In Russia I quickly learned to pick up my feet. Let me explain. Door ways most often have a door sill that is not flush with the floor, so you are prone to tripping over it if you don't watch your step.
In Mongolia, the side walks are not like back home. If you don't watch where you're going, you could do some serious damage to your face! (or your ankle...I almost rolled mine today)
It has been so nice to talk with people who have been quite helpful with directions and such...and who smile! That was a rarity in Russia. I love Russians, don't misunderstand me please, but they do not smile. Dad was right...I smile too much to pose as a Russian. :)
Actually, a number of people in Russia have mistaken me as a Russian. I love it! Natasha, a girl our age that Jaime and I stayed with in Irkutsk, took us to a clothing market, to find a "must have" item for myself. There were Russian, Mongolia, and Chinese vendors selling their products in these crammed booths. This one guy thought Natasha was the foreigner, and I was the Russian. LOL....and then they weren't sure. We had them so confused...it was awesome! Natasha didn't say to much, and let me do the talking. A female vendor nearby said that my Russian was so fluent, I had to be the Russian of the two. Things like this I will miss on the rest of the trip. AND, eavesdropping. I like eavesdropping in English speaking countries (oh c'mon.....like you don't!), but in Russia....it is way more fun! I love having the ability to be "Russian" or "Canadian". I generally speak strictly English when dealing with the Russian public, but once in a while I play the Russian card, and its great! The looks on peoples faces when I bust out in Russian is awesome!
Anyways...this blog was supposed to be about Mongolia, as that's where I am now. Although the city is quite grey and the air quality not so great, I've enjoyed walking the streets of Ulanbaatar, stopping here and there, taking in the sites and people watching. Mongolians are beautiful people. Even though the city is busy, with traffic everywhere, and people bustling around, there is a sense of peace. The kids are so cute! We walked by what I think was a boarding school, and a group of 7 year old boys were playing soccer in their navy blue uniforms. Cute!
There are sounds here that stand out. For one, the whistle. At the middle of many intersections, stands a man in a white uniform, who directs traffic with his whistle and arm movements. Amazing to watch. So, as we walk down the streets, you hear a lot of that, plus horns honking (kind of like New York....but an Asian version). The buses are jammed full with the locals (like in Mexico), inching their way down the road. During rush hour, its faster to walk than to take a taxi. Hence why we walked the 45 min to the Chinese embassy this morning, rather than take a taxi. By the way, for those of you praying for my china visa, the visa application was accepted today, and I should have my passport back Friday, with the China Visa inside. So...keep praying! We're so close!
It is such a blessing to be somewhere where I'm not forced to pay ridiculous amounts of money, just so that I can eat something somewhat decent! Moscow was so expensive...I really did not anticipate that. Here in Ulanbaatar however, it is MUCH cheaper. Jaime and I paid 3500 Togrogs for our lunch yesterday...our first Mongolian meal. That's about $3 USD....for BOTH of us! Seriously cheap. This is more like it.
After traveling for three weeks, eating the way the locals eat, we were both wanting to treat ourselves to a Western meal. I just wanted veggies and protein......I so miss eating spinach!! So, we found a nice restaurant to go to last night, "California", where they served amazing food. The selection was overwhelming! But in a very good way :) So, after humming and hawing about what to get, we decided to each order a salad with MEAT, and an appy to share (tender beef tenderloin strips, served on top of a grilled veggie wrap, with BBQ sauce on the side). Wow...was the food ever amazing! Seriously....hands down better than many restaurants back home. We barely talked during that meal.....too busy savouring the food/shoveling it into our mouths. lol....I make it sound like we've been deprived of food. We haven't. We've been so blessed to stay with really lovely people, who have fed us well. It was just nice to have something familiar, and to give our bodies nutrients that we've been lacking a bit. I am definitely getting my carbs...no doubt about that.
Sorry that a lot of this blog has been about food. Its a big part of traveling for me (well, actually daily life as well!)....its one of the aspects of this trip I was looking forward to. And I haven't been disappointed at all......I have really enjoyed trying new things and tasting things that my grandma and mom make back home, comparing tastes. Its been really fun :)
I think the plan for tonight is to go to an authentic Mongolian BBQ restaurant......can't wait!
Ok, I'm done. There's much more to say, but I'm fading here. Need to get out of this stuffy, overly-warm internet cafe, and back into the cool rain.
If you feel like emailing me, I'm not opposed whatsoever ;)
And do read Jaime's blog, she's an amazing writer and absolutely hilarious! When I don't know how to put something into words (which is often), I turn to Jaime... jaimelauren.blogspot.com
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