For a week in Mongolia, I still could not understand what it is: outside it is the "sixteenth republic of the former USSR", and inside - virgin Asia, or vice versa: outside - virgin Asia, and inside - "sixteenth republic"? The main emotion of a traveler in Mongolia is the removal of the brain, and at every step. The main emotion of Mongolia itself, its national motto is "no one cares!" Well, the Mongolian Altai, the Kobdo River valley in the Bayan-Ulgiy and Khovd aimags are the farthest from the capital and the most atypical corner of Mongolia. In the first part I will tell you about the road there from Russia and about the local, mostly urban, specifics; for the second part I will leave a story about the life of nomads. But for the whole of Mongolia these impressions are typical, or only for its western corner - so far I do not presume.
There is also a plane, but the prices for it are completely different: from Ulgiy to the capital by bus 80 thousand tugriks (about 2,000 rubles), and by plane - 350 thousand. The planes here are beautiful, everything that flew over us was turboprop, like this Fokker 50.
Specific transport (in addition to airplanes, of course) also gives rise to a specific attitude towards the toilet. There are no even the most miserable village sorts on the highways, there is nowhere to hide in the steppe, so the sanitary stop looks like this: half of the bus leaves, lined up and begins to relieve themselves. Or vomit - judging by the two journeys along the Ulgiy-Khovd road, a critical number of local residents have a weak vestibular system that fails on the passes. In a big way, you can sit down at a stone, but that is if it is. Women in this sense are not much more shy than men, so Mongolian buses can be recommended in every possible way for adherents of urinophilia. Squeamish people (like Olya and me) will have to be mentally prepared for all this. For example, in Ulgie there is a toilet without a door, facing the street:
Mongolia really looks like a "sixteenth republic" by the look of its cities. The same five-story buildings, low-rise stalinka buildings and even wooden barracks, the same garages, rusty playgrounds and garbage cans, and of course, glazed balconies in every way:
Familiar landscapes, if seen, or:
In some places, there is something else - barracks with unusually frequent windows and square pipes in yard boiler rooms make me associate with China during the times of Mao Zedong, whom I have never seen.
In general, the Mongolian city looks more neglected and uncomfortable than even in Kyrgyzstan or in the Russian North. In the same Khovd, they once laid paving stones and tiles, installed lanterns and benches, but without daily maintenance, all this was covered with debris and dust. New buildings look especially contrasting - nowhere in the former USSR are there such cramped courtyards without a single blade of grass:
Mongolian entrances are quite post-Soviet - that is, musty, covered with writing and pasted over with advertisements. But on the right, pay attention to a small detail - from the threshold, the stairs lead not only up, but also down: there are also apartments in the basements of new buildings!
In the centers of Mongolian cities, one can come across very nice stalinkas, mainly of administrations, hotels and houses of culture:
Twice - in Ulgiy and Khovda - we came across a stone clock. At first we joked that this is a very graphic expression of how Mongolians relate to time. But when we saw the watch for the second time, we realized that the hands on it were in the same exact position. What time is imprinted on them? Revolution, declaration of independence, some kind of victory?
But the main "feature" of Mongolian cities is that yurts literally jump out of the most unexpected places in them:
Let's say a yurt on the outskirts of a college - maybe there are hard workers doing repairs from somewhere in the steppe?
In Khovd, on the outskirts, there is a whole Yurt city. This is essentially a slum - people come to the city, and do not build themselves a shack out of dung and sticks, but simply set up a yurt and live in it. Others settle down so much that they put fences around the yurt, fencing off the plots, but I think most of the inhabitants of yurtograds come to cities to earn money according to the season:
Even in the courtyards of rich houses, a yurt can stand, at least playing the role of a summer kitchen, veranda or living room. This is already Ulgiy - there is no yurt city here, but almost more yurts are placed in the yurts, and note that they are of a different design - in Khovda Mongolian yurts (ger), and here - Turkic (Kazakh-ui):
Mongolian cities are a very striking monument of what is called "false urbanization". Here in Khovd, a cow grazes on the lawn near the central square:
42. photographed by Olya.
And one of Ulgiy's "tricks" is the regular cattle driving through the city:
Cattle are far from the only animal notable in Mongolian cities. I observed the same thing in Kosh-Agach, that is, this is apparently a common feature for Zaaltai - here are kites instead of ravens:
They sit on wires, trees, roofs:
Circling over the garbage dumps:
47. photo of Olya
They dive into yards, hunting pigeons, puppies, kittens or meat for a dog while she sleeps in a kennel:
48. photo of Olya
So it’s no wonder that there are scarers on the power lines:
The Mongolian language is beautiful, although where we have been, it is represented mainly by inscriptions and pop music. I think the "clear letter" suited him much more than the Cyrillic alphabet: a continuous "hole was buzzed by uveschuur." But the meaning of the inscriptions in general is clear: "Come in, you go nuts!"
The contingent in Mongolia, if it differs from Central Asia, Kazakhstan or Altai, is not much: there are both slovenly merry-goers and cute stylish youth. I don't remember gopniks here, and the police are friendly and not inclined to extortion - there have never been any stories similar to those in Central Asia in Mongolia. They say that it is easy to run into drunks here, but we did not have such an experience, and from hearsay, drunken people are not aggressive towards tourists and in the worst case, they will fight. Again, as I understood from other people's notes, it is much worse than with aggression, here things are with theft - it is better not to leave things unattended, even at the borders.
