Ulaanbaatar - Pickpocket Capital of the World

I am at the (in)famous Naral Tuul Black Market. Well it is not primary a market for illegal goods but more for new ones. I have been warned several times before, do not take anything as you will loose it. So, I leave my camera and my cards at home and put some play money in my pockets. One bill worth only a couple of cents sticks out in my back left pocket to distract the thieves from my bigger bills in the front pockets. Lets see what will happen...

Naral Tuul Black Market.

 Photo: internet - as I did not want my camera to be stolen...

Ok, I am on the road for more than 5 months now and - touch wood - nothing has been stolen from me. I wondered through insanely busy streets in Bangladesh, walked in the deep night by myself through Mumbai and had some too many drinks in some rough and seedy bars in Kathmandu or Bangkok and never felt unsafe. Until I came to Ulaanbaatar. At Nadaam Festival somebody tried to open my pocket and slide his hand in and today I heard from the 5th tourist that his bag or pocket has been made lighter or at least attempted to. Pickpockets and also some more violent crime has increased recently in Ulaanbaatar. I had a couple of bigger nights in UB's famous nightlife and walked home - admittingly slight intoxicated - and was watched carefully from a lot of suspicious eyes. Did I just get away or did they know that in the night I only carry the money arround which I am going to spend? Tourist are a prime target as they usually carry a neat array of gadgets, cameras and money out for display in public. Today I walked along Peace Avenue which is the main strip of pickpocketing and I saw a tough woman beat up a potential thief - Good on her! Sadly nobody in the crowd helped her.  Wait a second, thieves usually operate in groups of three. Two district from the front with a fall or a fight (you get it?) and the third one strikes from the back. Before of course they have followed you and figured out where your fat wallet is located.

Back to the market. My sensors are on 120% - where are you you little mean thieves? Maybe the guy who pushed through and touched my arm? Or the young lady who cut the corner running 'coincidential' into me? It is Sunday and the books warn as it is the busiest day of the week to go. I don't really think there were a lot of people but maybe there were enough to pick my pockets? After a couple of hours we are leaving the market exhausted from being alert and from walking the miles of shops. I slowly slide my hand in my back pocket and it is: empty. A slight shiver over my arms, I haven't felt anything. Ah wait a second, this was my right pocket. My left pocket still has my little attractor for the thieves - maybe it wasn't enough to get them hooked...

Mongolia - The North - Khovsgol Lake

After some incredible scenery around the Khorgo Volcano we are heading further North towards Khovsgol Lake. We realise that it is getting more touristy as soon as we hit the lake and see some of the reindeer herdsmen posing for some local tourist's cameras - for money of course. The reindeer actually need higher terrain however sadly the herdsmen figured out that posing generates more money than following their traditional way of life.

After a steep descend the road hits Lake Khovsgol which contains 1% of the world's fresh water supply and 65% of Mongolia's fresh water reserves. It is crystal clear and icy cold, in winter a one meter thick layer of ice covers the lake and only in 90ties oil trucks were forbidden to cross the frozen lake to Siberia after some ended inside the lake.

It is our last major stop of our journey and we finish it off with two days on horse's back. Horses are the only mean of transport once the road ends even though my bottom (still) doesn't agree. The smiles in the faces of the others show me how ridiculous my trotting skills on the horse are...how on earth can I adjust to the rhythm of the horse without crushing my favourite bits? Anyway a slight painful experience but at the end, Gobi II (my horse) did much more what I wanted him to do than not. Until the lightning started and he got slightly scared...

From the lake it is another 3 days of driving back to Ulaanbaatar to conclude our more than 3000km or dirt roads and potholes. On the way back we spend a night in a 'fancy' Soviet style hotel in Erdenet. The city is only existent as one of the biggest mines of Mongolia found its home here. And that's also why we can follow the only sealed road all the way to Ulaanbaatar. Thank you guys for a great trip.
more images here

Tsaatsan Reindeer Herdsmen - Photo: internet

Lake Khovsgol and our horses around our tent site - prime pristine waterfront.

Mongolian horse seats

Not the most comfortable seat for our horseman,
ours had more padding and no metal plaques - thanks for that!

Our horseman on the left - done for the day.

Horse's paradise if you know what you are doing - Lake Khovsgol

Only flying can be better than riding horses here.

Biggest office work place in the world - might get a little bit
chilly in winter. The national park fee collector. 

Final stop before Ulaanbaatar: Edernet with...

...Soviet style housing...

...hotels and...

