09/10/2024
I shall cut the writing in pieces, it meant to be a short story, somehow it developed into a rather long reflection 😅🥰
Part 1
Mongolia is a country of contrasts and this incredible vastness of nothingness, especially when one moves away from the busy agglomeration and traffic. Even though I have been travelling for many years and seen some outstanding sights, this country's enormity of undisturbed land spoke to my heart the loudest. I've never experienced anything like that. Imagine spending hours travelling, seeing the natural beauty of wild horses, herds of flock, national mutton, sheep and goats grazing in the open space whilst hearing the floating wings of the eagles and ravens when out hiking. It's so quiet, that nature has the opportunity to become alive, seen and heard 🏞️⛰️🦅
Traveling here was my dream and a special pre-birthday gift to myself this year. I made this reality and cannot be thankful enough for having the courage to do it alone, without guidance or support beforehand. I always believe in the positive mindset and my gut instinct. There are times when I'm frightened of course, but trust that I'm taken care of by something bigger than myself. I trust and let go of control most of the time. I'm kind but also ruthless if someone tries to use my goodness against me. It's essential because travelling can be extremely unpredictable and changeable, so I ought to be adaptable to whatever scenario life throws at me at the particular moment in time.
Part 2
The test started even before boarding the plane actually. I was left with no luggage, as it got lost. Stranded with no extra clothes at 4 am in the UK's airport, I could pointlessly fight with the driver or just get on and board my plane to Mongolia instead. I wasn't even angry, the scene made me laugh at how ridiculous it all looked. I landed in Mongolia with a rucksack containing documents, books and make-up bag only, other travellers inquired whether I had more suitcases but that's all I was left with for 2 weeks 🤣. On the positive note, I travelled very light. I, therefore, knew the sense of creativity would need to kick in shortly as I was volunteering in the remote parts of the country, when the temperature reached -7 degrees already...
Ulanbaatar was extremely busy and the traffic was insanely long, one would spend hours stacked inside the vehicle even in that matter of kilometers. Sometimes walking was much more beneficial and in fact faster. I met some kind spirited people on my journeys whilst exploring the sights together, singing, talking for hours and simply admiring the views in silence. I sampled some delicious foods exploring, including a variety of Indian, Mongolian, South Korean dishes, thus sweets and drinks.
The capital was nice to watch from far when I hiked outside, climbed the mountain and finally had the overview of how busy yet stunning surrounding nature was. I felt alive and calm then. I also fulfilled the dream of seeing the statute of Chinghis Khan (not Gengis) based on so many documentaries I had watched in the past. The colossal 40 m figure of the empower riding his horse left me speechless and made me look ever so small in comparison. I was buzzing with excitement, still unsure whether I could climb to the top because of the fear of heights.
I'm so thrilled my guide encouraged me to give it a go because the view was priceless and out of the ordinary. The scene was even more powerful because the sun shone throughout, in fact it was so warm and without any tourists for a longer while which is unheard of the area. I was content with a small sense of shaking legs which I managed to control throughout too. Superb experience.
Part 3
Being close to the eagle, made me excited yet very small in comparison. The weight of the 10 kg bird on my right arm felt amazing actually yet I felt sadness and hypocritical towards myself in the name of the picture taking. I later realised the birds didn't have opportunities to spread their wings as wide as they were supposed to, as nature demanded. I felt bitterness and aching in my heart. It was too late.
After a couple of days in Ulanbaatar, I couldn't wait to reach much quieter parts of the country but that required a crazy 13 hour cold bus ride overnight. I was the only non-Mongolian inside the vehicle and unfortunately the bus didn't seem to have a working heating. I looked like a snowman, wearing whatever I had to keep myself warm, squashed in between the seats whilst unable to move my legs whatsoever. When the bus stopped in the middle of nowhere, there were no designated toilet areas. So you could only imagine when one had to go in the open space surrounded by both local men and women. My bladder screamed at me and no matter how much I tried to postpone the idea altogether, I needed to go 🤣😅
To avoid puking because of the overwhelming smell, I would pinch my nose or hold the breath together to get through that rather disgusting ordeal. It's worrying that a bus stop site turned into a rather unbearable damp site. You are losing a shame somehow when facing a harsh and rather regular occurrence in the countryside. Oh, the journey was rough, painful and cold but when I finally saw the morning light at 6 am the next day, my face dropped. The whole area was completely covered in snow. There were kilometres of nothingness. I was in so much awe. At that point the bus got stuck and took a while before we could move onto the single road to the final destination but I was getting excited.
