September 15th is a big day in Mongolia. It is the day the residential centralized heating is switched on. By centralized, I mean the whole city minus the ger districts. Huge pipes run through the city carrying heat (I'm guessing in the form of hot water?) and heat all the apartment blocks and other buildings. For commercial buildings, October 1st is the big day.
One of the volunteers here is a construction expert and he told me it's not a bad way to do things. They use the heat overflow from the city's power generators. So instead of having multiple cooling towers, the heat is sent through a system of pipes blanketing the city. Most of these are underground but sometimes you'll see the pipes peeking out in certain locations. A gift from Soviet engineering.
Our apartment has been pretty warm so far. We'll give you a status report when the temperature dips below zero.
mc
Tuesday, September 26, 2006
Monday, September 25, 2006
A hike, public transportation and other random notes.
We went hiking a few weekends ago with some veteran volunteers. They know a lot more Mongolian than Aaron and I ever hope to learn. We took a "taxi" from downtown to our chosen hiking spot, the hills just south of the city.
A note on taxis
There are official taxi companies here but people also stand on the side of the road and put their hand out and solicit any private car for a ride. If a driver feels like making a little money, he or she will stop for you. The fare is calculated by the number of kilometres on the odometer. It's pretty cheap too. Everybody does it from women with children on their way to school to the odd foreigner. (Note for my mom, Linda and all other mom-like figures in my life: I won't do this alone no worries.)
Back to the story:
So that's what we did last Sunday, stood on the street put a hand out and a car picked us up within 30 seconds. There's a spot on the south side of the city with a massive gold buddha, and a Soviet accomplishment monument on top of a hill. We checked those out and then hiked off to a nearby hill. It was more of a urban hike than anything since we could see the city at all times spreading out in the valley. Beautiful panoramic views. One of the hills we climbed has a massive drawing of Genghis Khan painted on it. It's like the Penticton sign for those who've seen it but instead of letters it's the face of an ancient ruler. The drawing is more impressive from the city than from atop the mountain we climbed. There are a lot wildflowers and fragrant herbs in Mongolia and we saw some on our hike.
We went home by bus as one was hanging out on the corner when we came down. Buses here are old, slow things. I hadn't noticed just how slow until that Sunday afternoon. They're cheap though. 200 tugriks or about 20 cents. I may be taking a lot more of them in the winter...
Note on money:
There are no coins here! No toonies or loonies to weigh down pockets. The smallest denomination is 10 tugriks (1 cent) and the largest 10,000 (10 dollars). The bill size changes with the denomination. I'm getting used to finding the right bill from my wad of bills in a timely manner.
mc
A note on taxis
There are official taxi companies here but people also stand on the side of the road and put their hand out and solicit any private car for a ride. If a driver feels like making a little money, he or she will stop for you. The fare is calculated by the number of kilometres on the odometer. It's pretty cheap too. Everybody does it from women with children on their way to school to the odd foreigner. (Note for my mom, Linda and all other mom-like figures in my life: I won't do this alone no worries.)
Back to the story:
So that's what we did last Sunday, stood on the street put a hand out and a car picked us up within 30 seconds. There's a spot on the south side of the city with a massive gold buddha, and a Soviet accomplishment monument on top of a hill. We checked those out and then hiked off to a nearby hill. It was more of a urban hike than anything since we could see the city at all times spreading out in the valley. Beautiful panoramic views. One of the hills we climbed has a massive drawing of Genghis Khan painted on it. It's like the Penticton sign for those who've seen it but instead of letters it's the face of an ancient ruler. The drawing is more impressive from the city than from atop the mountain we climbed. There are a lot wildflowers and fragrant herbs in Mongolia and we saw some on our hike.
We went home by bus as one was hanging out on the corner when we came down. Buses here are old, slow things. I hadn't noticed just how slow until that Sunday afternoon. They're cheap though. 200 tugriks or about 20 cents. I may be taking a lot more of them in the winter...
