One word: extraordinary. Minuses: Not suitable for independent travelling, for many reasons. I think they are happy with organized tours with people who spend money, but don’t care about backpackers on budget. Public transport does not really exist. They are nomads, after all. No one outside the capital speaks any language. It is not possible … More 47 – Mongolia (conclusion)
August 19 Baga Gazryn Chuulu – Looks prettier than I expected. Unfortunately we don’t actually see it. But about that later. There may be more than a few insects in the Bayar Bulag ger camp, and the shower is really a joke (but it’s still a shower), but there is also a very good-looking indigenous … More 46 – The Comedy of Errors (Mongolia road trip chapter 3 – around UB)
August 12 After the warm-up in still civilized bits of Mongolia, we head for Gobi. The intermediate stopover is planned for Ongiin Khiid. The transfer is excruciating. We drive through the proper steppe, or at least what I have always imagined to be a proper steppe: vast, interminable plains occasionally dotted by solitary gers and … More 45 – Come with me for some fun in my buggy! (Mongolia road trip chapter 2 – the Gobi)
…pour pays tout l’univers, et pour loi sa volonté. Et surtout la chose enivrente: la liberté!* August 8 We leave for the road trip 8.30 am. First omen of the main theme of the journey: we learn there is no tent (that the agency promised), therefore, we need to go to buy one. Tsogtoo takes … More 44 – Comme c’est beau, la vie errante (Mongolia road trip chapter 1 – north and west from UB)
August 5 Ulaan Baator had many names throughout its history. The Camp. The Big Camp (surprisingly). The Biggest Camp (now I’m taking the piss). The current one means The Red Hero, to celebrate the Soviet takeover of the country (I bet some would be happier with “The Biggest Camp”). You know what they say about … More 43 – The Red Hero
