Thursday, July 9, 2009
Tuesday, June 30, 2009
picture's captions (i don't know how to do it right... just deal)
So, this post and the 3 before need to be read in order. first the one called 'playing catch up', then he one with all the pictures and this one. the pictures need to be looked at from bottom to top. and here's the captions from bottom to top:
bottom:
Khentii river (where the pig roasts)
Snow in June??? We're from CA, we don't play that game!
Monastery ruins
The album cover (my tourist group)
Camping
Sand dunes
Flaming cliffs
Can't ever beat the Mongolian sky
The Porgon, driver, and tour guide
(on the right) ice gorge
(on the left) Dinner
Beautiful Omngovi
(next 5 pics) the process that leads to deliciousness! (not for vegetarians)
two humped camels
Country
(on the right) just past sunset
(on the left) mongol on the sand dunes
Meditation seminar
My new Tattoo (great mongolia)
My new Israeli friend
(2 on the right) Irden Zuu
one leg to our private concert
(on the right) Me and my little brother
(on the left) Arv at night
bottom:
Khentii river (where the pig roasts)
Snow in June??? We're from CA, we don't play that game!
Monastery ruins
The album cover (my tourist group)
Camping
Sand dunes
Flaming cliffs
Can't ever beat the Mongolian sky
The Porgon, driver, and tour guide
(on the right) ice gorge
(on the left) Dinner
Beautiful Omngovi
(next 5 pics) the process that leads to deliciousness! (not for vegetarians)
two humped camels
Country
(on the right) just past sunset
(on the left) mongol on the sand dunes
Meditation seminar
My new Tattoo (great mongolia)
My new Israeli friend
(2 on the right) Irden Zuu
one leg to our private concert
(on the right) Me and my little brother
(on the left) Arv at night
Playing Catch Up
The past month or so has been quite interesting for me. In order to make sure I cover the major bases, I will separate them into chunks:
1. Khentii and COS conference
2. Gobi Desert
3. Meditation Retreat
4. Harhorin and Israelis
5. What's next?
1. Khentii and COS conference:
I left my site headed for the not-so-kosher Khentii Pig Roast, and annual tradition among the Peace Corps Volunteers in Khentii. This is where they buy a big, kill it, skin, clean, and chop it and then cook it on a fire near the river. I did not go last year, but decided to go this year since it was immediately before my COS conference. It was a good time of sun, beer, and good food... though I don't eat pig. Those of us headed out to Chingis' homeland piled into a Microbus and were fortunate enough to have a comfortable and timely trip both ways. This was a part of my efforts to see more of Mongolia before I head out. After a few days of hanging out by the river we headed back to UB for out COS conference. This is our final Peace Corps gathering where we talk about all the paperwork and medical appointments we must do before we can leave. It's a surprising amount of work. I am officially set to leave Mongolia July 24th. We also spent some time talking about resume's, cover letters, and what its going to be like trying to adjust and find a job in America. The most interesting part was talking about some of the things we will miss the least, what we have done, and how we think Mongolia has effected us. It was interesting to see everyone's answers.
2. Gobi Desert
Following COS conference, I had about a week to kill that I didn't have to be at work. I was going to take the bus out to Omngovi and try and find my way around. At the very last minute, I decided to join a tourist group who was headed out the next day. This proved to be a good decision. Omngovi is very big and I would have had no idea where I wanted to go. It was definitely a different way of travelling mongolia than I am used to. I found myself spending a lot of time with the guide and the driver. It is obvious they are not used to having people who speak Mongolian on their trips. I could understand just about everything they said. And I also learned some new vocabulary words. I was on the trip with 4 other people; a german, a danish, and 2 americans. We had a really good time. I found myself explaining certain things about Mongolia and Mongolian culture and I really started to realize how much I love this country. It was really interesting seeing all their reactions to things.... especially the amount of camel pictures they took. I ended up with a lot of great photos from this trip. The guide asked me what my favorite Mongolian food was and I said "horhog". (this is the REAL Mongolian bbq) Him and the guide decided we would do horhog before I left the trip. So, one day, we were driving through the desert and stopped at a herd of goats and sheep. We bought a goat and took him in the car to where we spent the next few days. It was a beautiful place right next to the sand dunes.
The killing:
One of the men took the goat and layed him on his back. He cut a small cut, maybe four inches thick. He stuck his hand inside and pinched the main artery. The goat died immediately and without any cries for help. It was all very humane and it showed they'd done it millions of times. Once the goat was dead, they took the goat inside the ger and started to take the skin off. Still, there was no evidence of blood. Once the skin was separated and the insides taken out, they took a bowl and collected the blood. Every part of this goat was used for something. Mongolians don't waste. The good parts to eat were separated and hung ready to be cooked. The innards were taken to the other ger and given to the family hosting us. (we weren't going to eat them) A little later we started to make the horhog. First, rocks were collected and heated in the fire. Once they were hot, they were put in the togoo (big cooking bowl) with the meat, some salt, potatoes, and carrots. Horhog cooks over a hot fire. When it was ready, we feasted. It was delicious. The way you eat horhog is simple. You pick up a bone with meat on it, and you rip off the meat until the bone is clean. You get grease all over your hands and face. When you are done eating, you pick up a hot rock and hold it in your hands. This is supposed to be good for your health. You then rub the grease into your skin and wash your hands when you are ready. After every horhog, you must take a shot of vodka. This is to help your stomach digest the food.
After we ate, we hiked up the sand dunes and tried to get there in time for the sunset. Some of us didn't quite make it for the sunset but it was still a beautiful scene when we reached the top. The colors the sky creates over the sand dunes is really amazing. I was sure to fill my water bottle with sand. Gobi sand is found all over the world. Hiking up the sand dunes was quite a task. With every step you take, you slide down at least half the distance. Later we realized we had simply gone up the wrong part. haha.
The day, I woke up early and helped the guide by making hushuur while he got ready for other things. I realized in my time there how comfortable in Mongolia and around Mongolians I have become. I gained an overwhelming feeling of not wanting to leave Mongolia.
The highlights of the gobi trip: ice gorge where it is hot outside but stays frozen most of the year, flaming cliffs are beautiful but not very high... i was surprised, ruins of one of the monasteries from way back when, sand dunes, camel ride, and maybe a couple other things. We eventually headed to Arvaikheer, where I was going to separate from this tourist group. I showed my new friends around my town, said hi to my work people and a couple friends, and had my group over for some tea before they headed on their journey. I think it was interesting for them to see a ger of an American living in Mongolia. It was a big compliment when the driver said he needs to go to America for 2 years so he can learn the language and the culture as I have Mongolian language and culture. I said goodbye and started on my next adventure.