Another unusual property of Mongolia is perhaps the easiest and most painless transition to democracy in history. Until 1911, it was a province of China, in 1921-90 it was quite a totalitarian socialist country, and in the 1990s it took and became a democratic one - without turmoil and pogroms, without the "father of the nation" with iron order, without political hysteria. Since 2017, the country has been ruled by the fifth president, the Mongolian People's (formerly People's Revolutionary) and Democratic parties regularly replace each other in elections. Lenin in Ulan Bator was demolished only in 2012, but in Khovda one of the shops (!) Hangs the Order of Sukhbaatar - apparently, there is socialist nostalgia here:
But the red star coexists peacefully with the swastika. Mongolia sent caravans with warm clothes and meat, tens of thousands of camel cruises from Khovd to Biysk to help the USSR. Maybe there were Mongolian volunteers at the front, but in principle the Mongols did not fight against fascism. An important difference between Mongolia and the former USSR is that there is no seal of the Great Patriotic War here. Therefore, for the Mongols, the swastika is just a solstice:
Before the trip, I was sure that Mongolia had become a protectorate of China. But I would say, almost more Chineseized. The Tajiks are thrilled by the mention of China that the Ukrainians hear the word "Europe", but the Mongols have a long-standing fear of the Celestial Empire, for the sake of which it is possible to contact Russia. They say that closer to Ulan Bator, the Chinese influence is more noticeable, but Bayan-Ulgiy and Khovd definitely look to the North:
Here I would rate my knowledge of Russian at about the level of the most non-Russian-speaking places of the former USSR, such as Southern Tajikistan or the rural hinterland of Estonia. Every second person here in Russian can connect a couple of words, and in almost any crowded place there is at least one person who speaks Russian almost fluently. Moreover, - I heard about this from different people, - Mongols are very conscientious in their studies, so if a Mongolian speaks Russian, then it is worthy. It is possible to explain in Russian here, and in any case it is much easier than in English. Knowledge of English, as it seemed to me, correlates with age (typical of young people), but knowledge of Russian, in my opinion, does not correlate with anything - among young people and residents of yurts and among the older generation and townspeople, we came across all three cases in equal proportions. In general, the tightness between the two great powers is very noticeable here. For example, once we met a woman whose daughter is studying in Beijing and her son is in Tomsk.
The strange socket for different plugs in the Khovd hotel is a clear evidence of the proximity of China with its cheap consumer goods to the whole world. Maybe that's why Mongolia seems closer to the Anglo-Saxon world than the post-Soviet countries, with the exception of the Baltic states.
Another property of Mongolia is that almost nothing is produced in it. In essence, it all comes down to mines and animal husbandry, but ore will not be sold in stores. According to statistics, 2/3 of imports to Mongolia come from China, 1/3 from Russia, but in the grocery stores of Ulgii and Khovd, the proportion looks rather the opposite. The geography of goods in the country itself, which is not burdened with the support of a domestic manufacturer, is impressive - Russia, China, Kazakhstan, Ukraine, Korea, Germany, Poland, Israel, Japan are replaced by a kaleidoscope on the shelves and showcases ... I remember how we bought 5 chocolates - and all from different countries. But many products are simply not available in Mongolia, because the locals are not interested in them - for example, we have not seen cheese in stores.
Mongolian products are few in number, but everything we come across is excellent. For example, the incredibly tasty and very natural fruit water "Goyo":
Well, it's no secret for many travelers that the Mongolian stew is the best in the world:
And you probably ask - where is Genghis Khan? So - NO. For a week in two western aimags, we did not see a single monument to the Shaker of the Universe.
Mongolia is a country that can really surprise. Here, for comparison, the impressions of the same year about Central Mongolia from Denis - see CONTENTS!
Mongolian Altai - there will be posts!
The land of Kobdo. First impressions of Mongolia.
The land of Kobdo. About nomadic Kazakhs.
Ulgiy. The capital of Mongolian Kazakhstan.
Ulgiy-Khovd. Mongolian road.
Khovd (Kobdo). The oldest city in Mongolia.
Manhan. The land of the Zakhchins and the petroglyphs of the Stone Age.
Mongolian Altai. The road to Khurgan-Nur.
Mongolian Altai. Kobdinskie lakes.
Mongolian Altai. Back through Tsengel.
Non-Altai Kazakhstan - see CONTENTS!
Steppe Altai - see CONTENTS!
I hardly prepared for the trip to Mongolia. Two weeks before crossing the border, I did not know that I would go there. Therefore, many things that should have been learned in advance and studied in more detail on the spot passed me by. I may have missed some of the sights that came my way. But in any case, I think my little experience will be useful for the next generations of travelers. I will not touch upon general issues described in various kinds of guidebooks (how to travel by air, trains, cars, horses, etc.), see the links in the "information" section for this. I will only tell you what I saw and heard with my own eyes.
Technical information
I stayed in Mongolia from June 19 to July 8, 2009. Together with a Polish woman, Agnieszka, now working in Ulan-Ude, we entered the country through the border crossing in Kyakhta (Republic of Buryatia), spent two days in Ulan Bator, drove along the Ulan route -Bator - Arvaikheer - Bayankhongor - Altai - Khovd - Ulaangom - Kharkhorin - Ulan Bator. Then I alone drove along the route Ulan Bator - Uyondu © rkhaan - Bayan-Uul and left for Russia through the border crossing Verkhniy Ulkhun (Trans-Baikal Territory). Most of the way we hitchhiked, part of them by minibuses and buses.
Here and further in the text I use the original Mongolian names of geographical objects, with the exception of Ulan Bator, which I will write in traditional Russian transliteration (in Mongolian, the name of the city is written as "Ulaanbaatar").
Travel map
Pros and cons
Mongolia is known for two things. The first is a nomadic population that has preserved a traditional way of life. They say that for the Mongols, life has not changed much since the time of Genghis Khan, and this seems to be true: a significant part of the country still lives in yurts, breeds cattle, wanders from place to place in search of new pastures, eats meat and milk. Except that many now roam in UAZs and Japanese trucks, while the wealthiest have satellite dishes and solar panels next to their yurts. And the rest is the same - right down to the national costumes that the Mongols wear not on major holidays, but in everyday life.
The second plus is the beautiful and untouched nature. This is not that dull steppe of the south of Russia or Ukraine that brings boredom and melancholy. Mongolian steppe landscapes are always beautiful and varied and very rarely disfigured by human structures. The stretching plain on the horizon is always framed by beautiful hills, somewhere picturesque rocks or stones come across, somewhere the steppe turns into a rocky or sandy desert, somewhere it is replaced by mountains covered with forest. And here and there yurts stand in these Mongolian expanses and fat herds of large and small livestock wander about: cows, goats, sheep, horses, camels, yaks.
