Lake Spring Boating

Mongolia in a Nutshell

Sandwiched between two powerhouses that occupied (and pillaged) its resources and) and the USSR’s influence within the country gathered strength throughout the mid to late 1900s.

When the Soviet Union unspooled in 1990, Mongolia became, as Lonely Planet puts it, “a de-colony by default.” Once liberated, Mongolia was declared (and has remained) a democracy, but without the large Soviet subsidies paid to keep it “buffering” between China and the USSR, Mongolia tumbled into further poverty. Too poor to mine and process the raw metal and materials within the country, Mongolia’s economy collapsed with its totalitarianism.

Of course, Mongolia wasn’t always this poor.

As the country that flung the Hans, the Turks and the fiery Mongol warriors into the world, the scale of Mongolia’s empire stretched between continents and numbered in the at the many rules and mores that still govern modern life and sit for hours in the silence of the Gobi, with the sky looming closer than you’ve ever seen. Horse culture is so deeply ingrained that it is inseparable from other aspects of Mongolian existence and Mongolians have a deep-seeded, formal respect for the land and its abilities – degrading or altering the landscape is considered blasphemous to most.

Superstitions abound in Mongolian Culture

One of the truly surreal aspects of Mongolia is all the rules and superstitions that are wholeheartedly embraced, even today. To name a few:

1. You can’t touch feet with someone. If by mistake you do touch their feet with yours, you have to shake their hand immediately. Even waitresses at restaurants do this, to Bryce’s surprise. We met an Irish guy, Brendon, who drawled miserably that, because he had such huge feet, he spent a good part of his day shaking hands with random Mongolians.

2. You can say hello when you arrive, but not later on that day, or the next day. Hello is limited to one visit only – why say hello again when you just saw the person? After all, chances are that you won’t see them again for many years to come.

3. When being offered fermented mare’s milk, you must hold the bowl with your right hand, supported by your left hand (resting under the right elbow). No drinking when holding the bowl with your left hand.

• If offered vodka, you must dip your ring finger of your right hand into the glass, and flick one drop toward the sky, one to the air, one to the ground – and then put the same finger to your forehead and say thanks. No one can drink until you’ve followed this to a T. The same customs apply to Buryat Buddhist villages in Siberia, but were less strictly enthused.

• You can’t point a knife toward anyone, ever. This includes passing and cutting: against my mother’s best instincts, you must cut toward you, not away, and pass holding the blade itself.

• You can’t point your feet at the hearth/fire, or at an altar. You have to sleep with your feet pointing at the door in the gers, and each ger is set up for this scenario: each single bed’s pillow is arranged so your feet are facing the door whilst you sleep.

• You can’t stand between the two supporting columns in the middle of the ger. Items must be passed around them, and you must also weave your way around the columns when moving about.

• You can’t stand on the threshold or in an open door. If you make the mistake of saying goodbye when the door is open, you must close it, rise and repeat. No allowances for mistakes here.

• Goodbyes are sacred and no one wants you to bring bad luck when you leave.

• For food: you must drink your tea from the bottom of the cup and not the rim, not put your tea down on the table until you’ve had your first sip, or cross your legs or stick your feet out in front of you while you eat.

• And my favorite: when approaching a new ger you do NOT say “hello”, you yell Nok–hoi-kho–ri-o!(“Please hold the dogs!”). I’ve seen these dogs in action: this phrase is the essence of survival in Mongolia.

Inside the family’s ger (yurt) Inside the family’s ger (yurt) Inside the

The Mongolian language: not so simple

And then there is the language. Travel writer Tim Severin famously noted that the Mongolian language is akin to “two cats spitting and coughing at each other until one throws up.” I’ve tried to think of a more accurate depiction of the guttural, phlegmy and often garbled sounds that make up the language, and I’ve come to the conclusion that Mr. Severin was dead on in his assessment. Learning the basics (hello: “Sain bai na–uuuu“, thank you: “bay-thzar-la“) was an exercise in audio-imitation, and a ton of fun. My friend Bryce and I had plenty of time to practice our Mongolian (and coax our guides for “bad words” in exchange for bad words in English, French and Spanish) on our long drives through the Gobi. Incidentally, there is no Mongolian word for “please”. We found this out when a guide asked for something and I jokingly said “say please!” and was met with two blank stares of incomprehension.

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Into the Gobi

People often ask me what my favorite moment was on the trip thus far. These people are rarely fellow round-the-world travelers, as my “kin” are apt to know that it is quasi-impossible to synthesize the many living, breathing memories into one definitive thing that was particularly better than the rest. I used to answer that my first night on Salkantay remains the most vivid, unreal moments I experienced on the trip thus far, but after my nights a ger in the middle of the Gobi, I now have a new answer.

Bryce and I were shepherded from Ulaanbaatar to our tourist van and made our way to the Bayangobi with our guides Gana and Soyolbayar. The first thing that struck us was how unbelievably smile-y the country was. After Russia’s sober cynicism, the constant smiling was a breath of fresh air. I mentioned this to our guides and their response was that Russia had a “hard history”. True, we said, but Stalin’s terrorizing reach certainly crossed into Mongolia, both culturally and economically, and it was also pillaged by China – and Mongolian still smile. The response: a breakdown into giggling, for a good 10 minutes. Lots of giggling during my time in Mongolia.

Now in Beijing

Bryce has returned to the USA (it was so great to travel with him!) and since I am still coughing (sigh), instead of heading to Nepal (is cold) I will likely head to meet my friend Jared in Borneo to explore the Malay peninsula and then we will make our way up to Southeast Asia.

And to address the obvious: no, I’m not using an onion router to post this – Blogger is no longer blocked by China. Wee!

– Jodi

Some Photos From Mongolia

Close up!

Bird’o prey

About to be dinner (will spare you the skinning/preparing part but of course wonderful to see people use every single part of the animal, including the skin and offal, unlike North America where we waste oh so much.

Mongolia Fast Facts:

Population in 2008 when I visited: 2.6 MM

Horse to person ratio: 13:1 GDP: $2100 per capita (125 of the 182 countries ranked in terms of poverty)

Literacy rate: a surprising and wonderful 98% Average life expectancy: 64 years Percentage of people living below the poverty line: 36% Cost to buy 1 sheep: 50,000 Togrogs (50$) National sports: Wrestling (more like Sumo wrestling), archery and horse racing.

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1. And to address the obvious: no, I’m not using an onion router to post this – Blogger is no longer blocked by China. Wee!

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