Note on money:
There are no coins here! No toonies or loonies to weigh down pockets. The smallest denomination is 10 tugriks (1 cent) and the largest 10,000 (10 dollars). The bill size changes with the denomination. I'm getting used to finding the right bill from my wad of bills in a timely manner.
mc
Saturday, September 23, 2006
Half and Full Good Day
Mongolians are unpoetic about days and months. They simply number them: 1 to 7 and 1 to 12. This means Monday is Day 1 and, sorry I lied, Saturday and Sunday aren't numbered. Saturday is “Half Good” Day and Sunday is “Full Good” Day. Saturday is only half good because in the past, Mongolians used to work half the day on Saturdays.
The numbered days are used in everyday conversation but for official business, they use names derived from Tibetan. That means I have had to learn two sets of weekdays!
mc
The numbered days are used in everyday conversation but for official business, they use names derived from Tibetan. That means I have had to learn two sets of weekdays!
mc
Lindsay Lohan and pickles for breakfast
Unfortunately, I don't have a play-by-play of my homestay like Aaron has but here are some highlights:
mc
- I spent five days with a mother and her fourteen-year-old daughter. The daughter goes to a private English school and she got to practice her English with me. The mother did not speak English but we managed to communicate through her daughter and sometimes even without her daughter.
- I came to Mongolia expecting questions on Canadian livestock but during my homestay the questions were more along these lines: "Do you like Pussycat Dolls?" "Who is your favourite band?" "What do you think of Lindsay Lohan?" "Do you know Korean soap stars?" "Do you think Angelina Jolie is better looking than Eva Longoria?"
- I spent most of my time with the daughter, playing card games, watching Russian MTV and learning all about Mongolian music stars. One afternoon we went to the local cinema (quite new, with stadium seating) to watch the latest Lindsay Lohan movie.
- Notable breakfasts during my homestay: a Mongolian version of French toast (unsweetened and with onions), beef and potato soup, noodles with meat and veggies, bread with cheese spread and pickles.
mc
Thursday, September 21, 2006
Aaron's homestay dairy
All of the VSO volunteers have been matched up with families for a five-day stint with a Mongolian family. The 'dairy' title is a little bit of an inside joke. One day our Mongolian teacher was teaching us a new word. She wrote the word on the board and added the English translation of "to have dairy". The class burst out laughing once we realized, after very detailed charades, that she had meant "to have diarrhea".
Day one - Saturday ('half good day' in Mongolian)
- I was the last to get picked up. It was like getting picked last in grade two. Thankfully the wife of the couple came to get me at the VSO office two hours after everyone else. She is very nice and thankfully she knows quite a bit of English.
- There is a husband, wife and 2 kids (7 and 2)
- Buuz (national dish) was served as the first meal (lunch)
- Dinner was delicious.
- Orna (wife) took me to a Mongolian variety show. We made up 20% of the audience. Apparently the 6:00pm show wasn't that popular. It was a great show though. Lots of singing, dancing and live music. The seating was very 40's lounge-esque. Frank Sinatra would have approved. I'll be suggesting it to anyone interested in that kind of show.
- Two year-old girl can't blow a balloon without farting. After several farting incidents and laughter, I decide to move away. She becomes disappointed, grabs a Russian doll and persuades me to play with the dolls. Thankfully the gas subsides.
- Two beers and playing with kids does mix! I am offered a couple of beers and am turned loose on the kids. Thankfully they don't notice the potent aroma coming from my socks.
Day two - Sunday (aka full good day)
- I slept like a log! This bed is great. I'm not sure that I'll go back to my hard bed. We thought our bed at our flat was just a box spring. After further inspection we found it was actually a very firm, regular mattress. I may have to take this back with me. Unfortunately (fortunately?) MC won't be able to join me on it.
- Breakfast consists of a porridge-like material. It is then mixed with salty milk tea. It actually tastes very good. It reminds me of home in a strange Mongolian way. Ham, bread, biscuits and baked goods are also served. A very satisfying meal.
- Am I left-eye dominant? How do I check that again?
- After ogloonee tsai (breakfast...'morning tea' is the literal translation) Orna, two kids and I head off to the grocery store (delgur), computer store and finally her mother-in-law's. The drive to the ger district includes a 15-minute traffic jam in an intersection. I'm not sure why there was a traffic jam...the traffic lights were working and there wasn't an accident. Luckily a police officer was near. He was able to sort out the mess and we were back on our way. A different variety of buuz is served at the mother-in-law's for lunch. Mmm the fresh, home-made 'lazy' buuz is delicious.