Cons of Mongolia logically follow from the pros. The beautiful nature and traditional way of life have been preserved due to the fact that civilization has not yet reached here. Only Ulaanbaatar, whose photographs I have already shown, can be called a civilized city, where there is everything you need for life. Most of the rest of the cities are rather urban-type settlements. The regional center of Mongolia resembles the very last Russian regional center, the Mongolian regional centers resemble villages at all. And between these cities there are huge spaces, where the human presence is noticeable only on the lonely yurts and the rut in the steppe (see the "Roads" section).
In general, after a trip to Mongolia, Russia begins to seem like a completely civilized country, in which there are many roads and railways, roadside cafes, toilets, shops and supermarkets. When I left Mongolia for Russia, there was a clear feeling that I was returning from Asia to Europe - for the last 50 km before the border there was a dead dirt road with pits and puddles, along which 1-2 cars drove a day, and after the border smooth asphalt began with good traffic. In a word, it's nice that we are at least one hundred years ahead of any country. The only thing in which Mongolia is noticeably ahead of us is the development of animal husbandry. After you see herds of several hundred animals that, like locusts, have occupied the verdant Mongolian pasture, it is not very joyful to look at three or four thin starving cows wandering near some Trans-Baikal village.
But, otherwise, as I said, our country is much more civilized. For all my passion for travel, I still love comfort, smooth roads, fast cars, a hot lunch at least once a day and a hot shower at least once every two days, and after Mongolia I returned to Russia with some relief. So read the descriptions of Mongolia and think carefully - are you ready for such difficulties or is it better to go on a hitchhiking trip through the Benelux countries.
Information
Lonely Planet Mongolia Travel Guide
Travelers report on the bpclub.ru forum
To get acquainted with the cultural and historical context, I recommend reading Isai Kalashnikov's wonderful book "The Cruel Age" (Part 1 and Part 2) - the story of Genghis Khan's life from birth to death, and also watch Nikita Mikhalkov's excellent film "Urga - Territory of Love" about the relationship between Russians and Mongols in China.
Visa
In Russia there is a Mongolian embassy in Moscow, as well as consulates in Ulan-Ude, Irkutsk, Kyzyl. It is usually impossible to make a visa on your own without an invitation, at the consulate they immediately send it to the travel agency. In Ulan-Ude, visa processing at a travel agency costs 2300 rubles, including consular fees, and takes 10-12 days. In the comments they say that things are better in Moscow - I don't know, check with the commentator. Previously, the Kyzyl consulate issued visas without an invitation, but now, I think, this is no longer there.
Hit
There are as many as 10 border crossings between Russia and Mongolia. They usually work from 9.00 to 17.00. I wrote in more detail about crossing the border in Kyakhta, in Upper Ulkhun -. It is interesting that only three crossings are international, that is, residents of third countries can cross the border there. So if you are not a citizen of Mongolia or Russia, you can cross the border only in Kyakhta (Buryatia) or Tashanta (Altai Republic), or move it by train in Naushki (Buryatia). Please note that the crossing in Kyakhta is a car crossing, you cannot cross it on foot, so if you are going on foot, you will have to fit into a car at the border. The passage in Verkhniy Ulkhun (Trans-Baikal Territory) is a pedestrian one, no one forces you to get into a car or a bus.
Buses run from Ulan-Ude to Ulan Bator every day, in addition, the Moscow - Ulan Bator train passes through the capital of Buryatia. I don’t know how things are in other regions.
Roads
Before traveling to Mongolia, I thought that there were no roads in Russia. Now I realized that there are roads in our country, and even good ones. Because Mongolian dear - this is such a tin that you, most likely, will not see anywhere. Only from north to south, a decent asphalt road leads from Russia to China through Ulan Bator, plus there are sections from Ulaanbaatar to the west to Arvaikheer (569 km, of which, however, 50-60 km have not yet been built) with a branch to Kharkhorin and from Ulan Bator eastward to Uyondu © rhaan (331 km). Perhaps there are other sections, but I have not traveled on them.
The rest are expensive, including the most important highways connecting the west and east of the country - these are usually three or four rolled tracks in the steppe, which converge and diverge and lead from one town to another. Between the settlements there are no gas stations, no cafes, no kilometer posts, no road signs, no traffic cops, no cellular coverage - only a bare plain, on which everyone drives as he pleases. However, the quality of the roads is such that it will not be possible to break the speed limit with all the desire, and the abundance of ruts reduces collisions to a minimum. The relief is usually such that you can even go off the track and drive across the steppe in any direction.
On such roads, some manage to drive even simple cars, but it is still better to use SUVs - Japanese jeeps or Russian UAZs. The latter, by the way, are preferable, because they are very common among the Mongols and, if something happens, you will quickly find spare parts. The Mongols also ride motorcycles, Korean minibuses, Japanese trucks, and Russian Kamaz trucks. Foreign tourists usually travel by jeeps and motorcycles. So, on the highway, we met colleagues four times: Poles on motorcycles, a group of Frenchmen in jeeps, one Australian motorcyclist and a group of Koreans traveling in a minibus (most likely, also Korean).
If you are driving your own transport, be sure to stock up on a GPS-navigator - instead of roads there are directions, so it is quite possible to get lost, having accidentally left along the track leading to some remote village. It is better to buy a map in Mongolian - then it will be easier to find out from the nomads where you are and where you should go. If you hitchhike, you can basically do without a navigator - drivers usually know the way and go from one city to another. The main thing is to find out exactly where the driver is going, and then entrust him with finding the right path.
Hitch-hiking
Mongolia is the most difficult country for hitchhiking I've ever been to. Nevertheless, hitchhiking here is fun and interesting, and if you have time to spare, you can do it this way. Just keep in mind some of the features of the Mongolian hitchhiking.
The first and foremost problem is low traffic. It is very good to drive only on asphalt roads (see the "Roads" section). The route from the border crossing in Tashant to Ulaanbaatar (via Ulaangom and Tsetserleg) is still quite busy, although here you can sometimes wait for a ride for several hours. On other roads, cars are extremely rare - up to three or four cars a day. So be patient, and also with books, magazines or crosswords - you can at least do something to keep yourself busy while you sit by the track for half a day. In short, “I have eight volumes of bacon and matches and Turgenev in my backpack” - this is just about Mongolia. Sometimes we got so tired of sitting by the road that we took our backpacks and walked, so many Mongols - drivers and local residents - had the feeling that we were walking through their country. It is difficult to explain the essence of hitchhiking to them, so this is even better. Also, keep in mind that traffic between regional centers (if this road does not lead to Ulan Bator) is very low traffic - for example, from Ulaangom to MU © rU © n it will hardly be possible to get directly, because the main flow of cars to Ulan Bator goes south , via Tsetserleg. And you shouldn't even try to hitchhike on local roads if you don't want to get stuck for about a week.