...more housing for all the mine workers...

Mongolia - Central

After leaving the Gobi, we are heading North towards the Central part of Mongolia. The landscape becomes more hilly, green and we can feel during the night that we are going up a little - the Himalayas sleeping bag pays out again. An overnight stop at a family ger with fresh horse milk and some unidentified others eatables gives us the smell of horses, so it is time to ride the famous (half) wild Mongolian horses. And it is later at Terkhiin lake that the horse guide gives me a horse, helps we onto it and let me go - excuse me how do I go forward or left and right? What's about start and stop? Basically the horse - I call it Gobi - is doing what it wants. The guides just smile and don't necessary understand that I haven't grown up with horses. What did they say: "Show the horse who is the boss..." ? Just yell "Shuu" and hit the poor horse hard with your heals and it should move. Easily said so the first hours turn out to be quite exciting - hmmm or more nerve wracking?

Anyway, my bottom realises quickly that it is not used to a Mongolian horse seat, well to be honest not used to any seat except my bike seat at home...(to be cont.)

Before we actually reach the lake and the volcano, we drive past one of the biggest monasteries of the country, Erdene Zuu. Unfortunately with the arrival of the communists in 1930, the monasteries in the country were all destroyed and the monks were either killed or deported and only with the indepence in 1990 they are slowly coming back to life.

more images here

Take a horse (female preferred) and pair it with it newborn and...

...you get fresh milk.

Granddad is watching carefully after the horses.

Erdene Zuu, Kharkhorin

Ladies day in the monastery

Boys, sure you want to touch the fellow,
he might just have your fingers as an appetizer.

Russia 1 : Germany 0

Russia 2 : Germany 0 (watch the water coming out of the door)

Once somebody get stuck, everybody stops - Russia 4 : Japan 0

The winner is a Russian van - ours of course.

End of the life in sight...

...and over for this ones just to end...

...here with the ladies in the blue uniforms.

View from our next camp site - nobody there.

And finally we arrive at...

...our ger at...

...Terkhin Tsagaan lake. Horses are waiting to... 

...take us to the volcano - if they would just go where we want to go.

Khorgo volcano

Mongolia - Gobi - Part II

After the first appetizer of the desert, we detour to the deep canyon called Yolin Am which is know for its remaining ice crust even over summer. While we are sweating in our Russian van - only the front and one back window can be opened - the ice canyon in the middle of summer with 30 degree plus is a nice surprise.  

Our journey continues to the major highlight of the Gobi, Khongoryn Els in the Gobi Gurvansaikhan National Park, also called the Singing Sand Dunes. A range more than 100km long and up to 300m high.  The way to the dune is done on the back of a smelly beast, the Bactrian Camel - this time of the year acually not that hairy at it lost its winter fur. Then it is quite a treck up there but rewarded with best views. While running, sliding and racing down the 45 degree slope you can hear the dune singing when the sand from above fills up your footsteps (slide tracks) below - quite surreal.

A stay at a local family ger under a heavy storm concludes our Gobi experience and we are on the way to Central Mongolia for more scenery.

more images here

On the way to Yolin Am, a deep and...

...cold canyon which even contains ice in summer.

How thick is the ice here in winter when temperatures
plunge to below -30 to -40 degree?

If he gets through we should get through?

...just made it. Nothing can stop a Russian minivan.

Not a bad camp site

 

On the way just a quick stop to help the locals build their ger:
Put up the frame, erect the centre piece, connect with the spokes, cover with a layer of felt, then with a layer of sheep wool and finally with a layer of canvas. Finished is the house party.

Ger detailing, easy to assemble as the nomads move 2-4 times a year.

Ger detail

Celebrate with a freshly slaughtered goat...

...and frankly, hope not to be invited for the blood filled inner
bits which are nicely boiled in a big pot. Every part is used!

Stir the blood before it clogs!

The local kids show us their...

...biggest playground in the world - hard to beat.

Khongoryn Els in far sight...it is almost 100km long...

...where our smelly and stubburn friends wait for us...

...to take us closer, but not...

...close enough. 3 steps up, 2 steps down, 3 steps up...
 (photo: Verena - thank you for beating me on the way up)

Summit fever

This fellow will shortly end up like that:...

...neatly cut to pieces and ready to be dried and smoked outside.

Living in the shadow of the dunes

Somewhere here in Bayanzag they found the first massive dino
bones and some eggs, can you imagine having huge dinos running around?

A so typcial Mongolian evening panorama

Silence before the storm...