Part 4
Tired but happy, I was curious to learn about Moron in the northern part of the country (the name will always make me laugh so much) and my volunteering work for the next week or so. The place was very modest but a family of 6 seemed very welcoming and sweet. The owner spoke excellent English which made my life so much easier. I was told I would teach English to the local children in one of his GER's (Mongolian Yurt), twice a day for up to 5 hours. This was a definitely a challenging task because children need a constant attention and their concentration span was equal to a 'gold fish' one oftentimes 😅 Determined, I prepared a variety of games to keep everyone busy.
The children were so cute and ever so polite. Therefore, their level of understanding was pretty impressive. We giggled a lot, their innocence, kindness and cheekiness melt my heart, all the time. Especially, when we meant to play some games they didn't particularly agree with saying with their cute Mongolian accent 'teacher please no'. Even though, I would end the day tired, a part of me felt so fulfilled, proud and satisfied ❤️ I loved every moment of teaching and their ways to introduce my way to the Mongolian language too. I failed all the time, yet we laughed nevertheless at my 'throat sounding like' pronunciation 😆 So much joy because of it!
I thought this was so generous of the owner, for children from the town to come to his home to learn the language for FREE. What a kind gesture, this made my teaching even more worthwhile.
Part 5
When away from teaching, I was helping with washing dishes and general cleaning duties around the property. What's interesting is how often we take simple actions for granted, such as washing plates in this instance. There was no running water or a sink as such but 2 simple bowls designated for dirty dishes to be scrapped with a sponge with a small amount of soap and then rinsed off in the cold water for all the dishes at the end. The whole process took a long time, to boil the water first, to carry the cold one from the outside with the help of the hose when the temperature was already under 0 degrees. One has to keep in mind that the cold water made the pipes freeze so even a simple task like washing dishes was almost impossible at times.
We tend to forget how easy our lives are. We certainly take our lives for granted. Experience as this one always reminds me of how important it is to be humble and appreciative because people have very hard lives and are very appreciative nevertheless. In the West we barely do yet almost many of us are finding faults, difficulties in everything we or others do. This is proof that's not the case.
Or taking a shower, it was like an afternoon job to wait for the water to warm up to then dealing with a very low pressure in the pipes. Oftentimes I would end up squatting in order to wash my body or my hair, with the water dropping one drop by one. It was slow, frustrating process, especially with boiling hot water changeable to cold in a matter of seconds. When I was clean, I felt like a millionaire. Truly.
The toilet remained as a doubled hole inside the wooden shack. That's it. Nothing fancy I will tell you that. It was hard and gross at times but that was the reality of everyday living. Even brushing teeth happened outdoors in the cold without running water most of the time unless I used a bottled one as the local water was unsafe to drink.
Part 6
In the evenings I took care of the dogs, my beloved M. and P. Golden Retrievers taken for walks outside of the town. Their eagerness and love always made me so happy but BOY it was a task to handle both on a leash. Way too powerful! It was a common occurrence to see remaining roofs, skulls, and still decomposing parts of the sheep, mutton and who knows what, either in the fields or streets! Yep!
The sleeping accommodation was very simple with 5 beds and the fire place located in the middle. When the fire was lit up, the place turned into a soothing paradise to fall asleep. However, the crispy mornings made the waking up activities rather tough. In a matter of days, I toughened up a little bit. Unfortunately, present volunteers were carrying on with their further exploration and left the site, anyhow I made some friends with the guests in the meantime but also with the family. I cannot be grateful enough for being a part of their lives.
We had 2 big Mongolian parties, the singing continued till 3 am. I'm amazed about the Mongolian unity, it's so strong that it made me tearful at times. The friendship, the caring attitude, genuine connection with others is WOW! We laughed so much, their knowledge of all the traditional songs in Mongolian is impressive. Everyone knows it! No matter if you are a woman or man, everyone gets involved, stand on their feet and I must admit their voices are rather mesmerising, deep and touch you on a deep level. Even I wouldn't understand the lyrics, the power of their singing was outstanding, made my hairs stand and my soul roar! I sang too, connected with their voices and became part of this special moment.
Part 7
Another even more mesmerising party happened, when one of the owner's friends had his party at his home. Over 20 close friends arrived, killed the sheep for that occasion and gathered all vegetables inside this humongous pot with the meat whilst adding stones to it to let it simmer. Once the cooking was over, one of the men began transferring the cooked meat and vegetables onto a rather humongous plate. Not omitting the stones of course. These are believed to help with osteoporosis, everyone had a turn and held the rather burning skin stones in their hands, against their wrist, ears, back of the head and even the backside. I thought this was a joke, but nevertheless was asked to sit one of them. I followed the request 😆
The feast completely satisfied everyone's palate, the alcohol followed and the compulsory singing too. We sang our hearts for hours, I was a part of a very special experience, which I shall cherish forever. The party continued till very early morning hours, I didn't care if I barely slept. That moment was too precious to miss it.