3. Meditation Retreat
That night I took a car into UB. The next morning I met up with the people who were in charge of the Vipassana meditation retreat that I had signed up for. The head people had really good English and put me in a car headed out to where the retreat was to be held. I got there and was pretty quiet, just observing my surroundings.... not to mention I was absolutely exhausted. Many of the people had no idea that I speak Mongolian and could understand everything they said. It was funny. They thought I had already begun my 10 days of silence. I was sitting in the ger while everyone was getting situated when someone called me outside. It was really funny how worried they were about me staying in a ger... even when I explained that I live in a ger. To my surprise, there were 3 Americans there. I didn't realize it at first, but they were the one facilitating the seminar. Turns out, they were peace corps volunteers in Napal a long time ago, and they have studied Vipassana meditation in India with Goenka (the real teacher of this retreat). The majority of the instruction and talking of this retreat were from tapes that Goenka taped at a seminar in CA. He spoke in English and a Mongolian translation followed, so I had no problem following along. The next 10 days were the most challenging and most interesting 10 days.... possibly of my life. I encourage whoever is interested to try it out. You can find more information at www.dhamma.org there are these seminar in countries all over the world, including 2 Vipassana centers in CA. I plan on doing another seminar one day, and may even challenge myself to do a 30 day seminar. It is very difficult for me to explain what this seminar was like. It was intense. We meditated about 10 hours a day. When you are trying so hard to concentrate for so long... it is inevitable that your mind will wander. Even though I was trying to keep my mind from wandering, it was very interesting to watch all the random places that the mind wanders to without you even noticing. Vipassana also concentrates on the body and feeling sensations. This was also extremely interesting... observing your body in a way you never have before. At the beginning of the retreat, I wasn't so sure that I really believed or agreed with some of the things they talked about... but as I continued, I started to see for myself what they meant and now I find it entirely possible. I have noticed a small change in myself since this seminar, something I didn't expect. I don't really want to explain it but I do hope this change stays with me. I do plan on continueing to meditate, though I will admit, I have only meditated 1 time since the closing of the seminar. Not talking was really easy for me... definitely easier for me than some of the people around me. There were times when we would talk a little about how our meditating was going with the teachers... sometimes I didn't want to talk but I did anyway. A few words doesn't disturb the silence. At first I would come up with questions that I had and I would try to hold them in until the end, but then there came a point where I felt the need to ask immediately and I would go through all the questions that I had. This would prove good for me because it would help me let go of the idea so I could focus better on my meditating. At the end, there was a time where the silence was broken, but we were still meditating. As soon as we could, the people around me wanted to chit chat. It was really wierd for me. My senses had become so heightened that the sound of people's voices hurt my ears. I walked from the meditation ger to our housing ger and it was really funny. One girl standing in the middle opened her arms and said "hello". I said "hello". She then giggled and said "english finished". I smiled and proceeded to tell her in Mongolian that it is ok because I speak Mongolian. From this point on the room murmered with small conversations about how the American speaks Mongolian. It turns out the person sleeping next to me has family in LA and I plan on calling them when I get back to America as I head down the road of "operation make Mongolian friends". The people at the retreat were very diverse; men and women of all ages from 15 to 92. Meditating can be rough on the body at he beginning and I really admire the older men and women who persisted through. There might have been a couple people who went home early but I really don't know... I wasn't concentrating on that. After the retreat, I thought of the one person I think would really benefit from this the most is my mom. We'll see if I can convince her to give it a shot. The truth is that I could think of a long list of people who should try it out. If nothing else, its definitely an experience.
At the end of the retreat, I sat talking to one of the Americans for a little while. Turns out he was headed for harhorin and I arranged to have him in contact with a friend who might be able to help him see the wild horses...
4. Harhorin and Israelis
After the retreat I decided to pass through Harhorin on my way home. I have been to Harhorin a few times but still hadn't seen the famous monastery, Irden Zuu. Harhorin is the ancient capital of Mongolia, has the most preserved of the ancient monasteries, and is the home of one of my good friends. It also happens to be in my province and on my way back to Arvaikheer.
In the guesthouse, I was in the kitchen making tea when an Israeli noticed my belt and asked me where I got it. I had totally forgotten what I was wearing and had to look down before I knew what he was talking about. Turns out, I was wearing an Israeli army belt, given to me by a friend that I met in 2002. We started talking and he had just arrived to Mongolia. He had no plans, so I offered for him to come with me to Harhorin and Arvaikheer. He thought about it for a while and by the end of the night decided to join me. I also told him that I was headed out to get a tattoo and after showing his worry about getting a tattoo in Mongolia and my explaining that the guy is clean, he started to seriously think about getting his nose pierced. In the end, he and 2 other people came with me. (i'll post pictures in the next post...) My tattoo is on the back of my neck and says "ikh Mongol" meaning "great Mongolia". I'm a little sad that I can't see it, but I was trying to be a litte more discreat this time. That night, I took a few people from the guesthouse out with me to meet up with the group that I had travelled with and a few of my other Mongolian and American friends. It was a good time.
The next day, me and my new friend headed to Harhorin. It was funny watching him react to all the small things that I don't notice anymore... like packing people into a microbus, the openness of the countryside, the question of where to pee, etc... I took pictures of him drinking milk tea and standing with mongolian countryside in the distance for his photo record. We got to Harhorin and met up with my friend. Her ger was the first ger he had gone to and my ger was the second. We walked around the town and he saw how difficult it can be to find things... usually when you really want them. The following day, my American friend from the meditation retreat joined us and we all went to the Monastery. We couldn't get a car to Arvaikheer that night, so we stayed an extra day. This was good for us for two reasons; its cheaper to take the post car and it turned out we got our own private concert of Mongolian instruments and throat singing in my friend's ger. It was a really neat experience. Harhorin is a really beautiful town surrounded on one side by huge mountains and on the other side by absolutely nothing. The Monastery, the mountains, and the concert provided for lots of great pictures and some really good experiences for our friends new to Mongolia.
My Israeli friend ended up staying with me for almost a week combined. In this time, I realized how much I miss Israel and how bad I want to speak hebrew.
