It took us one day and a half to organise our trip around Mongolia. We were a bit reluctant to follow the crowd and drive exactly the same route as anyone, we also thought to rent a just a driver and do it on our own or get the local buses from region to region. However, it proved that you need many weeks to travel around this country and to make the most out of the days we had was to arrange the trip with our hostel “Golden Gobi”. Mongolia is huge, difficult to drine through it as there is hardly a road network. ... actually there is a huge one, but after rains, snowfalls and sandstorms, it changes constantly every other month.
Eventually we left one fine morning 2 British guys, Dan and Richard (22), a Swiss one, Pierre (33), the two of us, the driver (Jigme) and our fat cook-guide (Gedoff) in this Russian jeep (manufactured in 2008 without seatbelts). It was only 5km from the city centre when we left the urbanised area and suburbs appeared so different to us. They are huge areas covered by gers and slight wooden fences separating a group of gers from others according to which family the belong too.
It was only 10 min later when we left asphalt and driver joked that it will be only off road route from now on. We laughed that time, but it proved to be true and the most off road kms we have ever experienced.
First lunch break took place around noontime, when we stopped at a ger (see Leventis on the Greek highway). First time we saw a ger from inside; mother was cooking something in a huge pot set on the oven, father was bringing some weird things to light up the stove and children palying around, staring at the foreigners. You could see some jeeps or bikes passing by and making a small stop to eat there. Food was home-made pasta, with potatoes, few vegetables and tiny pieces of mutton. Quite untasty, but this proved to be more or less our food in the rest of the trip. We went a bit of trekking in the surround rocky Mountains and we headed on to the ruins of an old monastery (Sum Khokh Burd). Only some kms further was the place for our first night, ger experience. It hardly fits 5 beds inside and has a short door to enter; decoration is thick woollen carpets on the floor and golden needlecraft at the side “walls”. It looks like an Indian big tent, but u can stand in most of its space. There is a stove that keeps you warm in the centre of it, but the owner came around 7 to light it up and then around 6 in the morning to refill it. In-between these hours we freezed a bit, although in a sleeping bag, and we thought to complain next morning, but we haven’t seen nothing yet. Dinner was a vegetable soup from our cook, much tastier and we had few hour
s to spend until the candles went off.
Breakfast’s usual hour was at 9.00 and we had a long trip the second day in order to reach South Gobi. We passed Mandalgov, a small town of 13.000 people and of course no sewage system, water and pipeline network or asphalt anywhere. They hardly have electricity network with many blackouts during the day. Our destination was 360 km away so we had an easy lunch on the way. Jeep stops, baggages get out, small folding table, 7 stools,
ingredients for sandwiches and tea – Oh yes, tea was a must three times per day minimum-chocolate split to 7 parts for desert. So easy, but so tasty. Crossing so big distances makes you hungry although u haven’t done much. We arrived late afternoon, dark already in Dalanzadgad to overnight in a house where they rent one room with dorm beds. Electricity and water supply seemed luxury for us even the second day. It was last chance for a shower till the end of the trip, but we did the mistake to think that we are still very clean ;) ….
It was only 10 min later when we left asphalt and driver joked that it will be only off road route from now on. We laughed that time, but it proved to be true and the most off road kms we have ever experienced.First lunch break took place around noontime, when we stopped at a ger (see Leventis on the Greek highway). First time we saw a ger from inside; mother was cooking something in a huge pot set on the oven, father was bringing some weird things to light up the stove and children palying around, staring at the foreigners. You could see some jeeps or bikes passing by and making a small stop to eat there. Food was home-made pasta, with potatoes, few vegetables and tiny pieces of mutton. Quite untasty, but this proved to be more or less our food in the rest of the trip. We went a bit of trekking in the surround rocky Mountains and we headed on to the ruins of an old monastery (Sum Khokh Burd). Only some kms further was the place for our first night, ger experience. It hardly fits 5 beds inside and has a short door to enter; decoration is thick woollen carpets on the floor and golden needlecraft at the side “walls”. It looks like an Indian big tent, but u can stand in most of its space. There is a stove that keeps you warm in the centre of it, but the owner came around 7 to light it up and then around 6 in the morning to refill it. In-between these hours we freezed a bit, although in a sleeping bag, and we thought to complain next morning, but we haven’t seen nothing yet. Dinner was a vegetable soup from our cook, much tastier and we had few hour
s to spend until the candles went off.Breakfast’s usual hour was at 9.00 and we had a long trip the second day in order to reach South Gobi. We passed Mandalgov, a small town of 13.000 people and of course no sewage system, water and pipeline network or asphalt anywhere. They hardly have electricity network with many blackouts during the day. Our destination was 360 km away so we had an easy lunch on the way. Jeep stops, baggages get out, small folding table, 7 stools,
ingredients for sandwiches and tea – Oh yes, tea was a must three times per day minimum-chocolate split to 7 parts for desert. So easy, but so tasty. Crossing so big distances makes you hungry although u haven’t done much. We arrived late afternoon, dark already in Dalanzadgad to overnight in a house where they rent one room with dorm beds. Electricity and water supply seemed luxury for us even the second day. It was last chance for a shower till the end of the trip, but we did the mistake to think that we are still very clean ;) ….
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