The second problem is choosing the right track for voting. The easiest way is at the exit from a large city: usually a few kilometers before and after a large settlement there is one asphalt road, so it is enough to leave the city and start voting on this road. The situation is different in the steppe or in small towns and villages. Here, the tracks can diverge to a distance of up to half a kilometer and it is rather difficult to choose the one you need. Sometimes you can navigate along power lines - usually the poles are along the main track, but this rule does not always work. It is best to find some kind of elevation, from where it opens a view of the surroundings, keep track of which road the car will appear on, and if something happens, move there quickly. If you wave your hands and the driver sees you, he will most likely stop or even turn and reach you.
The third problem is overcrowding in cars. During the trip, we only drove twice in a car with one driver. Usually, in addition to him, there are passengers in the car, who, as a rule, occupy all the seats. It is interesting that cars stop, even if they are overcrowded - find out if something has happened to you, but it is not always possible to get into a stopped car. Sometimes you go in a car with four or five of you in the back seat, putting a Mongolian child on your lap, sometimes you lie on your luggage in the back of a truck, covered with dust and sand, sometimes you sit on a sleeping bag in the long-range cab, slightly squeezing a bunch of things and distant relatives of the driver, who he took with him. In short, don't expect comfort.
And the fourth problem is the availability of money among the local population. In principle, everyone expects money for the transportation, but the majority is persuaded for free. "No money" in Mongolian "mungo baikhgo" - and always say these words once or twice before getting in the car. Only four times did the drivers, hearing such a phrase, drive on in disappointment - and all these times it happened on a busy section of the highway, where we quickly caught the next car. In other places, the drivers understand that you will wait for the next car for another half a day, and after heavy thought they still nod - they say, get in. However, truckers and well-to-do Uhlan-Bator people in jeeps do it without much hesitation. But it's still a little hard - especially after Russia, where almost none of the drivers asks about money, and I don't even warn you that I'm driving for free.
In short, I recommend, if funds permit, to travel around Mongolia in your own vehicle. If funds do not allow, but time allows, use a bike - it will be slightly slower, and if you are an experienced bike biker, it may even be faster than a hitchhiker. For example, we covered the 390 km section from Bayankhongor to Altai in as many as three days. And the section from the city of Bayan-Uul to the border crossing of Upper Ulkhun, 49 km long, I drove all day - here I could have walked in the same time.
Nevertheless, hitchhiking helps to get to know the local life better, to communicate with Mongols, many of whom know Russian. So if the listed difficulties do not bother you, pack your backpack and go.
Regular transport
Only in Ulan Bator there is some kind of bus station, from which buses leave for different regional centers according to a specific schedule and tariffs. In other cities, buses either do not run at all, or go as God pleases. Travel guides recommend looking for minibuses in the city market. There you can also find drivers who go to other cities and look for fellow travelers to compensate for their expenses. For some reason, Lonely Planet calls this "hitchhiking" - that is, it recommends going to the market and finding such a car. I don’t know, in my opinion, the traditional hitchhiking is still more effective.
It is rather difficult to navigate the prices for buses. For example, from Ulan Bator to Lun (130 km) we traveled for 6 thousand tugriks, but from Ulan Bator to Darkhan (220 km) my companion traveled for the same money. Although, maybe, the point is that to go to Darkhan on an asphalt road, and part of the way to Luna is the already described track in the steppe.
Overnight
Everyone who travels in Mongolia should definitely spend the night with the nomads at least once. It is quite simple to do this - just go to the yurt in the steppe and politely ask for a visit. During our only appointment in the yurt, we acted in general very delicately: we asked if it was possible to put up a tent next to the yurt, but then, while we were sitting and resting after a hot day, we were invited to the yurt itself. In general, if you find yourself in the steppe and there is a yurt nearby - feel free to ask for a visit. It is better to take sweets and chocolates in advance - give them to the children, put something on the table for tea and everyone will be happy. If you're lucky, you will find yourself at a hearty supper, but we were simply given tea and goat's milk.
Another good option for an overnight stay is roadside cafes. Almost each one has one or more large beds 4-5 meters wide, where anyone who orders dinner or breakfast at this eatery can spend the night for free. Usually a dinner for one person costs 2-3 thousand tugriks. True, several more people will sleep on the same bed, but I think this will not confuse free travelers if they have their own sleeping bag.
There are also hotels in large cities. We have stayed in those two times - in the city of Arvaikheer a double room cost 11 thousand tugriks, in Altai - 15 thousand tugriks. The first hotel had no shower, the second had no hot water. But if anything, in cities you can find public baths where you can take a shower for 1-2 thousand tugriks.
In especially popular places among tourists, there are guesthouses and hostels, including some kind of yurt campings (several yurts where you can spend the night). However, for those who spent the night in a real yurt, it will not be particularly interesting: inside there are no attributes of nomadic life, only a few beds and bedside tables. In Kharkhorin, such a guesthouse cost 5 thousand tugriks per person.
Well, there is a huge selection of accommodation in Ulaanbaatar. Firstly, it is the only city where more or less active members of the Hospitalityclub and Couchsurfing live, so you can easily find a free overnight stay. Secondly, there are hotels, hostels, guesthouses for every taste and pocket. By the way, there is a discount for Russians and Poles in the Golden Gobi guesthouse: the head administrator told us so directly, so they paid not six, but five dollars per person for the night. Keep in mind.
Food
Vegetarians in Mongolia have nothing to do. All vegetables and fruits are imported from China, and the Mongols themselves make and eat almost everything from meat or milk. Only in Ulan Bator can you find vegetable salads, in other places such a luxury is a rarity. I've always been a meat-eater and anti-vegan, but then I even started to feel nostalgia for vinaigrette or tomato-cucumber salad. So be prepared, if you do not tolerate meat at all, to buy the necessary products in Ulaanbaatar and take them with you.