5. What's next???
I also learned that I have been put on the waitlist for the CSULB graduate program. I really don't think I'm going to get in. This has caused my mind to swirl with thoughts and ideas of what I want to do instead. I don't know if I want to stay in the US if I don't get into school. There are soooo many options of what I can do instead. I have thought about Israel, Latin America, and more of Asia. I have thought about going back to community college and learning a new discipline or getting a job somewhere and just working and going to the beach. I really have NO CLUE what I will do. Right now it is all up in the air. For some reason America intimidates me. I don't feel like I am ready to return to the American lifestyle. I know that returning will most likely be a lot easier than it seems right now. It will be really nice to see my friends and family and to speak fluently everywhere I go. It wil be nice to go to the BEACH!!!!!!!!!!! Man I can't wait to surf! There are tons of things I'd love to do in and outside of the US... which will come first... I just don't know yet. I have learned new skills to learning languages and have compiled a small list of languages I want to know: Spanish, Hebrew, and Arabic. I want to begin with Spanish and Hebrew because I have a basic knowledge of both sitting somewhere in my brain (though I can not access it at the moment). Once I know these, I will move on to Arabic. I feel like the options are endless!!!
1. Khentii and COS conference
2. Gobi Desert
3. Meditation Retreat
4. Harhorin and Israelis
5. What's next?
1. Khentii and COS conference:
I left my site headed for the not-so-kosher Khentii Pig Roast, and annual tradition among the Peace Corps Volunteers in Khentii. This is where they buy a big, kill it, skin, clean, and chop it and then cook it on a fire near the river. I did not go last year, but decided to go this year since it was immediately before my COS conference. It was a good time of sun, beer, and good food... though I don't eat pig. Those of us headed out to Chingis' homeland piled into a Microbus and were fortunate enough to have a comfortable and timely trip both ways. This was a part of my efforts to see more of Mongolia before I head out. After a few days of hanging out by the river we headed back to UB for out COS conference. This is our final Peace Corps gathering where we talk about all the paperwork and medical appointments we must do before we can leave. It's a surprising amount of work. I am officially set to leave Mongolia July 24th. We also spent some time talking about resume's, cover letters, and what its going to be like trying to adjust and find a job in America. The most interesting part was talking about some of the things we will miss the least, what we have done, and how we think Mongolia has effected us. It was interesting to see everyone's answers.
2. Gobi Desert
Following COS conference, I had about a week to kill that I didn't have to be at work. I was going to take the bus out to Omngovi and try and find my way around. At the very last minute, I decided to join a tourist group who was headed out the next day. This proved to be a good decision. Omngovi is very big and I would have had no idea where I wanted to go. It was definitely a different way of travelling mongolia than I am used to. I found myself spending a lot of time with the guide and the driver. It is obvious they are not used to having people who speak Mongolian on their trips. I could understand just about everything they said. And I also learned some new vocabulary words. I was on the trip with 4 other people; a german, a danish, and 2 americans. We had a really good time. I found myself explaining certain things about Mongolia and Mongolian culture and I really started to realize how much I love this country. It was really interesting seeing all their reactions to things.... especially the amount of camel pictures they took. I ended up with a lot of great photos from this trip. The guide asked me what my favorite Mongolian food was and I said "horhog". (this is the REAL Mongolian bbq) Him and the guide decided we would do horhog before I left the trip. So, one day, we were driving through the desert and stopped at a herd of goats and sheep. We bought a goat and took him in the car to where we spent the next few days. It was a beautiful place right next to the sand dunes.
The killing:
One of the men took the goat and layed him on his back. He cut a small cut, maybe four inches thick. He stuck his hand inside and pinched the main artery. The goat died immediately and without any cries for help. It was all very humane and it showed they'd done it millions of times. Once the goat was dead, they took the goat inside the ger and started to take the skin off. Still, there was no evidence of blood. Once the skin was separated and the insides taken out, they took a bowl and collected the blood. Every part of this goat was used for something. Mongolians don't waste. The good parts to eat were separated and hung ready to be cooked. The innards were taken to the other ger and given to the family hosting us. (we weren't going to eat them) A little later we started to make the horhog. First, rocks were collected and heated in the fire. Once they were hot, they were put in the togoo (big cooking bowl) with the meat, some salt, potatoes, and carrots. Horhog cooks over a hot fire. When it was ready, we feasted. It was delicious. The way you eat horhog is simple. You pick up a bone with meat on it, and you rip off the meat until the bone is clean. You get grease all over your hands and face. When you are done eating, you pick up a hot rock and hold it in your hands. This is supposed to be good for your health. You then rub the grease into your skin and wash your hands when you are ready. After every horhog, you must take a shot of vodka. This is to help your stomach digest the food.
After we ate, we hiked up the sand dunes and tried to get there in time for the sunset. Some of us didn't quite make it for the sunset but it was still a beautiful scene when we reached the top. The colors the sky creates over the sand dunes is really amazing. I was sure to fill my water bottle with sand. Gobi sand is found all over the world. Hiking up the sand dunes was quite a task. With every step you take, you slide down at least half the distance. Later we realized we had simply gone up the wrong part. haha.
The day, I woke up early and helped the guide by making hushuur while he got ready for other things. I realized in my time there how comfortable in Mongolia and around Mongolians I have become. I gained an overwhelming feeling of not wanting to leave Mongolia.
The highlights of the gobi trip: ice gorge where it is hot outside but stays frozen most of the year, flaming cliffs are beautiful but not very high... i was surprised, ruins of one of the monasteries from way back when, sand dunes, camel ride, and maybe a couple other things. We eventually headed to Arvaikheer, where I was going to separate from this tourist group. I showed my new friends around my town, said hi to my work people and a couple friends, and had my group over for some tea before they headed on their journey. I think it was interesting for them to see a ger of an American living in Mongolia. It was a big compliment when the driver said he needs to go to America for 2 years so he can learn the language and the culture as I have Mongolian language and culture. I said goodbye and started on my next adventure.