- The son and I head off to the local hill to get a view of the city. It's a little strange not being able to talk to him directly but we are able to communicate enough to make both of us satisfied. The view of the city was pretty good. We even saw a few "tornadoes". One of them picked up some styrofoam and flung it 200 feet in the air. A good trip to see how other people in UB live.
- After getting back from the mother-in-law's I go for a walk around the west side of UB. Since the apartment complexes are so large, it feels like I walked for miles but didn't really get anywhere.
- We had rice, pickles, hotdogs and pickled vegetables for dinner. Although it doesn't sound that appetizing, the food strangely complimented each other. I ate it all up (heinz mayo and all......that's for another post though).
- I kicked the son's ass at chess! Although only a small pleasure can be taken in beating a seven-year-old, I'm actually surprised I did. I think my chess skills have developed to that of an eight year old. He had me worried for half the game. Hmmmm, beer and playing with the kids...do I see a pattern forming? Not a bad one, just a pattern.
Day Three
- Well it was back to language school today. My home stay family dropped me off behind the ik h delgur (State Department Store). I then met up with a bunch of the other VSO volunteers whom were on home stay. It was like kids getting dropped off at the bus stop. Each volunteer would invariably get left on the sidewalk by someone from their host family. After a few choice words (most likely things like "have a nice day" and "do you have your lunch money" could have been overheard had I been closer) the volunteers gathered to share their weekend experiences. One lady took the hat. She had thrown up three times before leaving her home stay family this morning. It didn't sound like she was going to stay for the rest of the allotted time.
- I asked the teacher why Mongolians smell their children. I witnessed this ritual when we went to meet the mother-in-law's. The first thing she did when we arrived was grab each kids head and smell it. She would take three or four good whiffs before letting the kid get away. I had no idea what was going on, but apparently it was normal. My language bash (teacher) said that Mongolians sometimes smell their children instead of kissing them. Maybe the grandparents do it to make sure that the parents are keeping the kids clean. Anyway, it's an interesting ritual. Parallels can be drawn with an Eskimo kiss...maybe.
- I think people whom don't know the language of a given house are sometimes lumped in with the kids. I dine, play and, on occasion, watch TV with the little pre-teens. It's not that I'm complaining (they are good company) but it's interesting. I guess they just don't know what to do with me sometimes. I can relate; I have that same problem myself on occasion.
- Today's dinner consisted of really good home-made tsuivan. Tsuivan is a mainly noodle dish which contains some vegetables, meat (usually mutton) and fat. This is the best one that I've had since I've been in Mongolia.
- I still haven't figured out the garbage in the toilet stall. I know what it's for, but why? (For those not in the know, it's for your toilet paper once you've used it on your bum) MC's theory is that it's because the toilets can't handle the pooh and the paper. My experience though is that it's been able to handle everything that I've thrown at it. And believe me, I haven't held back. Any other theories?
- Apparently cars which are Frankensteined in Mongolia are called 'Made in Mongolia'. On a similar note, every Mongolian and their dog seem to be a mechanic. They must have the most mechanics per capita.
- I am again challenged to a match of taran by the son. After he brings out the board, and realizing he is talking about chess, we start up another game. I learn a few words and the little guy almost beats me! Orna and her husband take him to bed so we end in a draw. I 'm going to have to stop playing with him before I lose.
Day Four
- Breakfast consisted of ham (SPAM-like), bread, coffee and biscuits. A far cry from the sandwich I had yesterday morning :(. I am told to decide between two places to go to in the countryside. I'll hope to figure out what each is at school this morning.
- After school I was picked up from 'The' Department store by Orna. We head out to the countryside (hodoo) for a trip. We visit two tourist camps with huge gers. One of the camps is were a Chinggis Khaan movie was filmed. It was nice to hang out in a huge ger, surrounded by snow leopard hides, and drinking tea. Unfortunately I didn't have the camera to snap some pics.
- We returned to the home stay's apartment to find it with wet carpets. The city heating had just been turned on and it leaked from one of the radiators. The husband removed the defective piece and I help move some of the rugs. Other than making tea, this was the only other thing I've been allowed to help with. I could get used to this.