The most popular dish in Mongolia is buuz, known to those who have been to the Irkutsk region or Buryatia, under the name "poses". This is finely chopped meat wrapped in dough and steamed. A very tasty and nutritious thing - 4-5 pieces were enough for me to eat. They usually cost 300 tugriks apiece. Another popular food is khushuur, which resembles our native cheburek and costs 300-400 tugriks apiece. Plus, noodles with pieces of meat and potatoes are popular - either dry or as a soup. Unfortunately, I do not remember what it is called, it costs about 2-2.5 thousand tugriks. Actually, we mainly ate these three dishes on the trip.
There are a lot of interesting dairy dishes, but they, as a rule, are not sold in canteens - we were treated either in yurts or in cars. There is a cool cheese that tastes like cottage cheese, a very tasty creamy butter and also a low-alcohol drink based on milk, reminiscent of kumis.
The main soft drink is milk tea. In Ulan Bator, I did not like him, but then, for lack of choice, I had to love him. It is usually served without sugar, but slightly salted - however, I did not really feel this salt. In the capital, a little oil is also added there, but in the provinces there is no such. All in all, a very nutritious thing. It costs 100-200 tugriks per cup, and sometimes it is even served free of charge.
As with all other aspects, Ulaanbaatar and the rest of Mongolia are two big differences. In the capital, the choice of food is great and varied. There are both cheap canteens with the dishes and prices mentioned above, as well as pretentious restaurants with Italian, Japanese and other cuisines for every taste and pocket. Once we even wandered into a vegetarian cafe. A cheap dining room can usually be identified by the word "gazar" on the sign.
When it comes to food, there is also a big difference between the capital and the province. In Ulaanbaatar, there are many shops and supermarkets with a good selection of products, in other cities there are mainly small shops, the choice of which is less than in any Russian rural store. The usual set is soda, vodka, chocolate chip cookies and, if you're lucky, a huge piece of meat in the fridge. Even bread is rare. The store can be identified by the word "delguur" on the sign.
Cafes and large shops are found only in cities, therefore, given the quality of roads and low traffic, it is better to always have a supply of water and food with you for at least one day.
Language
In Mongolia, a lot of people speak Russian. Once we were even given a lift by a graduate of the philological faculty of Moscow State University. Of the drivers we met, most of them knew at least a few words and phrases in Russian, and about one in three could even be reasonably explained.
But nevertheless, you should not specifically count on the fact that you will come across Russian-speaking Mongols. Try to learn a little Mongolian, it will greatly facilitate your travel life and help you to get to know the local life much better. Unfortunately, I knew only a few phrases that were important for the traveler, and I supplemented the rest with Russian words and gestures. But if with gestures I could still say “is it possible to put up a tent here” or “stop here, please”, then ask more complex and interesting questions (“how do the children of nomads go to school?”, “What do you heat the stove with?” And etc.) did not work.
A short phrasebook of the Mongolian language
Missing phrases to it (double vowel reads as one, but elongated):
May I come with you? - Hamt yavzh bolh uu?
Where are you going? - That hasha yavzh ben wee?
We are traveling in Mongolia - Bid nar Mongoloor ayalaj baygaa
The people know English much worse than Russian - mainly educated youth, beggars from the capital and workers in the tourism sector.
Money
1 dollar = 1428 tugriks
1 ruble = 46 tugriks
It is better to change money at once in Ulan Bator for the whole trip. In the rest of Mongolia, banks are found in numbers that do not exceed the limits of statistical error.
Like Belarusian rubles, Mongolian tugriks exist exclusively in paper form, so during the trip you get the feeling that you have a lot of money.
Internet and communication
There are several mobile operators, of which Mobicom was recommended to us. Cellular communication, of course, does not work on the road, but there is coverage in almost all large and small settlements.
1-2 Internet cafes are found in most regional centers and are abundant in Ulaanbaatar.
Dangers and troubles
Most of all, the nomads' dogs scared me - they say, if you fit in, then come to the yurt early, otherwise the dogs guarding it will attack. It was even recommended to learn the phrase "nohoy chorio", which means "hold the dogs." Therefore, I expected to see vicious wolfhounds at each nomad camp, which would just tear you to pieces. In fact, next to the yurts, we saw half-dead and skinned dogs, unable to scare even a steppe gopher. Mongols do not like dogs very much and often reward them with a kick as they pass by. Therefore, all these human friends bounced back in fear when we tried to stroke them.
Other dangerous animals are already from the wild. The guides list steppe wolves and bears, scorpions and snakes living in the desert, ticks living in the grass. None of this came across to us. The largest wild animals that we have seen are lizards smaller than a palm, constantly running underfoot in the Gobi Desert, and steppe rodents - either hamsters or marmots.
Personally, I did not come across a crime, but my fellow traveler, who was walking alone on the last day in Ulan Bator, had a camera. However, this can happen in any city in the world. And since the Mongols are friendly and non-aggressive, gopniks are almost never met here. I felt completely safe throughout the trip anywhere in Mongolia - in contrast, by the way, from Russia, where it is not always pleasant to be in small regional centers.
Climate
The weather in Mongolia is changeable with sharp temperature fluctuations. It is very cold in winter (Ulaanbaatar is considered the coldest capital in the world), in summer it is usually hot. The summer heat is softened by the winds that walk across the Mongolian plain, but they sometimes create great difficulties. A couple of times it blew so hard that it was simply impossible to set up a tent - and on the plain it is often impossible to find any shelter from the wind. I can't imagine how creepy it must be here in winter with this wind.
Ulan Bator - Arvaikheer highway 
Arvaikheer 
Arvaikheer - Bayankhongor route 
Bayankhongor 
Bayankhongor - Altai route. Group of Poles traveling on motorcycles 
BU © mbU © gu © r 
Northern part of the Gobi Desert 
Either a holiday, or a physical education lesson at a local school 
Buutsagaan 
Altai 
Altai - Khovd highway 
Jeff is an Australian who has lived in Ulaanbaatar for three years. I went by bus to the parents of my fiancee in a Mongolian village 
Khovd 
National character
Mongols, as I already wrote, are very friendly and welcoming people. Foreigners will always be helped and advised where, how and what. They have not yet learned to inflate prices for them - at least those who do not work in the tourism sector. Russians are almost native to the Mongols, many of the older generation recall their studies or work in the Soviet Union. True, do not expect such an open and warm welcome as in the Caucasus or the Middle East - any Russian-speaking Mongol will gladly talk to you, but hardly invite you. In general, a friendly, but fairly even attitude.