3. Meditation Retreat
That night I took a car into UB. The next morning I met up with the people who were in charge of the Vipassana meditation retreat that I had signed up for. The head people had really good English and put me in a car headed out to where the retreat was to be held. I got there and was pretty quiet, just observing my surroundings.... not to mention I was absolutely exhausted. Many of the people had no idea that I speak Mongolian and could understand everything they said. It was funny. They thought I had already begun my 10 days of silence. I was sitting in the ger while everyone was getting situated when someone called me outside. It was really funny how worried they were about me staying in a ger... even when I explained that I live in a ger. To my surprise, there were 3 Americans there. I didn't realize it at first, but they were the one facilitating the seminar. Turns out, they were peace corps volunteers in Napal a long time ago, and they have studied Vipassana meditation in India with Goenka (the real teacher of this retreat). The majority of the instruction and talking of this retreat were from tapes that Goenka taped at a seminar in CA. He spoke in English and a Mongolian translation followed, so I had no problem following along. The next 10 days were the most challenging and most interesting 10 days.... possibly of my life. I encourage whoever is interested to try it out. You can find more information at www.dhamma.org there are these seminar in countries all over the world, including 2 Vipassana centers in CA. I plan on doing another seminar one day, and may even challenge myself to do a 30 day seminar. It is very difficult for me to explain what this seminar was like. It was intense. We meditated about 10 hours a day. When you are trying so hard to concentrate for so long... it is inevitable that your mind will wander. Even though I was trying to keep my mind from wandering, it was very interesting to watch all the random places that the mind wanders to without you even noticing. Vipassana also concentrates on the body and feeling sensations. This was also extremely interesting... observing your body in a way you never have before. At the beginning of the retreat, I wasn't so sure that I really believed or agreed with some of the things they talked about... but as I continued, I started to see for myself what they meant and now I find it entirely possible. I have noticed a small change in myself since this seminar, something I didn't expect. I don't really want to explain it but I do hope this change stays with me. I do plan on continueing to meditate, though I will admit, I have only meditated 1 time since the closing of the seminar. Not talking was really easy for me... definitely easier for me than some of the people around me. There were times when we would talk a little about how our meditating was going with the teachers... sometimes I didn't want to talk but I did anyway. A few words doesn't disturb the silence. At first I would come up with questions that I had and I would try to hold them in until the end, but then there came a point where I felt the need to ask immediately and I would go through all the questions that I had. This would prove good for me because it would help me let go of the idea so I could focus better on my meditating. At the end, there was a time where the silence was broken, but we were still meditating. As soon as we could, the people around me wanted to chit chat. It was really wierd for me. My senses had become so heightened that the sound of people's voices hurt my ears. I walked from the meditation ger to our housing ger and it was really funny. One girl standing in the middle opened her arms and said "hello". I said "hello". She then giggled and said "english finished". I smiled and proceeded to tell her in Mongolian that it is ok because I speak Mongolian. From this point on the room murmered with small conversations about how the American speaks Mongolian. It turns out the person sleeping next to me has family in LA and I plan on calling them when I get back to America as I head down the road of "operation make Mongolian friends". The people at the retreat were very diverse; men and women of all ages from 15 to 92. Meditating can be rough on the body at he beginning and I really admire the older men and women who persisted through. There might have been a couple people who went home early but I really don't know... I wasn't concentrating on that. After the retreat, I thought of the one person I think would really benefit from this the most is my mom. We'll see if I can convince her to give it a shot. The truth is that I could think of a long list of people who should try it out. If nothing else, its definitely an experience.
At the end of the retreat, I sat talking to one of the Americans for a little while. Turns out he was headed for harhorin and I arranged to have him in contact with a friend who might be able to help him see the wild horses...
4. Harhorin and Israelis
After the retreat I decided to pass through Harhorin on my way home. I have been to Harhorin a few times but still hadn't seen the famous monastery, Irden Zuu. Harhorin is the ancient capital of Mongolia, has the most preserved of the ancient monasteries, and is the home of one of my good friends. It also happens to be in my province and on my way back to Arvaikheer.
In the guesthouse, I was in the kitchen making tea when an Israeli noticed my belt and asked me where I got it. I had totally forgotten what I was wearing and had to look down before I knew what he was talking about. Turns out, I was wearing an Israeli army belt, given to me by a friend that I met in 2002. We started talking and he had just arrived to Mongolia. He had no plans, so I offered for him to come with me to Harhorin and Arvaikheer. He thought about it for a while and by the end of the night decided to join me. I also told him that I was headed out to get a tattoo and after showing his worry about getting a tattoo in Mongolia and my explaining that the guy is clean, he started to seriously think about getting his nose pierced. In the end, he and 2 other people came with me. (i'll post pictures in the next post...) My tattoo is on the back of my neck and says "ikh Mongol" meaning "great Mongolia". I'm a little sad that I can't see it, but I was trying to be a litte more discreat this time. That night, I took a few people from the guesthouse out with me to meet up with the group that I had travelled with and a few of my other Mongolian and American friends. It was a good time.
The next day, me and my new friend headed to Harhorin. It was funny watching him react to all the small things that I don't notice anymore... like packing people into a microbus, the openness of the countryside, the question of where to pee, etc... I took pictures of him drinking milk tea and standing with mongolian countryside in the distance for his photo record. We got to Harhorin and met up with my friend. Her ger was the first ger he had gone to and my ger was the second. We walked around the town and he saw how difficult it can be to find things... usually when you really want them. The following day, my American friend from the meditation retreat joined us and we all went to the Monastery. We couldn't get a car to Arvaikheer that night, so we stayed an extra day. This was good for us for two reasons; its cheaper to take the post car and it turned out we got our own private concert of Mongolian instruments and throat singing in my friend's ger. It was a really neat experience. Harhorin is a really beautiful town surrounded on one side by huge mountains and on the other side by absolutely nothing. The Monastery, the mountains, and the concert provided for lots of great pictures and some really good experiences for our friends new to Mongolia.
My Israeli friend ended up staying with me for almost a week combined. In this time, I realized how much I miss Israel and how bad I want to speak hebrew.
5. What's next???
I also learned that I have been put on the waitlist for the CSULB graduate program. I really don't think I'm going to get in. This has caused my mind to swirl with thoughts and ideas of what I want to do instead. I don't know if I want to stay in the US if I don't get into school. There are soooo many options of what I can do instead. I have thought about Israel, Latin America, and more of Asia. I have thought about going back to community college and learning a new discipline or getting a job somewhere and just working and going to the beach. I really have NO CLUE what I will do. Right now it is all up in the air. For some reason America intimidates me. I don't feel like I am ready to return to the American lifestyle. I know that returning will most likely be a lot easier than it seems right now. It will be really nice to see my friends and family and to speak fluently everywhere I go. It wil be nice to go to the BEACH!!!!!!!!!!! Man I can't wait to surf! There are tons of things I'd love to do in and outside of the US... which will come first... I just don't know yet. I have learned new skills to learning languages and have compiled a small list of languages I want to know: Spanish, Hebrew, and Arabic. I want to begin with Spanish and Hebrew because I have a basic knowledge of both sitting somewhere in my brain (though I can not access it at the moment). Once I know these, I will move on to Arabic. I feel like the options are endless!!!