Another very cool event was to watch a fashion show in the town organised by the schools, the pupils were the models and designers of very unique outfits, particular to only 6 tribes around the area only. It was so professional that I couldn't believe my eyes how these were so pretty and mesmerising to watch. I'm taking my hat off to these talented people!
Also sitting next to the mom, who feeds her baby openly and undisturbed made me feel so special because I knew she felt safe in my presence. I still cannot comprehend why we are making the most normal breastfeeding moments so awkward. This is the most natural maternal action, no one should feel ashamed or embarrassed because of it.
Part 8
Unfortunately my holiday brought lots of pains too, whether I had a tooth infection or something more serious I cannot know but the pain was unbearable to the point of seriously considering flying back to Europe. I was in the middle of nowhere, without the local language and the lack of general sanitation around the town seriously worried me. I was scared. Very scared. Without any choice, I saw one dentist in town where two other patients were seated in the same room as me. Trying to use a goggle translator, I asked for help.
Little did I know, straight after I almost fainted and puked at the same time. They were so worried and I had no idea what was happening to me. Half an hour later, I started to feel human again, given antibiotics and begged the life to give me a temporary break. I remained in pain for two weeks, I have no clue how I got through it but I persevered whilst working and travelling. These moments made me very vulnerable and scary too, out of any considerable amount of comfort zone. I made it to say the least.
After volunteering work, I had some time to explore the Kathghal lake area, which was absolutely beautiful. Especially when the sunny weather was in my favour. I always dreamt of seeing wild horses in Mongolia, I can confirm my wish to come true. I even rode one 🥰 The Chinese group and I were out exploring the mountains and the lake for over 5 hours. It took a while to understand the dynamics of my house but once we did, I knew how to navigate the animal and make it go faster too. Of course, I couldn't walk for a couple of days afterwards, but it was a tiny price to pay for what I had witnessed. It was only a temporary duck walk, that's all.
Part 9
Asian people are great with pictures, in fact they were so awesome and proposed to take a professional picture of me to be sent directly to my social media account. Awesome 😎 I was more than satisfied of course, as it's hard to get nice pictures of myself when travelling solo. Even selfies get boring eventually. At night, another lovely Chinese couple taught me how to take the pictures of the stars. We stood for an hour outdoors stargazing, of course my camera isn't even comparable to their equipment, yet I learnt a thing or two of how to shoot great pictures at night. That is with a better mobile they told me 😆😅
In the morning I took the opportunity to walk to a nearby viewpoint allowing me to see the town and the lake itself. As I left the guesthouse, the owner's dog followed me all the way to the top of the mountain and back. We talked for about 3 hours, it wouldn't leave my side. It was definitely my guardian even though I didn't know the dogs name. Such a gorgeous creature, looking more like a wolf, was my beautiful companion. I spotted a hole around the neck area, I learnt later on that a farmer shot the dog thinking it was a wolf wanting to kill his cattle. I'm thrilled he made it. So the dog and I sat next to each other and enjoyed the beautiful view of lake Kuvsgul. Just like that 🏞️🐶🐾
With very little sleep, I was ready to visit a deer stone sight that originated back in the Bronze Age. It is hard for me to comprehend these stones standing in the middle of nowhere without any protection, animals droppings were all over the site. Apparently the scientist claimed these rocks and the materials don't originate from the nearby mountains as if someone stuck them where they remain. Hmm... I guess we shall never comprehend the mystery of this site. I actually cried whilst there, not sure why?
Part 10
I was shocked to learn how much Mongolian know about Poland. I was told that many have seen a famous classic movie about a war called ' Four Tank-Men and a Dog' by Polish communities only. I was surprised to learn that this movie was shown twice a year in the country. Also there were many, many Polish products in the shops, including famous footwear brands. How unexpected!
Initially, I didn't even plan to write about my experiences, yet somehow the hours of travelling on my return flight to the UK happened to be dedicated to it. Mongolia was mind-blowing, even though I had ideas to travel more, I realised how vast the country is and everywhere took hours, days and weeks to even reach the destination I wished to explore. I could easily stay in hotels but volunteering gives me the opportunity to really immerse myself into locals lifestyles and their every day activities. I would never have experienced what I had whilst paying for a comfortable stay hence the choice of simplicity, hard work and rawness instead. This was my holiday, probably I need another relaxing one after this adventure but you know what: I wouldn't change a thing!
Ah, one Mongolian word stayed with me: 'Zayatai' which means destiny.
