Don't Follow My Lead

I hope this is not my last post.

When I was first thinking about this round the world trip, I imagine some of the countries I NEEDED to visit.  A “must see” in my list of countries to visit.  First in that list was Thailand.   It was a beautiful country, different from what I imagined, but still with plenty of charm for me.   It always called me from far away, I always saw it as such a mysterious country growing up that it became a must see country.

Another country (city really) that I wanted to visit is Sydney, Australia.  For some reason, viewing all of those aerial shots of the Opera House in the Sydney bay just called me, as if destiny is calling me there.   I’m not sure when I’ll get there, but you can bet, is on my list of places to be.

Lastly, there was a country, so remote, so desolate, and so vast that it called me.  Is a country that gave birth to one of the most important people in the last thousand years.  A harsh country that only the determined live there.  Where kids learn to ride horses before they can properly walk.  A country that almost conquer the world, yet now is almost an after thought for most. 

So far in my travels when I mentioned going to Mongolia, even other backpackers were taken aback.  Is not high on most people’s list, but for me it was a must see country.  The idea of a nomad culture was able to raise Genghis Khan and be the closest to conquer the world it’s just amazing for me.   I wanted to see what the people from this country are made out of.

I’ve been in Mongolia for 13 days.   I spent a week volunteering in a northern city, in there I herded sheeps and goats.  I saw how vodka was made from fermented cheese.  I scooped and dig goat shit.  I cooked for the people living there.  I used an outhouse for the first time in my life.  I helped milking cows.   I slept in a ger.  I met the character that runs this farm. 

In Mongolia there’s 3 million people living there.   And 1.6 million of those live in the capital city of Ulaan Baatar.  To give some comparison: The size of Mongolia is over 2 times the size of Texas, yet Texas is home to 26 million people. 

This country is home to beautiful landscapes and backgrounds.   Green fields as far as the eye can see.  Once you leave the city, almost no real buildings to talk about. It’s like being transported to another century.  The wild west alive and strong in this country.  Specially with the train running in the horizon.  The stars seem to be a mile closer than anywhere else. 
 
In the farm you learn that the job you are doing is not meaningless, this people are preparing for the winter.  Where temperatures of -40 C (-40 F) is not uncommon.  Winter can last 6 months here by the time the ground is ready to be farm again.  So every day farm day is precious.  So you take your responsibilities very seriously. 

The goats and sheeps are dumb animals.  There’s no other way to describe them.  You have to keep them in a pack to eat, if 40% of the pack is moving in one direction the other 60% will follow, which is nice, but it meant in keeping them away from other goats, because they will cross, and you can’t get your goats back.  You do herd them under the sun and the day is long.  You hope the goats will stay put eating like cows do, but they eat and walk, so you can’t keep still either.   While someone is herding the sheep another person needs to shovel the goats shit.  Which is used for burning once it has been dried out.  It becomes layered like cake.  So you have to use your hands (gloves are highly recommended) and neatly stack it in another area for safekeeping for its later use as fuel.

I didn’t get to milk cows cause the mother and daughter of the farm will do it faster than I can, but I would help in pushing the calves away from the cows.  The calves are kept in a pen overnight.  You wake up a 5am and let one calf out at a time.  The calf will find its mother and the mama cow will get excited and start producing milk.  Once Minjee (the farm lady) decides the cow has enough milk I come in and push the calf away from the cow’s teat and with a rope tied the calf to a nearby tree, so that the mom can keep producing milk.  Minjee does the milking.  You keep letting calves out, one at a time, until Minjee and her daughter have enough milk for the day’s needs.  The milk will be used for drinking, the fermented milk will be used to create vodka or its most famous use at this farm, to create cheese that will be sold all the way into Russia and China.

Depending on the season, you might eat sheep, goat, cow or even horse meat at this farm.  All the meals were very good and very authentic of what Mongolian people eat.  It really is the place where I have felt with the deepest connection to the country’s way of life.

Unfortunately after almost a week at this farm, my back was hurting too much, too much manual labor, and since I have so much more to see, I decided that it was best for me to move on, and leave farm life behind.   This will lead me into yet another adventure, an adventure that will start tomorrow.  

When I came back into the capital to regroup myself and figure out what my next move will be, I met a Spaniard man (Antonio) and his Japanese wife (Yoko).  We started talking, and after realizing that a Tour would be too expensive, Antonio decided to buy a motorcycle and he would go to visit the Gobi desert that way.  He invited me to rent my own motorcycle and join them in this new endeavor.  While planning for this, we met an Uruguayan guy and his Argentinian friend, and they too will be joining.   There will be 6 of us total Antonio’s friend coming from Spain for this trip is the last person.

I’m scared and I’m excited, I’ve never driven a motorcycle so I have a lot to learn on the go.  The closest was a few scooters I have rented in Laos and Malaysia, but this is the next step.   We will be on the road for 12 days.  3 to get there, 4 exploring the Gobi desert and it’s surrounding, and 5 days coming back a different route to see more of the country.  This offers a very unique experience, and many things can go right or wrong.   Let’s hope for the best.  

These moments are why you travel without an itinerary.  I love it, whatever may come.