- Tonight is my last night with the family. We went to a Chinese restaurant. The food was great! Much better than in Canada. I guess being close to China does have its advantages. Vodka was ordered with the meal. The husband and I partook in some Chinggis Khaan (black label) vodka. I was pleasantly surprised by the most agreeable taste.
The stay with my Mongolian family has been great! It's been really interesting to see how regular, urban Mongolians live.
Day one - Saturday ('half good day' in Mongolian)
- I was the last to get picked up. It was like getting picked last in grade two. Thankfully the wife of the couple came to get me at the VSO office two hours after everyone else. She is very nice and thankfully she knows quite a bit of English.
- There is a husband, wife and 2 kids (7 and 2)
- Buuz (national dish) was served as the first meal (lunch)
- Dinner was delicious.
- Orna (wife) took me to a Mongolian variety show. We made up 20% of the audience. Apparently the 6:00pm show wasn't that popular. It was a great show though. Lots of singing, dancing and live music. The seating was very 40's lounge-esque. Frank Sinatra would have approved. I'll be suggesting it to anyone interested in that kind of show.
- Two year-old girl can't blow a balloon without farting. After several farting incidents and laughter, I decide to move away. She becomes disappointed, grabs a Russian doll and persuades me to play with the dolls. Thankfully the gas subsides.
- Two beers and playing with kids does mix! I am offered a couple of beers and am turned loose on the kids. Thankfully they don't notice the potent aroma coming from my socks.
Day two - Sunday (aka full good day)
- I slept like a log! This bed is great. I'm not sure that I'll go back to my hard bed. We thought our bed at our flat was just a box spring. After further inspection we found it was actually a very firm, regular mattress. I may have to take this back with me. Unfortunately (fortunately?) MC won't be able to join me on it.
- Breakfast consists of a porridge-like material. It is then mixed with salty milk tea. It actually tastes very good. It reminds me of home in a strange Mongolian way. Ham, bread, biscuits and baked goods are also served. A very satisfying meal.
- Am I left-eye dominant? How do I check that again?
- After ogloonee tsai (breakfast...'morning tea' is the literal translation) Orna, two kids and I head off to the grocery store (delgur), computer store and finally her mother-in-law's. The drive to the ger district includes a 15-minute traffic jam in an intersection. I'm not sure why there was a traffic jam...the traffic lights were working and there wasn't an accident. Luckily a police officer was near. He was able to sort out the mess and we were back on our way. A different variety of buuz is served at the mother-in-law's for lunch. Mmm the fresh, home-made 'lazy' buuz is delicious.
- The son and I head off to the local hill to get a view of the city. It's a little strange not being able to talk to him directly but we are able to communicate enough to make both of us satisfied. The view of the city was pretty good. We even saw a few "tornadoes". One of them picked up some styrofoam and flung it 200 feet in the air. A good trip to see how other people in UB live.
- After getting back from the mother-in-law's I go for a walk around the west side of UB. Since the apartment complexes are so large, it feels like I walked for miles but didn't really get anywhere.
- We had rice, pickles, hotdogs and pickled vegetables for dinner. Although it doesn't sound that appetizing, the food strangely complimented each other. I ate it all up (heinz mayo and all......that's for another post though).
- I kicked the son's ass at chess! Although only a small pleasure can be taken in beating a seven-year-old, I'm actually surprised I did. I think my chess skills have developed to that of an eight year old. He had me worried for half the game. Hmmmm, beer and playing with the kids...do I see a pattern forming? Not a bad one, just a pattern.
Day Three
- Well it was back to language school today. My home stay family dropped me off behind the ik h delgur (State Department Store). I then met up with a bunch of the other VSO volunteers whom were on home stay. It was like kids getting dropped off at the bus stop. Each volunteer would invariably get left on the sidewalk by someone from their host family. After a few choice words (most likely things like "have a nice day" and "do you have your lunch money" could have been overheard had I been closer) the volunteers gathered to share their weekend experiences. One lady took the hat. She had thrown up three times before leaving her home stay family this morning. It didn't sound like she was going to stay for the rest of the allotted time.
