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Some stunning facts: Mongolia is the least populated country in the world with 2.6 million people (less than the population of Staten Island) in a country twice the size of Texas. Roughly 1.3 million people—about half of the population-- live in Ulaanbaatar, the capital city. A small percentage (<10%) live in a handful of villages around the country. The rest are nomadic and live in the countryside alongside 43 million heads of livestock—making the ratio of livestock to people in Mongolia 13:1. (wow! And, yes, I actually did some serious research to verify this number).
Mongolia is a country full of magnificent and varied landscapes, most of which are still virgin—untouched by humanity and the industries we create that pollute the environment. This is a land where rivers run clear and horses run free; where vast lakes are rarely fished and have never seen a boat of any kind; where children with Barbie knapsacks ride 5 kilometers to school on horseback; and where general stores in lonely villages have wood posts out front for tying up one’s horse. It is wilder than the Wild West. There are no roads or power lines—just vast steppe with scarred earth where cars have made their way and endless sky that extends as far as the horizon.
Mongolia is a country full of magnificent and varied landscapes, most of which are still virgin—untouched by humanity and the industries we create that pollute the environment. This is a land where rivers run clear and horses run free; where vast lakes are rarely fished and have never seen a boat of any kind; where children with Barbie knapsacks ride 5 kilometers to school on horseback; and where general stores in lonely villages have wood posts out front for tying up one’s horse. It is wilder than the Wild West. There are no roads or power lines—just vast steppe with scarred earth where cars have made their way and endless sky that extends as far as the horizon.
It really is hard to imagine.
For years, I’ve been talking about wanting to go to Mongolia. In hindsight, I don’t really know why. I think I wanted to see the only place on earth where 40% of the population is still nomadic and lives in round white tents called “gers”. I wanted to gallop on horseback at full speed through its wide-open steppe and under its bright blue sky. I confess, the idea of having to travel on horseback from place to place had its romantic appeal. As my Dutch friend, Louis, described it—I had cowboy dreams…
But the romantic ideal of Mongolia is very far from experiencing its reality. Mongolia is beautiful. But traveling independently through Mongolia is incredibly stressful. The lack of electricity, running water, public transportation, food, lodging and general infrastructure combined with my inability to communicate in Mongolian, Russian, or Kazakh were sources of constant frustration. As was the extreme lack of privacy from having to bunk with the nomads throughout most of my travels. Outside of Ulaanbaataor, there are virtually no hotels—only in the most touristed of places (namely Terelj and the Gobi) are there Ger camps specifically set up for tourists. The rest of the time lodging in Mongolia means knocking on a random Ger and asking to spend the night. This is the Mongol culture—it is the way they have traveled for hundreds of years.
Gers at Sunset, The Gobi
But the romantic ideal of Mongolia is very far from experiencing its reality. Mongolia is beautiful. But traveling independently through Mongolia is incredibly stressful. The lack of electricity, running water, public transportation, food, lodging and general infrastructure combined with my inability to communicate in Mongolian, Russian, or Kazakh were sources of constant frustration. As was the extreme lack of privacy from having to bunk with the nomads throughout most of my travels. Outside of Ulaanbaataor, there are virtually no hotels—only in the most touristed of places (namely Terelj and the Gobi) are there Ger camps specifically set up for tourists. The rest of the time lodging in Mongolia means knocking on a random Ger and asking to spend the night. This is the Mongol culture—it is the way they have traveled for hundreds of years.
Endless Horizon, The Gobi
Crossing a lake on horseback, Sagsai, Western Mongolia
Western Mongolia
Bactrian Camel, The Gobi
Me, and a baby camel, The Gobi
Climbing Sand Dunes, Gobi Desert
Sunset, The Gobi
Sunset, Central Mongolia
Red Earth, Western Mongolia
Mongolian Horses
A Canyon, The Gobi
Little Girl, Central Mongolia
XANH Bank in a small village, The Gobi
Dinner with a Kazakh nomad family, Western Mongolia
Except for a 7 day trip to the Gobi on an organized tour, I traveled through Mongolia on buses and horseback and lived with Mongolian or Kazakh nomad families along the way. The picture above is a typical dinner--some kind of meat (camel, goat, yak, sheep, or horse), slices of fat, and noodles. It was taken in the home of a Kazakh nomad family near the Tavan Bogd National Park in Western Mongolia. I had been living with a Kazakh nomad family near the town of Sagsai and the family's son took me to see nearest mountain range. We rode 120 kilometers in 2 days and this was the only family that we saw along the entire route. We did as the Mongol's do--knocked on the door of the Ger and asked to spend the night. We were welcomed warmly and fed with no expectation of payment.
