Tuesday 30th July 2013
Going to try the Organic Cafe for breakfast. Walk downstairs past the sign for today’s conference – Mongolian Hygiene and Disinfectant Conference. Hope there won’t be any disaffected disinfectant delegates. Get a message from the transportation company, they need original paperwork to take to the Chinese authorities. An employee will come to the hotel, at 10.30am. A man arrives, and asks about our trip. Also, what do we think of Mongolia. It is lovely to be extolling the virtues of someone’s home country. Perhaps we missed out the state of the roads.
Gentle stroll to cafe. Order breakfast special, coffee and pancakes. Wait for quite a while, but know everything is being freshly prepared. We discuss the music festival in Norway next June. Atle and Hilde have invited us to it. They suddenly realise they have to confirm bookings before August 1st. We would love to go, so accept readily. I will definitely have to get my knee better by then, as there is a long trek from their apartment in Tyin. Last year the snow was very heavy, and they needed snow shoes. We have been recommended to buy walking boots which come higher up our calves. That’s Christmas sorted then. Breakfast is delicious. It reminds us of our stay in Brooklyn last year. We then all reminisce about wonderful holidays. This jogs Tim’s memory. He owes me a trip to Barcelona, with the Strouds, for my birthday last year.
Hilde and I go shopping, Tim and Atle stay at the hotel. We decide to walk, as Hilde had noticed a Silk Shop. It could have been prosecuted under the trades description act. Move on. I hold Hilde’s bag as she shops. Successfully. She treats me to lunch, panini and coffee. We walk back, just avoiding the downpour.
Men are still in foyer, sorting insurances and stuff. They had forgotten to eat lunch, and had nearly wasted away. Pizza ordered. Rob arrives, with the man from Black Shaman. Discuss vehicles, routes, the logistics of organising the longest horse race in the world. Also found out that we could not have travelled the Pamir Highway this time last year, due to local disputes in TJ. Scary.
Tim is trying to sort GPS tracking for whole trip, but encountering difficulties. We have a few days without photos on our blog. Hope we can finish them soon. Spend a little time looking back over trip. Amazing how much you forget when new experiences crowd in.
Time in our rooms. Sorting and packing. How much local currency have we got? How much will we need. Don’t know how long we are staying. Sorting through coins, came across one I did not recognise. A pound coin, with the Queen’s head on. Flippin’ heck. Been away too long.
We go out to dinner. In foyer are large posters welcoming the Mongol Rally arrivals. A couple more cars are expected in the next day or so. Very impressive. We are eating at a very swanky restaurant – The Ivy. Dodge large puddles as we get out of taxi, remnants of today’s downpour. Very few customers, all westerners.
Waiter was charming. We couldn’t have the bubbly we ordered, next shipment is September. It’s only July!! The food is truly delicious. Starter is gin and tonic, and enough Parma ham to satisfy even Esme. Tim and I have rack of lamb with creamed potatoes and roasted veg. They haven’t got Tim’s lemon sorbet, but melon. Not as good. I have espresso coffee and liqueur, poured over ice cream and amaretto biscuits. Exquisite. Coffee. Oh, and the obligatory bottle of red wine. Atle and Hilde pick up the tab. Tomorrow Tim and I are taking them back to the Irish Pub for fish and chips.
No new arrivals from rally when we get back to hotel. Hope we see some tomorrow.