was back to the gers for a short stop. On the way, we passed by a veritable line up of those Russian “oo-warz-ik”, the ‘boxes-on-wheels’ vehicles so popular in these parts.

Late afternoon scene back beside our ger camp.

This old poplar also looked great in the late afternoon sun.

We rounded out the day by attending a concert back in town. Performers at the concert were dressed in embroidered traditional garb and entertained us with their Kazakh music.

We still had another day at the Eagle Festival to look forward to… and so do you!

More anon

David

If you enjoy these armchair travels, please pass our site onto others

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Mongolia #17 Day 8 of the Trek (03/10/15 Part a)

Nov30

Today was the day many of us had been waiting for; the first of two days of the famous Eagle Festival which shows off Mongolian/Kazakh prowess at eagle handling and horsemanship.

The day dawned cold and windy but not frosty. Instead of the beautiful blue sky we had become so used to, the sky carried a heavy load of cloud. This was the view looking down the road leading to our overnight ger camp.

We shared our location with a family who had a couple of gers, animals and two cars. Their site was sheltered by some old trees. It was amazing to see how they had managed to get their roots through the rocky river bed to a subterranean water source.

When in town, the cooks had taken the opportunity to buy some fresh bread, so that was good. Both black and white bread were on offer at breakfast.

And after breakfast, it was time for us to enjoy the Golden Eagle festival, an event of great significance in Mongolia which has been held in Olgii on the first weekend in October since 1999. This event, the largest gathering of eagle hunters and their eagles in the world, is now recognised by UNESCO as a World Heritage Event. The eagles are the stars of the show; prizes are awarded for their speed, agility and accuracy. Their trainers are inspected to find the best traditionally dressed individual. The festival also showcases other Mongolian pursuits such as horse-riding, archery and the goat carcass tug-of-war (Kukhbar) on horseback.

The schedule of events looked very interesting and so it was with great anticipation that we headed off to the festival grounds for the opening ceremony.

The ‘Welcome’ sign with rows of white rocks demarcating the event ground where all of the activity for the next two days would take place.

The grand march of horses, handlers and eagles began.

This area was backed by a rocky hill (to the left) from which the eagles would be launched.

The official line-up… an impressive backdrop for the day’s events.

Some of the eagle handlers/trainers were quite young.

I loved his hat…fur and feathers! It would look good in my hat collection.

Contestants wore their finest clothes and head gear.

Note the hare hanging from the saddle… it would be eagle prey later in the contest.

An old timer’s hat made from multi-coloured skins.

Although eagle handling has traditionally been a male only ‘sport’, there were two young female trainers at this festival. Imagine having a mighty bird like that so close to your face! It’s all about trust… and, of course, the bird was hooded!

The eagles hoods, or burqas, are preferably made from soft but strong kangaroo hide.

An unhooded bird looks intently at something in the distance. Eagles have 10 times better seeing power than humans. This eagle’s handler is very trusting… over time, bird and handler become as friends. Note the tethering bands and the thick leather gloves that protect the handler’s arm from those very sharp talons.

Horses also sported special tackle for the occasion.

A beautiful old engraved and coral studded silver saddle

An old saddle cloth, and saddle. Some saddles can be 100+ years old.

The spiral “Y” shaped stick is an extra support to help hold the weight of an eagle.

A rider, and his bird, contending with the wind show how the arm support is used.

One of the festival competitions is for the best dressed handler. This young man must surely have been in the running for that with his beautifully embroidered coat and fur hat.

Detail of the intricate Kazakh embroidery on the back of one of the coats.

More fine embroidery… the full ensemble on a horse.

Traditional Kazakh style of embroidery is all done in chain stitch.

Some of the ladies were also dressed in their best.

Many hours of work must have gone into this coat… now a family heirloom, no doubt.

This baby’s chubby cheeks caught my attention… no need for any fine embroidery!

I only saw two raptors that were not Golden Eagles.

What a beautiful bird!

While waiting for events to begin, all visitors had the chance to inspect and photograph the contestants; humans, birds and horses. There were some really big cameras in use. Although this guy wasn’t being ‘pushy’, many of his colleagues were absolutely awful, in your face awful. Some of them obviously thought that, if your camera wasn’t BIG, you had no right to be taking photos. How wrong can you be. All of my photos and videos were taken on my small hand held Sony HX90V and I’m very pleased with the results… and I hope that you are too.

More of the main events anon.

David

If you enjoy these armchair travels, please pass our site onto others

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Category Archives: Tim Cope

Mongolia #27 Day 15 of the Trek (10/10/15)

Mongolia #26 Day 14 of the Trek (09/10/15)

Mongolia #25 Day 13 of the Trek (08/10/15)

Mongolia #23 Day 12 of the Trek (07/10/15 am )

Mongolia #22 Day 11 of the Trek (06/10/15 pm )

Mongolia #21 Day 11 of the Trek (06/10/15 am )

Mongolia #20 Day 10 of the Trek (05/10/15 )

Mongolia #19 Day 9 of the Trek (04/10/15 )

Mongolia #18 Day 8 of the Trek (03/10/15 Part b)

Mongolia #17 Day 8 of the Trek (03/10/15 Part a)