Thursday, May 14, 2009
Arkhangai
Arkhangai
5-11-2009
Traveling in this country is always an adventure. You can never know what to expect. A friend who lives in Arkangai came to visit my town and I decided to head back with her. We planned to take the post office car to a town called harhorin (the ancient capital of Mongolia) and then I would catch a ride, either on the bus or in a car, to Arkhangai. I had heard from many people that Arkhangai is beautiful and probably one of the more beautiful provinces of Mongolia, so I really wanted to see it before I leave. The day before we were supposed to leave, we got word of bad weather and wind storms coming the following day. All the schools were cancelled and the post office car decided not to leave that day. All buses and cars were not leaving the aimag that day, so we decided we’d wait a day and go when we could. The next day was absolutely beautiful and the wind storms never came…. So, we boarded the bus headed for Ulaanbaatar when we could and planned to get off at Sansar, the lunch stop. From there, we would (hopefully) catch the bus that is coming from Ulaanbaatar headed for Arkhangai. To our surprise, the bus stopped somewhere just short of where we wanted to get off. The way that traveling goes in Mongolia and knowing limited language; this would have been kind of nerve wracking if I were riding by myself. My friend and I prepared ourselves to be riding all the way to UB, just in case something went wrong. As usual, everything was fine and we got off the bus at Sansar. We sat in a guanz (small Mongolian restaurant) for about an hour and waited for the Arkhangai bus to come. The one thing about this trip is if the buses had passed each other, we would have been stuck at this lunch stop. We probably could find a ride from there, but it wouldn’t be very fun. Usually when I am at this lunch stop, there are many buses and cars stopped and many people around. Being there when nobody was around felt like the beginning of a horror movie; two female travelers waiting for a bus at a deserted rest stop in the middle of nowhere. We were sitting and talking, keeping our eyes out for our bus when a women came up to us asking where we were going. We told her and she told us that the bus was here, but it was parked on the other end of the strip of guanzes. We got up and headed for where she said, to our surprise to find the bus rolling up at exactly that moment, headed straight for us. We found the bus driver and asked for a ride. He tried to overcharge my friend a little bit who was headed for a town very close to where we were, and after a little arguing, he gave in. It is moments like this that I am glad I know Mongolian. Right as we were finishing up our discussion with the driver, a man walked up and asked in perfect English if we needed some help. We said no thank you, but proceeded to talk to this man. It doesn’t seem very often that we meet an older man who knows English, and especially not fluently. Turns out he studied in Russia for a while and then came back to Mongolia. After everyone finished up their lunch, we all boarded the bus, which surprisingly wasn’t full. My friend got off in harhorin and I proceeded to Arkhangai.
Arkhangai is absolutely beautiful! There are huge rock mountains, tons of trees and rolling (soon to be) green hills. The weather was great and everything was really beginning to take on the lush green color of the Mongolian summer. My town will not get so green because we are on the edge of the desert and don’t have much grass. There is a small stream of water coming from the freshly melting mountain snow running through the middle of the town. I now know of two parks in Mongolia; one in Darkhan, and one in Tsetsterleg (the province center of Arkhangai). The one in Arkhangai has way more trees. In Tsetserleg, I met up with a friend, dropped off my stuff and took a little walk around the town. I walked to the big Buddha on the hill and checked out what kinds of stores they have in town. We had dinner at the western style restaurant; a place I would eat 3 more times before I left Arkhangai. During the summer Arkhangai gets a lot of tourism and is equipped with large stores and lots of western things like tuna, American face washes and lotions, and an expensive guesthouse with western food. The following day, I got a ride out to my friend’s soum (a small village). I’ll explain how you get rides in Mongolia: you go to where the cars and drivers hang out, find a car going to where you want to go, give them your phone number and tell them where you live, and ask an approximate time. This time is never correct and you can expect to wait up to 3 or 5 hours for a driver. They will leave when their car is full and they are ready. To my surprise, the driver said he’d come at 3 and he came at 3:30. amazing! I headed to my friend’s soum and asked him what I should tell the driver if he doesn’t know where he lives. He told me, “that won’t be a problem”. He was correct. We stopped on the way to help a guy who’d crashed his motorcycle. He was slightly hurt and his bike wasn’t working so well, so one of the people in the car took his bike and he got in the car. Turns out, we were just over the hill from our destination. We dropped the biker off and proceeded to another hashaa, where we the women next to me told me is where my friend lived. This village is so small, they have 3 small stores, everyone knows everyone, and of course; everyone knows where the American lives. In this town, my friend and I walked around and hung out with some cows when walking to the rock formations that are at a distance from the village. It was beautiful and green everywhere. It felt like the longer I was in Arkhangai, the more green it got. After some time in this village, I headed back to the province center, met up with another friend and headed out to his village. His town was set up a lot different than the previous and had a certain quaint vibe to it. It was surrounded by large mountains, creating a beautiful skyline at sunset. The following day was a full day of traveling for me. I got a ride back to the city center, and from there found a car that would take me to harhorin (which is in Uvurkhungai). To my absolute surprise, this driver was ready to leave even before I was ready. Usually when a driver says he is leaving ‘now’, this means he is leaving ‘now’ when his car is full. I was eating lunch when he called me and asked to wait just a minute. When I walked back to my friend’s apartment to get my things, he was already there, waiting with a full car. This is unheard of! I put my things in the car and got in, observing the back of the truck piled with sheep skins and a wolf skin on the top (probably for good luck). Turns out, I was with a family who was really nice. We were caravanning with one other car carrying only a few people. We made a stop at a stream to help a man with his car and continued on. When you are getting off before the final destination of the car, many drivers will drop you off at the edge of town but this driver asked me where I wanted to get dropped off. I had him drop me off at the market, where I met a friend and found a car headed for my town that evening. Maybe two hours later, I was in a car headed home. With the amount of traveling I did on this trip, it was amazing how lucky I got with timely (and sober) drivers, not too packed cars, and really nice people wanting to help me out. I have never experienced such timely drivers in my town… maybe it’s from the tourism.