Like many other Asian peoples, the Mongols are quite careless, relaxed and unhurried. It is completely normal for a salesperson or administrator in a hotel to leave his workplace for an hour or two and need to wait or look for him somewhere nearby. They are not particularly in a hurry, especially since in Mongolia it will not work out quickly anyway. Agnieszka said that she has several Mongolian students in Ulan Bator who are constantly late for classes by half an hour or an hour and are sincerely surprised when they are reproached for this. Indeed, in Mongolia, in the steppe, a car can easily fail, you will have to wait half a day for a passing car, then repair it and eventually arrive at your destination a day later. What a half-hour late. In a word, "the gods have nowhere to hurry, they have eternity ahead of them."
At the same time, the Mongols have a very developed mutual assistance. If your car breaks down, the first passing car stops and its driver offers help. Often he can stay with you for several hours, helping to start an old UAZ or replacing the springs of a truck. However, they say that in remote regions of Russia, such as Yakutia, Kamchatka or Chukotka, everything is exactly the same.
Of all the Mongolian people, Mongolian children make a particularly pleasant impression. They are very lively and spontaneous, and the most colorful subjects for photography - even more than old people or dashing horse riders. They are clearly not tortured with any punishments and prohibitions, but they are not pampered with anything either - but there is nothing special to pamper them. Instead of plastic toys, they have a whole herd of goats or sheep, instead of bicycles or roller-skates, they have horses, which many have been riding, it seems, from the age of six or seven, and instead of dirty streets and back roads, green plains. There are no city temptations and entertainment here, so they are sincerely happy with any chocolate bar brought from the city by a visiting foreigner. My fellow traveler liked the Mongolian children so much that she even wanted to have one. True, she is afraid that her boyfriend from Kiev will not understand this - after all, few men are as tolerant as the hero of the film "Hipsters".
Lifestyle
Ulan Bator is the only real city in Mongolia. In terms of the level of availability and development of infrastructure, it resembles a large Russian regional center. There are supermarkets, cinemas, restaurants, internet cafes, public transport - everything you need for life. The rest of the country is a large nomadic camp. Even in regional centers, a significant part of the population lives in a nomadic way - in the center there may be several Soviet buildings of two or three floors, and all this is surrounded by a private sector with wooden houses and yurts. But, of course, real Mongolia begins outside the cities.
In the steppe, yurts come across every few kilometers, in the desert - every 10-20 kilometers. Sometimes the yurt stands separately, sometimes several such dwellings form a kind of mini-settlement. I expected that the interior of the yurt would be quite ascetic, almost like in a camping tent, but in reality they are usually always well furnished and resemble the insides of a Russian hut or even a modest city apartment. There are several beds, a wardrobe, a table, a chest of drawers with photographs of distant relatives, a TV (sometimes even with a DVD player). In the center there is a potbelly stove, a long pipe of which is directed into a round hole in the middle of the roof.
The only occupation of the people living here is animal husbandry. Near the yurt, a hitching post is driven into the ground, to which several horses are tied, goats or sheep crowd in the corral (and more often without it), yaks and cows peacefully eat grass nearby, and camels roam and chew tough bushes in the desert. These animals are at the same time all agriculture, food and textile industries, and often transport.
The Mongols are practically not engaged in agriculture. You can drive all over the country and not see a single field. Only in the vicinity of the city of Ulangom did we see some kind of vegetable gardens, and at the Russian border a driver gave us a lift, who said that he was going to some kind of farm. In other places, the Mongols do not grow anything and use all their vast plains exclusively for pastures. They say that they still consider it sinful to dig and generally do something with the earth.
National costumes are large robes made of dense fabric, usually gray. I have never worn it, but judging by its appearance, such a robe protects well from the piercing Mongolian wind. And yet, I apologize for the intimate detail, such a robe helps the Mongols to relieve themselves in the steppe: it is usually impossible to find any shelter here, so you can move a little away from other people, get up or sit with your back to them, covering yourself with a robe, and do your own thing, no one in front this is not shocking.
Religion
Like any other communist country, a religious revival began in Mongolia in the 1990s. They began to restore old and build new monasteries, to create religious educational institutions. A Buddhist monastery or temple has become the same indispensable attribute of a Mongolian city, as an Orthodox church has become a Russian one. In the monasteries you can see young monks, and, if you're lucky, get to a religious service when they sit at the table and recite mantras either in Tibetan or Sanskrit - a mesmerizing sight.
Nevertheless, the lay Mongols are not particularly religious. Only in one yurt have I seen something like a small altar, and in cars I have never seen any religious paraphernalia. So, if you don't visit the cities and look for Buddhist temples there, you can't really determine what religion the Mongols adhere to. True, as in neighboring Buryatia, relics of shamanism have been preserved here: along the roads there are "obo" - piles of stones and pillars with blue rags tied to them. But unlike the same Buryatia, the drivers do not stop next to them and do not show any respect to them.
Entertainment
Of all Mongolian culture, music is the best experience for a traveler. Mongols are very fond of singing, and on the road you can often observe such a picture - the driver begins to sing a melodic and sad song, and his partner sings along with him as much as possible. Or the old woman drags on the song, and the whole bus picks it up in unison. If no one is singing, then the driver puts in a cassette (by the way, he almost never saw CD-recorders in cars - only cassette recorders) with Mongolian folk or modern popular songs and listens to it, looking at the road going down to the horizon. Quite often, Mongols, including those who do not know a word of Russian, listen to Russian music. Several times we heard Valeria, Dima Bilan, or the song "A Million Scarlet Roses" performed by a Mongolian singer singing in Russian with a funny accent.
