The road to Selenge

Please excuse the change of tenses. I'm not too crash hot at it at the best of times - and I wrote this as things happens/at night time/spare time. It's not the easiest to read but you'll get the picture.

Friday 16th June 2011

5:30am wake up. I’d run out of milk so I had steak, egg and leftover noodles.

It took a good 1.5hours to get out of the city as there’s no direct road and it rained last night so there were ‘puddles’ (up to the top of the tyres) everywhere and some that we couldn’t get through.

Because the sun goes down so late (10:30pm), I’m finding it really hard to sleep. I don’t fall asleep until maybe 1am. Needless to say I’m a little sleepy as I still wake up just as early.

Anyway, we finally got out of the city and stopped at an ovoo to bless our journey. There’s nothing quite like a shot of vodka at 8am.

We were blessed! With a fully paved road! It still wasn’t smooth enough to drink a takeaway coffee (no, I did not have a takeaway coffee), but after my last delusion filled journey that lasted days and days, this one was a breeze!

Arriving at the aimag centre of Selenge (Sant Soum), the birds were chirping, trees blowing their fluff in the breeze and kids meandering around. We were to resolve a complaint. I’m not sure if I act as a ‘mediator’ by minimizing the risk of blow-outs (because I’m a girl and because I’m foreign), or if I’m genuinely a tagger-along. Probably a bit of both.

Either way, it’s boring as I don’t speak Mongolian. I know when they’re talking about money as I understand numbers and occasionally I catch a:

Bus: and

Tend: that

Ner: name

Meanke: thousand

Tim: yes

Bish bish: no

The talking went for an hour and a bit. Chatting about the problem, the politics involved (literally, one party member against a different party member) – and how to solve it.

It’s amazing how different food becomes. Now it’s just a fuel. I don’t want lollies or chocolate – I’m starving! I’m not craving anything in particular as I know I don’t have access to it. I just need food. On the contrary, I’m not hungry enough to eat mutton. It’s weird because usually when I’m hungry I crave something in particular. Right now, I’m just hungry.

Lunch was more mutton but I managed to get out of mutton rib/fat soup. I only eat vegetable soup at the best of times – and rarely at that (drinking the byproduct of slow cooked bones freaks me out). Therefore rib, fat and mutton soup makes me want to puke. No one ever wants to sit next to me either. There’s always a spare seat either side of me. I don’t take it personally.

Our driver works for Anglo Coal’s exploration (or, did – before they gave up apparently) so was keen to talk to me. Unfortunately my general knowledge is rather finite, but my common sense isn’t too bad. I was asked: how deep is the deepest underground mine; how many kilometers around the world; what’s the deepest open pit? Man, where’s Simon when you need him? I knew the circumference of Earth. The others I made up (educated guess).

Apparently a 200m deep well has been dug in Sant Soum to function as a geothermal well. It took a while to piece it together, but no – it’s not 100degrees C at 200m depth, it’s 22degrees C at 200m depth which makes it the perfect temperature for cycling water through a house as a heater. What a fantastic idea!

Post lunch we jumped in the car and drove to see a public bathhouse and school, funded by our project (two showers for the entire soum). Then on to see the three contentious wells. Funding was given but was the leader of the communist party scabbing the money without drilling the wells, or was the Democratic leader being a dibber dobber? Fate: unknown but the wells were certainly dry.

I’ve been trying to think of an appropriate phrase to describe how spectacular the scenery was. It all involved swear words beyond what should be written. Crikey Moses, wholey shitballs it was SPECTACULAR. I know I use that a lot but today was by far the most beautiful part of Mongolia I have seen thus far.

Wells aside, we stopped in to check out some shearing. Small yards. Sheep caught, feet tied and then they’re shorn. With blunt scissors. The fleece comes off whole – resembles dags more than a fleece. I was freaking fascinating and the backdrop was jaw dropping.

Shearing in the yards by their house

It was amazing. Another one of those ‘I’ll remember THIS forEVER’. Unfortunately we’d been racing all day so I was busy filming and taking photos as I knew my window of opportunity was short.

Breathtaking.

We moved on to a temple. Built for Mongolia’s Dalai Lama of the time. The temple itself is pretty speccy but the backdrop was what did it for me.

Temple and the view

 Say what?! I’m in MONGOLIA bitchez!!!!!

More photos. Departed, stopped at a river so the driver could have a bath (literally). I washed my face and then remembered about bugs in the water and now I’m worried I’ll have worms crawling out my eyeballs or something.

MORE vodka on the way back to celebrate the journey/having solved problems (I managed to get out of it). 

We arrived in Erdenet at 8:30pm and I am STUFFED! Dinner was delicious chicken (Mongolian standard) with a piece of plastic cheese melted on top. I piked on drinking with the crew (I’d had enough of listening to Mongolian conversations and I’m SO tired).

Shower time. Oh – wait. No water. Go check another room. 30mins later, no hot water. Back to my room. Strip off to have a wet washer bath. Still naked and lady knocking incessantly at my door. She wanted me to see another room. Back to my room. Sit on loo. Another knock at the door. Pants up pre-pee (SO angry), plumber’s here to fix water. I still need to pee. Plumber fixes water AND I get an adapter to charge my phone.

10:30pm and I’m in bed. I’m pooped! Will edit photos on camera; rehash some rudimentary Mongolian and go to sleep!

May I reiterate: today was A.M.A.Z.I.N.G. I complain about the Mong but I don’t regret it and I’m SO grateful to be here.

I had my breath taken away so many times today, I’m surprised I am still breathing. I heart you Mongolian countryside. xox