5-11-2009
Traveling in this country is always an adventure. You can never know what to expect. A friend who lives in Arkangai came to visit my town and I decided to head back with her. We planned to take the post office car to a town called harhorin (the ancient capital of Mongolia) and then I would catch a ride, either on the bus or in a car, to Arkhangai. I had heard from many people that Arkhangai is beautiful and probably one of the more beautiful provinces of Mongolia, so I really wanted to see it before I leave. The day before we were supposed to leave, we got word of bad weather and wind storms coming the following day. All the schools were cancelled and the post office car decided not to leave that day. All buses and cars were not leaving the aimag that day, so we decided we’d wait a day and go when we could. The next day was absolutely beautiful and the wind storms never came…. So, we boarded the bus headed for Ulaanbaatar when we could and planned to get off at Sansar, the lunch stop. From there, we would (hopefully) catch the bus that is coming from Ulaanbaatar headed for Arkhangai. To our surprise, the bus stopped somewhere just short of where we wanted to get off. The way that traveling goes in Mongolia and knowing limited language; this would have been kind of nerve wracking if I were riding by myself. My friend and I prepared ourselves to be riding all the way to UB, just in case something went wrong. As usual, everything was fine and we got off the bus at Sansar. We sat in a guanz (small Mongolian restaurant) for about an hour and waited for the Arkhangai bus to come. The one thing about this trip is if the buses had passed each other, we would have been stuck at this lunch stop. We probably could find a ride from there, but it wouldn’t be very fun. Usually when I am at this lunch stop, there are many buses and cars stopped and many people around. Being there when nobody was around felt like the beginning of a horror movie; two female travelers waiting for a bus at a deserted rest stop in the middle of nowhere. We were sitting and talking, keeping our eyes out for our bus when a women came up to us asking where we were going. We told her and she told us that the bus was here, but it was parked on the other end of the strip of guanzes. We got up and headed for where she said, to our surprise to find the bus rolling up at exactly that moment, headed straight for us. We found the bus driver and asked for a ride. He tried to overcharge my friend a little bit who was headed for a town very close to where we were, and after a little arguing, he gave in. It is moments like this that I am glad I know Mongolian. Right as we were finishing up our discussion with the driver, a man walked up and asked in perfect English if we needed some help. We said no thank you, but proceeded to talk to this man. It doesn’t seem very often that we meet an older man who knows English, and especially not fluently. Turns out he studied in Russia for a while and then came back to Mongolia. After everyone finished up their lunch, we all boarded the bus, which surprisingly wasn’t full. My friend got off in harhorin and I proceeded to Arkhangai.
Arkhangai is absolutely beautiful! There are huge rock mountains, tons of trees and rolling (soon to be) green hills. The weather was great and everything was really beginning to take on the lush green color of the Mongolian summer. My town will not get so green because we are on the edge of the desert and don’t have much grass. There is a small stream of water coming from the freshly melting mountain snow running through the middle of the town. I now know of two parks in Mongolia; one in Darkhan, and one in Tsetsterleg (the province center of Arkhangai). The one in Arkhangai has way more trees. In Tsetserleg, I met up with a friend, dropped off my stuff and took a little walk around the town. I walked to the big Buddha on the hill and checked out what kinds of stores they have in town. We had dinner at the western style restaurant; a place I would eat 3 more times before I left Arkhangai. During the summer Arkhangai gets a lot of tourism and is equipped with large stores and lots of western things like tuna, American face washes and lotions, and an expensive guesthouse with western food. The following day, I got a ride out to my friend’s soum (a small village). I’ll explain how you get rides in Mongolia: you go to where the cars and drivers hang out, find a car going to where you want to go, give them your phone number and tell them where you live, and ask an approximate time. This time is never correct and you can expect to wait up to 3 or 5 hours for a driver. They will leave when their car is full and they are ready. To my surprise, the driver said he’d come at 3 and he came at 3:30. amazing! I headed to my friend’s soum and asked him what I should tell the driver if he doesn’t know where he lives. He told me, “that won’t be a problem”. He was correct. We stopped on the way to help a guy who’d crashed his motorcycle. He was slightly hurt and his bike wasn’t working so well, so one of the people in the car took his bike and he got in the car. Turns out, we were just over the hill from our destination. We dropped the biker off and proceeded to another hashaa, where we the women next to me told me is where my friend lived. This village is so small, they have 3 small stores, everyone knows everyone, and of course; everyone knows where the American lives. In this town, my friend and I walked around and hung out with some cows when walking to the rock formations that are at a distance from the village. It was beautiful and green everywhere. It felt like the longer I was in Arkhangai, the more green it got. After some time in this village, I headed back to the province center, met up with another friend and headed out to his village. His town was set up a lot different than the previous and had a certain quaint vibe to it. It was surrounded by large mountains, creating a beautiful skyline at sunset. The following day was a full day of traveling for me. I got a ride back to the city center, and from there found a car that would take me to harhorin (which is in Uvurkhungai). To my absolute surprise, this driver was ready to leave even before I was ready. Usually when a driver says he is leaving ‘now’, this means he is leaving ‘now’ when his car is full. I was eating lunch when he called me and asked to wait just a minute. When I walked back to my friend’s apartment to get my things, he was already there, waiting with a full car. This is unheard of! I put my things in the car and got in, observing the back of the truck piled with sheep skins and a wolf skin on the top (probably for good luck). Turns out, I was with a family who was really nice. We were caravanning with one other car carrying only a few people. We made a stop at a stream to help a man with his car and continued on. When you are getting off before the final destination of the car, many drivers will drop you off at the edge of town but this driver asked me where I wanted to get dropped off. I had him drop me off at the market, where I met a friend and found a car headed for my town that evening. Maybe two hours later, I was in a car headed home. With the amount of traveling I did on this trip, it was amazing how lucky I got with timely (and sober) drivers, not too packed cars, and really nice people wanting to help me out. I have never experienced such timely drivers in my town… maybe it’s from the tourism.
Hovd and Bayan Ulgii
4-30-2009
It is crazy to think about how quickly my time here in Mongolia is coming to an end. I’m not going to lie, I did think about staying an extra year. Now that I have officially decided to head to the states, there are three topics that enter the mind:
What do you want to do before you leave?