Besides singing, people also love to drink. Moreover, at first glance, it seems that even more than in Russia. During a month of traveling in Eastern Siberia, I was offered to drink vodka once, and in two weeks in Mongolia - five times. However, this is explained by the fact that in Mongolia, besides the driver, there are always a lot of passengers in the car, and they just drink half a glass to make the ride more cheerful, and the driver confines himself to tea with milk. In Russia, drivers mostly drive alone - you can't really drink here.
Lyrical conclusion
What I did not understand after the trip - why eight hundred years ago the Mongols needed to leave their cozy nomad camps and native steppes and go to conquer half the world. After all, they were not going to raise cattle and set up yurts on the conquered lands, so unlike Mongolia - all these Chinese rice fields, ancient cities of Central Asia, the peaks of the Caucasus, Iranian deserts and Russian forests. And it’s impossible to recognize in these peaceful and friendly people those vicious and cruel conquerors who marched with fire and sword all the way to the Adriatic coast. Maybe it's all about a strong personality who can gather and lead people along - I don't know.
But Mongolia allows us to understand another thing: that our entire civilization, everything that mankind has invented over the past several thousand years is, in essence, pleasant, but not so necessary excesses. In this country, people almost never use them, and those who do, it seems, they do not really need. Tens of thousands of Mongols do without sewers, gas and microwave ovens, a washing machine, a computer, a telephone, a car and are not at all worried about this. And the omnipotent power of electricity is used, it seems, only for watching TV. If it were not for him, they would simply ask travelers what is new in the world. And having learned about all our progress, about the Internet, space flights, nuclear energy, nanotechnology and laser surgery, they would nod their heads disapprovingly - why invent something if only a yurt, fifty goats, a dozen horses and an endless green plain are needed for a good life ...
Khovd - Ulaangom highway 
Group of French and Swiss in jeeps 
The country of amazing steppe expanses, where for many kilometers around you can not find a living soul, and national traditions, which are as strong as the spirit of the Mongol warrior, is gradually gaining momentum in the tourist market as an exotic destination. During the trip, the main companions of the tourist will certainly become the bright and indefatigable sun, snow-capped mountain ranges and bundles of colored flags encircling Buddhist stupas.
Important points
- A Russian tourist will not need a visa to travel to Mongolia.
- Experienced travelers do not recommend renting a car in the land where Genghis Khan was born. The quality of the roads and the condition of the cars offered leave much to be desired. In addition, in the Mongolian steppes, you can easily get lost.
- To buy tickets for trains or buses for transfers within the country, you will need a passport.
- The difference in prices for tickets of local airlines for Mongols and foreigners is very significant.
Choosing wings
Direct flights with Mongolia are carried out from several cities beyond the Urals:
- Aeroflot has flights on Tuesdays, Fridays and Sundays. A direct flight on Russian wings will take a little over 6 hours, and a ticket will cost about $ 680.
- Mongolian Airlines also takes passengers on board several times a week. Prices start at $ 800.
- The flight will be much cheaper - on Turkish Airlines planes via. The price of the issue is from $ 550, the journey will take 13 hours without taking into account the docking.
- The Chinese fly to Ulan Bator from Sheremetyevo via. Air China ticket prices start at $ 650.
Travel to Mongolia can also be taken by train. The Moscow - Ulan Bator train leaves twice a week from the platform of the Yaroslavsky railway station in the Russian capital and arrives at the Mongolian railway station in a little over four days. Ticket price - from $ 90.
Hotel or apartment
The bulk of Mongolia's hotels were inherited by the republic from the times of socialist realities. The number of rooms in the "three-ruble" rooms is mostly old Soviet-style hotels, but the "five" are already distinguished by the modern level of service and comfort. The last point is reflected in the pricing policy, and a hotel room in the capital with five stars on the facade will cost an average of $ 150 per night.
If you search, there are also modern 3 * hotels in Ulaanbaatar, but the price per day in such a hotel can shock an inexperienced tourist. A double room will cost $ 60-$ 100. True, for this money, guests receive wireless Internet, a fitness center, a free airport shuttle and shower accessories. In a word, the new "treshki" in Ulaanbaatar is quite worthy of more stars than they were assigned.
However, standard accommodation options when traveling in Mongolia are only available in the capital and some major cities. Outside of them, the only tourist home is the Mongolian yurt. Yurt campsites are adapted for tourist needs and are equipped with quite civilized amenities. The cost of an overnight stay in a yurt starts at $ 30 for the most uncomplicated comfort.
Mongols also rent out private apartments in the capital, and this accommodation option is well worth considering. An apartment with three bedrooms, in which a company of at least six people will be accommodated without interference, with a kitchen, bathroom and the Internet on specialized sites, is easily booked for $ 40 per day. Prices for a private room in an apartment with a host hover around $ 15 per night.
Transport subtleties
Mongolia has a well-developed network of domestic railways, air routes and bus routes. All roads in the country invariably lead to Ulaanbaatar, and therefore most transfers take place there.
Buses connect all cities and large villages of Mongolia. The trains are divided into reserved seats and compartments that are familiar to a Russian resident, and the cheapest seats are. The price of a ticket in a compartment from Ulaanbaatar to the border town of Zamun-Uud, for example, will be about $ 20. The cities are 750 km apart.
Intercity passenger transportation is provided by buses and minibuses. The fare is minimal, and the vehicles look absolutely identical to the Russian ones.
Nightingales are not fed with fables
In short, the food in Mongolia is hearty, the portions are large, and the prices are very nice. For example, a three-course lunch for two in a mid-range restaurant will cost $ 25, for a standard hamburger plus fries and drink at McDonald's you will have to pay $ 7, and you can have a bite of fresh pasties at a roadside cafe for only $ 4.
Prices for the most popular dishes in inexpensive Mongolian canteens are as follows: salad - $ 1, hot meat dish - $ 2.5, soup - $ 2, tea - $ 0.5.
Useful details
- There are up to 260 sunny days in Mongolia a year and the luminary in these latitudes is unusually active. Remember to pack a high factor sunscreen in your suitcase.
- Renting an off-road vehicle with a local driver for traveling across the steppes and other off-road terrain is the best option for independent travel in Mongolia. Traveling according to this scenario will cost $ 70-$ 80 per day.
- A liter of gasoline costs about a dollar.
