Saturday 20th July 2013
Wake up in Ulaanbaatar
Can’t believe we have made it. Now what? We have a lazy morning, but still not time to download any more pictures. Tim emails Paul and Sally at BG Landrover, giving them an update and asking for advice about the transmission.
We meet Astrid and Olav for lunch. Have more time to enjoy each others company. On the menu was crap soup – it wasn’t. Also, chance to check out their vehicle, swop ideas and technical challenges. They are planning to travel North into Russia, and put the car on a train in Vladivostok. Think they catch the same train as well. We stand outside when the torrential rain has stopped, and have the obligatory photos taken. Two of the bell hops help out, one looking very professional. Sad to say goodbye after so short a time. But great to have met up and know they are safe.
We have booked into a ger for the night in Telej National Park. We thought the traffic was bad last night, but it took us over an hour to clear the city centre. Now we could see it in daylight, we could make more sense of it. Some soviet looking buildings, much western influence and a lot of new buildings going up. The centre is vibrant and modern. As you move to the suburbs, the housing becomes less desirable. Many people sitting on balconies with seemingly nothing to do. Large queues at the bus stops. Further out again, the ger settlements. These seem a better place to live than the area we have just left.
The scenery is unlike anything else we have seen in Mongolia. Grass covered mountains and trees. We turn off the main road, and pass a man with huge eagles tied to posts. Further on there are camels for people to ride. Two men are having a go, looking slightly ungainly. The road worsens. They are again building a new road by the side, but the old tracks are a free for all and we often have vehicles coming straight at us.
We arrive at the double bridges. The old one has wooden supports and is only used by pedestrians now. There are people along the wide riverbank, children playing and swimming, picnics and games. A stall selling smoked fish, shiny and succulent. We wait for our host to collect us. The owners of the ger are Pugi, a Mongolian, and his Norwegian wife Jeanette.
Pugi arrives, a very gentle, quietly spoken man. We follow him far along the riverbank, past organised ger camps, families picnicking and camping. Soon we are leaving civilisation behind. More permanent single ger settlements appear. Pugi stops at one of his neighbours, and collects a large metal bar. We continue to near the source of the river. It is early evening, tranquil and the light is soft.
Jeanette comes to greet us. She is warm and friendly. They have a cute little baby boy, just four months old. We are shown into our ger, large with wooden floors and two double beds. A group of four French people are also at the camp. They are working for organisations in UB, and had just arrived today for a weekend break. Pugi had taken them horse riding, and they were all hobbling about. Dinner is served in our ger, noodles, meat and plenty of veg. It starts to rain. We all sit late into the night, sharing drinks, stories and experiences.
Pugi and Jeanette take turns to join us. Jeanette had travelled widely, came to teach in Mongolia, met Pugi and they married. Pugi was born in the Altay Gobi. His family sold all their animals and moved to UB. They are setting up an organisation to support local children and families. In the winter they will go to Norway, and pay people to look after their animals- 21 horses, three huskies, one cat and several chickens.
It is a shame the young French couple who live just near the Eiffel Tower will not be back at home when we meet up next month Rachel.
The fire is stoked for the night and we crawl into bed. A day of such contrasts, and very emotional.