How do you feel about your time here?
What do you want to do when you get back to America?
These are 3 huge questions with very intricate answers.
What do you want to do before you leave?
Outside of my work, I have decided to make more of an effort to see more of the country. I got on a bus headed for the western aimags and found myself 43 hours later in Hovd. At the beginning of the bus ride, I didn’t lead people on to the fact that I speak Mongolian, but it ended up coming out anyway. They all think it’s cute. There is an interesting dynamic when you are stuffed into a small bus for the long-hall. Whether you speak or not, there are interactions between each person… sometimes going undetected. The women next to me found a nice pillow on my shoulder and I found a nice pillow against the window. The first night, I was pretty dang cold, but the second night was not bad at all. I slept the majority of the way and got really tired of countryside people who aren’t used to seeing foreigners ignoring me or having trouble understanding me. Sometimes, it feels like people just don’t try. The first leg of the trip went through my aimag and was the same scenery I’ve seen a million times. The next was through Bayankhongor, which is pretty brown with a few mountains. The 3 part is through Gov Altai, which is basically when I came too and was really beginning to appreciate the scenery. The snow-capped Altai mountains were absolutely beautiful. The last part of the trip is through Hovd, headed for the aimag center. I got there pretty early in the morning, met up with a friend, and went back to sleep. I spent a couple days in Hovd, somewhat recovering from the long trip and relaxing. Hovd is absolutely beautiful and it was funny how happy it made me to see things like the melting river turning into moving water, huge and real mountains (as opposed to the hills we have in my town), and trees (even if they didn’t have leaves on them. Also, the west has a lot more diversity than my town, in their Mongolians and their foreigners. I went through a time last year where I literally craved any amount of diversity in my life. Had I been out west, this may have been different.
From Hovd, I gathered a few friends and we all headed out to Bayan-Ulgii. This is the furthest western province in Mongolia. Due to the Kazakh presence, it almost feels like another country. The city reminds me somewhat of the Middle East, the way it is set up with the stone walls and street alleys. In the stores, some people wanted to speak Kazakh instead of Mongolian, and I once again felt slightly intimidated when walking in to grab something. Some of the store owners were happy to see that me and my friends spoke Mongolian and were willing to converse with us in Mongolian. During the summer, Bayan-Ulgii gets a lot of tourists coming through to see the famous Eagle Hunters and Kazakh embroidery. I think the store owners were surprised to find a group of five foreigners; 2 of which speak Kazakh and the rest who speak Mongolian. In our time in Bayan-Ulgii, we walked around the city, threw around a football with a bunch of people in the market, walked on the river (it was still frozen), checked out the museum and bought cool Kazakh embroidered bags and purses. It is really interesting to see the mix of cultures out there; it is like nothing else in Mongolia.
After Bayan-Ulgii, we headed back to Hovd. I hung around for a couple days, and then got on the bus to head back to my town. I decided to make a quick stop in Bayankhongor to see the town and a friend before going back to Uvurkhungai. Though shorter, the bus ride from Hovd to Bayankhongor was much worse than the previous trip. I was on the “hot seat” on the bus. This means I was sitting on top of the engine or the radiator (or something), causing me to extremely hot and uncomfortable the entire ride. Me and two boys shared the hot seat, and switched it up who sat at the hottest part, but for the most part the entire ride was awful. I was dropped off on the edge of Bayankhongor and called my friend to figure out where I was. Bayankhongor is a town similar to my town, but with a little bit less infrastructure. Their claims to fame are really nice benches and trash cans, a western style restaurant, and a Dinosaur Park. Apparently, there used to be tons of Dinosaur bones but people have since picked them all up. I spent two nights in Bayankhongor before heading back home. The final leg of my ride was pretty short and rather nice, since I got a ride with a family in a Land Rover. Once back in my town it was nice to home, in my ger. I realized that I really like lighting fires and that I wanted to spend a lot of time with my Mongolian Family before I leave.
It is crazy to think about how quickly my time here in Mongolia is coming to an end. I’m not going to lie, I did think about staying an extra year. Now that I have officially decided to head to the states, there are three topics that enter the mind:
What do you want to do before you leave?
How do you feel about your time here?
What do you want to do when you get back to America?
These are 3 huge questions with very intricate answers.
What do you want to do before you leave?
Outside of my work, I have decided to make more of an effort to see more of the country. I got on a bus headed for the western aimags and found myself 43 hours later in Hovd. At the beginning of the bus ride, I didn’t lead people on to the fact that I speak Mongolian, but it ended up coming out anyway. They all think it’s cute. There is an interesting dynamic when you are stuffed into a small bus for the long-hall. Whether you speak or not, there are interactions between each person… sometimes going undetected. The women next to me found a nice pillow on my shoulder and I found a nice pillow against the window. The first night, I was pretty dang cold, but the second night was not bad at all. I slept the majority of the way and got really tired of countryside people who aren’t used to seeing foreigners ignoring me or having trouble understanding me. Sometimes, it feels like people just don’t try. The first leg of the trip went through my aimag and was the same scenery I’ve seen a million times. The next was through Bayankhongor, which is pretty brown with a few mountains. The 3 part is through Gov Altai, which is basically when I came too and was really beginning to appreciate the scenery. The snow-capped Altai mountains were absolutely beautiful. The last part of the trip is through Hovd, headed for the aimag center. I got there pretty early in the morning, met up with a friend, and went back to sleep. I spent a couple days in Hovd, somewhat recovering from the long trip and relaxing. Hovd is absolutely beautiful and it was funny how happy it made me to see things like the melting river turning into moving water, huge and real mountains (as opposed to the hills we have in my town), and trees (even if they didn’t have leaves on them. Also, the west has a lot more diversity than my town, in their Mongolians and their foreigners. I went through a time last year where I literally craved any amount of diversity in my life. Had I been out west, this may have been different.