- I asked the teacher why Mongolians smell their children. I witnessed this ritual when we went to meet the mother-in-law's. The first thing she did when we arrived was grab each kids head and smell it. She would take three or four good whiffs before letting the kid get away. I had no idea what was going on, but apparently it was normal. My language bash (teacher) said that Mongolians sometimes smell their children instead of kissing them. Maybe the grandparents do it to make sure that the parents are keeping the kids clean. Anyway, it's an interesting ritual. Parallels can be drawn with an Eskimo kiss...maybe.
- I think people whom don't know the language of a given house are sometimes lumped in with the kids. I dine, play and, on occasion, watch TV with the little pre-teens. It's not that I'm complaining (they are good company) but it's interesting. I guess they just don't know what to do with me sometimes. I can relate; I have that same problem myself on occasion.
- Today's dinner consisted of really good home-made tsuivan. Tsuivan is a mainly noodle dish which contains some vegetables, meat (usually mutton) and fat. This is the best one that I've had since I've been in Mongolia.
- I still haven't figured out the garbage in the toilet stall. I know what it's for, but why? (For those not in the know, it's for your toilet paper once you've used it on your bum) MC's theory is that it's because the toilets can't handle the pooh and the paper. My experience though is that it's been able to handle everything that I've thrown at it. And believe me, I haven't held back. Any other theories?
- Apparently cars which are Frankensteined in Mongolia are called 'Made in Mongolia'. On a similar note, every Mongolian and their dog seem to be a mechanic. They must have the most mechanics per capita.
- I am again challenged to a match of taran by the son. After he brings out the board, and realizing he is talking about chess, we start up another game. I learn a few words and the little guy almost beats me! Orna and her husband take him to bed so we end in a draw. I 'm going to have to stop playing with him before I lose.
Day Four
- Breakfast consisted of ham (SPAM-like), bread, coffee and biscuits. A far cry from the sandwich I had yesterday morning :(. I am told to decide between two places to go to in the countryside. I'll hope to figure out what each is at school this morning.
- After school I was picked up from 'The' Department store by Orna. We head out to the countryside (hodoo) for a trip. We visit two tourist camps with huge gers. One of the camps is were a Chinggis Khaan movie was filmed. It was nice to hang out in a huge ger, surrounded by snow leopard hides, and drinking tea. Unfortunately I didn't have the camera to snap some pics.
- We returned to the home stay's apartment to find it with wet carpets. The city heating had just been turned on and it leaked from one of the radiators. The husband removed the defective piece and I help move some of the rugs. Other than making tea, this was the only other thing I've been allowed to help with. I could get used to this.
- Tonight is my last night with the family. We went to a Chinese restaurant. The food was great! Much better than in Canada. I guess being close to China does have its advantages. Vodka was ordered with the meal. The husband and I partook in some Chinggis Khaan (black label) vodka. I was pleasantly surprised by the most agreeable taste.
The stay with my Mongolian family has been great! It's been really interesting to see how regular, urban Mongolians live.
Tuesday, September 12, 2006
Beware of ice cream treats
In Mongolia, there's a snack loved by Mongolians called "aarul" which are little nuggets of dried cheese or milk curds. It has a sharp, slightly chalky taste. Think parmesan powder but pressed into little balls and alone (no spaghetti to complement it). I can probably eat two or three of these curds but anymore is difficult.
Yesterday, I went out and got ice cream bars from a shop down the street. We had some ice cream bars in the weeks prior and they have always been delicious and creamy. Yesterday's ice cream bars were unusually cheap, 10 cents instead of the usual 45 or so cents but I assumed it was because in the past we got the chocolate-dipped ice cream bars.
The bars were white and looked delicious and Aaron and I had no clue something was wrong until the first bite. It was fairly creamy but the aftertaste was of aarul. Ice cold sharp cheese bars. I tried my best and ate several tiny bites of mine but then my throat just couldn't handle it anymore. It's weird to expect extremely sweet and get extremely savoury.
We've memorized the package to prevent making the same mistake twice. It's hard to read packages sometimes. You don't want to stand in the store for minutes on end wondering whether zairmag (ice cream) will actually be written somewhere on the wrapper.
mc
Yesterday, I went out and got ice cream bars from a shop down the street. We had some ice cream bars in the weeks prior and they have always been delicious and creamy. Yesterday's ice cream bars were unusually cheap, 10 cents instead of the usual 45 or so cents but I assumed it was because in the past we got the chocolate-dipped ice cream bars.