Best travel to Mongolia
The harshly continental Mongolian climate is a real winter and summer with corresponding temperatures. In July, residents of Ulaanbaatar often observe + 35 ° C and higher on thermometers, and at the height of winter, mercury columns drop to similar levels. The weather offers the most comfortable conditions for walking around the capital in spring and early autumn.
In the Gobi Desert, even despite the intense daytime heat, it can be very cold at night, and therefore the best time to travel to this region of Mongolia is the first half of autumn.
One of the most striking cultural events in Mongolia is the Naadam festival, which takes place in mid-July. The entire male population of the country takes part in it. The highlight of the program is competitions in typical Mongolian skills: archery, horse racing and wrestling. National triathlon winners receive a special patch on their hat and are respected by neighbors and colleagues.
Good afternoon. I live in Khakassia, 600 km to the Mongolian border, 720 to the nearest city. Therefore, we rushed to the May holidays literally for a week. We got there without any problems. The Khandagaity checkpoint is a mega-aspect, everything is cultural and polite. We gathered to go to the city of Ulangom - 28 thousand people.
Hotel 1500 days - room for three! The food is inexpensive, there are many unfamiliar dishes. A lot of sea buckthorn juice, also a novelty, we do not have. The meat is all tough, but cheap, it is better to buy Buuza in Tsain, by the way you quickly get used to Tsai, especially in cafes where it is made normal. Were on Lake Khyargys Nuur, and on Ubr-Nuur, huge lakes, on the banks of the safari - a lot of unafraid game, many yaks, geese, herons, etc. There was a Russian-speaking guide, but it’s better to know the basics of the English language and have a Russian-Mongolian phrasebook. We walked around the city at night, it is very safe, everyone greets, invites us to visit, a lot of smiles. In general, they skated very positively, if I have any questions I will answer with pleasure.
Once in Ulangom there was a small military unit of the Soviet group of forces. The part was small, since the direction was not "tank-hazardous". I will say that in that area the officers' service was like at a resort: hunting, fishing. The command of the army is far away - while they reach it, order can be restored several times. And it is really a pleasure to rest there. Of course, in more than 20 years, when Soviet specialists left the Mongolian People's Republic, many have forgotten the language. But at one time, even in such small settlements, up to 50% of the population spoke Russian. Even if there is no guide, you can always find a local resident who will gladly tell and show you the protected places. Well, a representative office of the Republic of Tuva was opened in Ulangom. Therefore, even if problems arise, then through them you can solve all this. For lovers of outdoor recreation - a wonderful place. : hlopaet:
In 2007, we also traveled from Khakassia to Mongolia. Although there were no relationships (at the state level), the Mongols perfectly remember the kindness and assistance of the USSR for the formation of their state. We drove through Ulangom, we were also on the lakes. They ate geese, herons, yak meat and horse meat. By the way, the majority of residents (middle-aged) speak Russian tolerably well, but understand 100% in general. I remember their attitude to the USSR, and to us (the former sovietico) - warm, welcoming, almost dear. At that time they did not talk about Russia at all, but called our country in the old way - the Soviet Union.
We have not seen any poverty, let alone poverty. This is the normal way of life for the Mongolian people. If the family is settled, then they live in a house or apartment like ordinary rural people in any country. If the family wanders, has its own livestock, pasture allotments, then the way of life is accordingly nomadic. Hence, national housing, clothing, food ... Therefore, do not be afraid to go to Mongolia on a safari. You just need to decide for what purpose, and where you can go in Mongolia, to the steppe, or to the city-village?
The film is beautiful, unusually modern for the 1970s and confirms my recent guess: Dali, who for some reason in Russia is considered a reference surrealist, is not really a surrealist (he broke with this movement even before the war), but one of the first real postmodernists. To evaluate it according to the criteria of modernism is deliberately to miss the mark.
But even the viewer of the twenty-first century, Dali manages to be hooked. The viewer of our generation is ready, after 20 minutes of viewing, with joy ("wow!") To recognize the well-known genre of mocumentari - but in the final Dali (100% natural) with disarming frankness says: I cheated you, all these hallucinatory images are just moss on the walls old castle and cracked paint layer in Vermeer's paintings. And it turns out that this is not a mocumentari at all, but simply an essay about art and the boundaries of knowledge. However, already at the moment when, somewhere in the middle of the film, Dali declares that his work is entirely inspired by narcotic mushrooms from Upper Mongolia, this is so obvious trash that the viewer should have guessed what's what. Dali cheerfully anticipates the judgments of ordinary people (they say, "What did this Dali smoke to draw such a picture?") - this is a trick of the same kind as the "psychoanalytic" commentary in the ending of "The Black Prince" by Iris Murdoch, a parody designed to knock down arrogance from a profound reader / the viewer imagining that he already understood everything.
The film's cultural density is on the verge of a neutron star. The mythical Upper Mongolia is an evil parody of Roerich's Shambhala (and how boring and pale against this background Roerich!) Presbyter John "a crocodile who burns trees with his urine), and the psychedelic hobby, which is relevant for the 70s. A shot where Dali paints a portrait of himself painting a portrait of Gal, which in turn is reflected in the mirror - of course, not just a commentary on his own painting, but also a quote from "Menin" by Velazquez, one of Dali's favorite artists. And much more.
However, this density leads to gloomy thoughts about the fate of the erudite in the XX century. XX century. - the century is anti-cultural in its moods. Some wanted to throw off the burden of culture in order to accelerate the pace of progress, others - for the sake of returning to naturalness and naturalness, and still others - "because you can't write poetry after Auschwitz." And what about someone who does not want to throw this baggage off his shoulders? Yes, and he wants to, he cannot, because for him it is not a burden, but scuba gear with oxygen? So it turns out that the only way out for him is to become a postmodernist.
In this respect, Dali is akin to Tolkien and Umberto Eco. All three are people of a colossal, alien to their era of elitist scholarship, which in the 20th century turned out to be unnecessary and suspicious for the intelligentsia, and all three found a lively response in popular culture. But Tolkien played this script as a tragedy, Eco plays it as an existentialist drama of the absurd, and Dali played it as a comedy. And, apparently, he enjoyed it.
