Wow - where on earth did the last 3 weeks go!? It's funny how time seems to drag when you're actually doing something, but once it's over - you wonder where it went!
Spent the last couple of days in China exploring the hutongs a bit more - trying all sorts of yummy weird stuff - some sweet pasty type thing, a steamed bun with "meat of unknown origin" in - was goooooood! And some lovely grated potato fritters we accidentally ordered - a fantastic mistake! Also checked out some Beijing nightclubs - great fun! "80s Mod" is alive and well here :+)
I've uploaded some photos online here, so when you're feeling bored, have a wee look!
Thanks HEAPS again to everyone who supported me with the fundraising & preparing for this trip - it was worth every last muffin baked ;+)
Tuesday, July 17, 2007
Wednesday, July 11, 2007
Back in UB!!!
Well, what a whirlwind the last week or so has been!!!
Am now back in Ulaan Baatar - having spent most of today at the Nadaam festival - Mongolia's national holiday - a sort of celebration of the 1921 revolution, with lots of Mongolian wrestling, archery and horse racing!
The mountain biking went well!! Amazing scenery - starting near the Gobi desert (goddamn is sand difficult to pedal through!), riding through dusty dirt valleys - slowly climbing over three mountain passes, the highest at 2750m!! I now have legs of steel ;+) As we started descending again, the grasslands got greener and we finally started to see trees! We met lots of nomadic Mongolians - who were quite taken aback at times to see a bunch of lycra-clad westerners on mountain bikes heading past their gers! We only had one dog incident but the owner called them back seconds before they latched on to some bike wheels. We had one fractured pelvis from a fall onto rocks (there were A LOT of rocks!) and another suspected fractured elbow that turned out to just be a bad sprain... I managed to stay on my bike the whole time - even being the first up the hills most occasions! (Who'd have thought!?) It was a nice change being the experienced biker for a change - the others were either roadies or not regular cyclists at all!
I got to try the usual Mongolian fare when passing by the gers - yak's milk, yak's cheese (tasted kinda like parmesan...) and biscuits with cream made from yak's milk on them! All quite yum! Also tried airag - the fermented mare's milk - now that just tasted like liquid feta cheese - not quite so nice...
We camped by rivers almost every night - good for getting washed as there certainly weren't any showers about - plumbed or the camp variety! We managed to bring enough beer and pringles so that each night was spent talking either around headlamps or in a couple of cases, yak-dung fires!! (Keeps the flies away!)
We arrived in Kharkhorin on Monday - where Chinggis Khan ruled his empire back in the 1200s - there was an old monastery that we visited there, Erdene Zu, one of the very few that still exist after the Chinese and then the Russians went through destroying them all. It was pretty fascinating, but after 350km in 35+ deg heat, we were too pretty knackered to really take it in I think. We spent our last night camping hanging out drinking with our Mongolian crew - they are such a lovely bunch. They had nicknamed me the strong, good humoured pretty one!!! That cracked me up - and when they found out I was a kiwi, they asked if it was true that we eat other people there.... I said to them that's why I was so strong ;+)
An 8hr drive back to UB yesterday with a madman driver - we literally drove blindly into dust on the wrong side of the road at times, overtaking with NO room to spare - the oncoming traffic had to pull off to the side!! It was an adventure to say the least....
Off back to Beijing tomorrow - a free day, so most of us are planning on getting massages and going shopping! Then we fly out home on Friday afternoon - I think I get in to Welly Saturday afternoon!
As for postcards, I haven't actually found a post office to buy stamps yet, so they may have to be posted in Beijing - so of course they will arrive in NZ well after I will!!!
Off back to the hotel for a shower (man, showers are such a luxury!!) and then out for dinner and drinks for our last night in Mongolia. It's been such an amazing trip - the people are fantastic - such a bright and proud people - I'm definitely going to be sad to leave. It's one of those experiences that I think has definitely changed me.
Ok - will see/talk to/email you when I get back!
Am now back in Ulaan Baatar - having spent most of today at the Nadaam festival - Mongolia's national holiday - a sort of celebration of the 1921 revolution, with lots of Mongolian wrestling, archery and horse racing!
The mountain biking went well!! Amazing scenery - starting near the Gobi desert (goddamn is sand difficult to pedal through!), riding through dusty dirt valleys - slowly climbing over three mountain passes, the highest at 2750m!! I now have legs of steel ;+) As we started descending again, the grasslands got greener and we finally started to see trees! We met lots of nomadic Mongolians - who were quite taken aback at times to see a bunch of lycra-clad westerners on mountain bikes heading past their gers! We only had one dog incident but the owner called them back seconds before they latched on to some bike wheels. We had one fractured pelvis from a fall onto rocks (there were A LOT of rocks!) and another suspected fractured elbow that turned out to just be a bad sprain... I managed to stay on my bike the whole time - even being the first up the hills most occasions! (Who'd have thought!?) It was a nice change being the experienced biker for a change - the others were either roadies or not regular cyclists at all!
I got to try the usual Mongolian fare when passing by the gers - yak's milk, yak's cheese (tasted kinda like parmesan...) and biscuits with cream made from yak's milk on them! All quite yum! Also tried airag - the fermented mare's milk - now that just tasted like liquid feta cheese - not quite so nice...
We camped by rivers almost every night - good for getting washed as there certainly weren't any showers about - plumbed or the camp variety! We managed to bring enough beer and pringles so that each night was spent talking either around headlamps or in a couple of cases, yak-dung fires!! (Keeps the flies away!)
We arrived in Kharkhorin on Monday - where Chinggis Khan ruled his empire back in the 1200s - there was an old monastery that we visited there, Erdene Zu, one of the very few that still exist after the Chinese and then the Russians went through destroying them all. It was pretty fascinating, but after 350km in 35+ deg heat, we were too pretty knackered to really take it in I think. We spent our last night camping hanging out drinking with our Mongolian crew - they are such a lovely bunch. They had nicknamed me the strong, good humoured pretty one!!! That cracked me up - and when they found out I was a kiwi, they asked if it was true that we eat other people there.... I said to them that's why I was so strong ;+)
An 8hr drive back to UB yesterday with a madman driver - we literally drove blindly into dust on the wrong side of the road at times, overtaking with NO room to spare - the oncoming traffic had to pull off to the side!! It was an adventure to say the least....
Off back to Beijing tomorrow - a free day, so most of us are planning on getting massages and going shopping! Then we fly out home on Friday afternoon - I think I get in to Welly Saturday afternoon!
As for postcards, I haven't actually found a post office to buy stamps yet, so they may have to be posted in Beijing - so of course they will arrive in NZ well after I will!!!
Off back to the hotel for a shower (man, showers are such a luxury!!) and then out for dinner and drinks for our last night in Mongolia. It's been such an amazing trip - the people are fantastic - such a bright and proud people - I'm definitely going to be sad to leave. It's one of those experiences that I think has definitely changed me.
Ok - will see/talk to/email you when I get back!
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