UlaanBataar Foot Tour

Sunrise over the city.  Wow!  I really loved Mongolia.  In September.  I have been following the weather all winter, and I don't think I would like it there then.  Some days it was down to -40.  That is COLD. 

This day was not that cold, but it did start out drizzly. A perfect day for a walking tour of the city.  Anyone can go on a walking tour on a bright, sunny, and warm day...

This is the Parliament Building, and they say that later on this area will be packed with stands selling food and tourist stuff, but this early in the morning, no one is out. 

In the middle is a huge statue of Genghis Khan.  You can see the tiny kids on the steps in front of him. 

These are some Russian trains that are on display.

I love this one with Stalin on the front. 

In 1990, Mongolia had a peaceful democratic revolution which changed the country from communism to democracy.  The communist part is still evident in the rusting structures.

This is the State Department Store, but it is no longer run by the government. 

Three intrepid explorers.

Here we are having Mongolia barbecue.  If you haven't had it, here is what you do:  put a bunch of raw meats and vegetables into a little bowl, add a bunch of seasonings and sauces, hand it to the guy.  He uses two sticks to mix it up on that huge metal cooking surface. 

After a huge lunch we continue our tour to the Choijin Lama monastery. 

Now we are taking a short cut to find the National Museum.

The view at night.  Sad to be leaving this magical place. 

UlaanBataar and The Gobi Desert Part 3

Here we are, in the middle of the desert and we meet a Korean guy.  His motorcycle had spun out and because the ground was so soft he couldn't pick it up.  Luckily we found him after he had been waiting for about two hours for anyone to come along. 

What a view.

The view after another hour on the road.

and... one more hour.

This is our ride... sweet, right?  Also the driver and the tour lady. 

Sometimes there is so much rain that it makes these ravines. 

Here is the entrance to our "hotel" for the night. 

They blare this amazing Mongolian music and come out dressed up in traditional clothes.  You have to drink some camel yogurt before they let you in. 

This is the inside of the ger.  That pole in the middle holds it up. 

Haha...

Now we are going for a drive to a place in the desert that used to have ice year round.  It flowed from a crevice in the rocks.  However, now, because of climate change, the ice melts by the end of August.  But we still went to see it. 

No ice. 

I am not sure how helpful this map is, but you can see that we are close to northern China. 

Maybe this is a better map?

Gary is locked out.  The lock and key are from 1960, so it is not surprising.

This is about a 30 minute walk away from our ger.  You can see that there is nothing else around for miles in any direction.  This is our last night in the Gobi, so we made the most of it. 

and finally we are heading back to Ulaanbaatar.