The bars were white and looked delicious and Aaron and I had no clue something was wrong until the first bite. It was fairly creamy but the aftertaste was of aarul. Ice cold sharp cheese bars. I tried my best and ate several tiny bites of mine but then my throat just couldn't handle it anymore. It's weird to expect extremely sweet and get extremely savoury.
We've memorized the package to prevent making the same mistake twice. It's hard to read packages sometimes. You don't want to stand in the store for minutes on end wondering whether zairmag (ice cream) will actually be written somewhere on the wrapper.
mc
Friday, September 08, 2006
Early Surprise
We woke up yesterday with a white cold flurry surprise. Yes, snow! I may be from northern Quebec but snow in early September is just plain wrong. I was hoping to last with my fall jacket for a bit longer... It snowed again this morning. Here's proof that the white stuff actually came down.
Coincidentally, our Mongolian lesson that day was on weather. "Tsas" is snow in Mongolian.
We had been warned about the extemes and the current forecast certainly shows this. 27 degrees (above zero) on Monday!
mc
Coincidentally, our Mongolian lesson that day was on weather. "Tsas" is snow in Mongolian.
We had been warned about the extemes and the current forecast certainly shows this. 27 degrees (above zero) on Monday!
mc
Saturday, September 02, 2006
Visit to a nomadic herder's family
Imagine that on one windy sunny afternoon while you are out herding your sheep and goats, a mini-bus comes over the hill, stops at your one-room house (called ger) and 20 people step off to have lunch and spend the afternoon with you. In the Mongolian countryside, there is no forewarning of a visit and people are always welcoming.
This is what we did last Saturday. I think the family has pre-approved VSO dropping in on them but I don't think they ever had a group as large as 20 before. So we sat around their house, played with the children, ate lots of food (lots of which we brought with us so as to not be a huge burden on them), discussed a few topics like where we are from and their livestock. We drank the best salty milk tea we've had so far and a nice bowl of hot milk from their cows. The homemade cheese was delicious also. The family was very nice and young, in their early thirties I think they said, with an 8-year-old girl and a 4-year-old boy. The girl would go out periodically with her dad and help with the herding. They'd be off on the hill bringing the sheep and goats back closer to the home. The gers are all set up pretty much the same: stove in the middle, beds on either side, bag of fermenting milk on the left side of the door as you enter, etc. This one was no different. Aaron got to sniff a snuff bottle.
Aaron and I went out at some point to climb the nearby hills and check out what's on the other side of the hills. Anyone care to guess? More hills. The hills are pretty barren with just grass and rocks and marmot holes covering them. There was one patch of trees in the far distance.
At the end of the afternoon we thanked them, said goodbye and retreated to our mini-bus for the hour drive back.
And now you may see photos of our visit.
mc
This just in, you can now see the following short video clip as well.
-AA
This is what we did last Saturday. I think the family has pre-approved VSO dropping in on them but I don't think they ever had a group as large as 20 before. So we sat around their house, played with the children, ate lots of food (lots of which we brought with us so as to not be a huge burden on them), discussed a few topics like where we are from and their livestock. We drank the best salty milk tea we've had so far and a nice bowl of hot milk from their cows. The homemade cheese was delicious also. The family was very nice and young, in their early thirties I think they said, with an 8-year-old girl and a 4-year-old boy. The girl would go out periodically with her dad and help with the herding. They'd be off on the hill bringing the sheep and goats back closer to the home. The gers are all set up pretty much the same: stove in the middle, beds on either side, bag of fermenting milk on the left side of the door as you enter, etc. This one was no different. Aaron got to sniff a snuff bottle.
Aaron and I went out at some point to climb the nearby hills and check out what's on the other side of the hills. Anyone care to guess? More hills. The hills are pretty barren with just grass and rocks and marmot holes covering them. There was one patch of trees in the far distance.
At the end of the afternoon we thanked them, said goodbye and retreated to our mini-bus for the hour drive back.
And now you may see photos of our visit.
mc
This just in, you can now see the following short video clip as well.
-AA
Friday, September 01, 2006
Laser birds
This is a video of some birds that are around our place during dawn and dusk. That make strange, laser-like sounds. Very weird.
-AA
-AA
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