From Hovd, I gathered a few friends and we all headed out to Bayan-Ulgii. This is the furthest western province in Mongolia. Due to the Kazakh presence, it almost feels like another country. The city reminds me somewhat of the Middle East, the way it is set up with the stone walls and street alleys. In the stores, some people wanted to speak Kazakh instead of Mongolian, and I once again felt slightly intimidated when walking in to grab something. Some of the store owners were happy to see that me and my friends spoke Mongolian and were willing to converse with us in Mongolian. During the summer, Bayan-Ulgii gets a lot of tourists coming through to see the famous Eagle Hunters and Kazakh embroidery. I think the store owners were surprised to find a group of five foreigners; 2 of which speak Kazakh and the rest who speak Mongolian. In our time in Bayan-Ulgii, we walked around the city, threw around a football with a bunch of people in the market, walked on the river (it was still frozen), checked out the museum and bought cool Kazakh embroidered bags and purses. It is really interesting to see the mix of cultures out there; it is like nothing else in Mongolia.
After Bayan-Ulgii, we headed back to Hovd. I hung around for a couple days, and then got on the bus to head back to my town. I decided to make a quick stop in Bayankhongor to see the town and a friend before going back to Uvurkhungai. Though shorter, the bus ride from Hovd to Bayankhongor was much worse than the previous trip. I was on the “hot seat” on the bus. This means I was sitting on top of the engine or the radiator (or something), causing me to extremely hot and uncomfortable the entire ride. Me and two boys shared the hot seat, and switched it up who sat at the hottest part, but for the most part the entire ride was awful. I was dropped off on the edge of Bayankhongor and called my friend to figure out where I was. Bayankhongor is a town similar to my town, but with a little bit less infrastructure. Their claims to fame are really nice benches and trash cans, a western style restaurant, and a Dinosaur Park. Apparently, there used to be tons of Dinosaur bones but people have since picked them all up. I spent two nights in Bayankhongor before heading back home. The final leg of my ride was pretty short and rather nice, since I got a ride with a family in a Land Rover. Once back in my town it was nice to home, in my ger. I realized that I really like lighting fires and that I wanted to spend a lot of time with my Mongolian Family before I leave.
Monday, March 16, 2009
Rockin the Shofar!
I forgot to write about the World Music Festival. I mentioned it, but didn't mention the most important part! There was this Israeli band called Esta. And the drummer did something I have never seen before and it was absolutely AMAZING!
Have you ever seen someone rock the shofar? I mean seriously!? I'm not talking like at the end of yom kippur, I'm talking like really use it like a real instrument! It was awsome! And another guy can rip on anything that requires lungs. They were very talented, but the Shofar was unbelievable!
check them out: www.estamusic.com
really! you gotta see this! They travel all over the U.S. and the world! I sure hope to catch them again!
Have you ever seen someone rock the shofar? I mean seriously!? I'm not talking like at the end of yom kippur, I'm talking like really use it like a real instrument! It was awsome! And another guy can rip on anything that requires lungs. They were very talented, but the Shofar was unbelievable!
check them out: www.estamusic.com
really! you gotta see this! They travel all over the U.S. and the world! I sure hope to catch them again!
Friday, March 13, 2009
February and March
I got back from Thailand the day before my birthday. I spent my birthday relaxing at the guesthouse, watching movies. I only left to go out, eat dinner, and by a little beer.
When I returned to Site, it was time to not do a whole lot because everyone was preparing for Tsagaan Sar. A pretty intense Mongolian holiday. Since I wrote all about the rites and rituals of Tsagaan Sar last year... I'm not going to right now. (it's still there, go read it) This Tsagaan Sar was very different for me because I am now living with a Mongolian family. I got to see a different side of the holiday. I spent Bituun (the night before) and the following day with my family, going to many homes for buuz, mongol beer, salads, airag, and milk tea. The next two days, I went to a couple houses, but I lost my phone and after that my Tsagaan Sar was a little slow. I wasn't too disappointed. Tsagaan Sar is supposed to last 3 days but in actuality, it lasts as long as it wants to. I think it's really... until the food is gone. I didn't have a phone for a little over a week and I actually really enjoyed it. There were certain times when it would have been a nice convenience, but all in all, it was liberating. Some people are still celebrating Tsagaan Sar...
This brings me almost up-to-date. I am currently waiting on one last letter of recommendation (hhmmmm... if you're reading this) and I am ready to submit my application to a graduate social work program at CSULB. So, if I get in.. the plan is to move back to Long Beach and do that. I'm also going to work towards my Child Welfare and Attendance credential, so I can one day be a School Social Worker. The truth is, I don't know exactly how "soon" that will be, but it's a good job that I know I could do... once I"m ready to settle down a little. The problem is that Peace Corps has opened my eyes to a lot more things that I want to learn and get involved in: child labor, human rights, science of some sort, human trafficking, community development, international relations, etc... etc... etc...
I 'might' be taking a little trip to Hovd and Ulgii, and then to Hovsgol... i'll let you know how they go.
possibly more reflections at another time...
peace, love, strength, understanding, and stay positive. these are the important things in life.
When I returned to Site, it was time to not do a whole lot because everyone was preparing for Tsagaan Sar. A pretty intense Mongolian holiday. Since I wrote all about the rites and rituals of Tsagaan Sar last year... I'm not going to right now. (it's still there, go read it) This Tsagaan Sar was very different for me because I am now living with a Mongolian family. I got to see a different side of the holiday. I spent Bituun (the night before) and the following day with my family, going to many homes for buuz, mongol beer, salads, airag, and milk tea. The next two days, I went to a couple houses, but I lost my phone and after that my Tsagaan Sar was a little slow. I wasn't too disappointed. Tsagaan Sar is supposed to last 3 days but in actuality, it lasts as long as it wants to. I think it's really... until the food is gone. I didn't have a phone for a little over a week and I actually really enjoyed it. There were certain times when it would have been a nice convenience, but all in all, it was liberating. Some people are still celebrating Tsagaan Sar...
This brings me almost up-to-date. I am currently waiting on one last letter of recommendation (hhmmmm... if you're reading this) and I am ready to submit my application to a graduate social work program at CSULB. So, if I get in.. the plan is to move back to Long Beach and do that. I'm also going to work towards my Child Welfare and Attendance credential, so I can one day be a School Social Worker. The truth is, I don't know exactly how "soon" that will be, but it's a good job that I know I could do... once I"m ready to settle down a little. The problem is that Peace Corps has opened my eyes to a lot more things that I want to learn and get involved in: child labor, human rights, science of some sort, human trafficking, community development, international relations, etc... etc... etc...
I 'might' be taking a little trip to Hovd and Ulgii, and then to Hovsgol... i'll let you know how they go.
possibly more reflections at another time...
peace, love, strength, understanding, and stay positive. these are the important things in life.
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