Categotry Archives: Mention Monday
Change is Coming
It’s been quite a while since I’ve used my Monday post to just talk about what’s going on in my life. Somehow Mongolia completely consumed my blog. I’ve given over to vacations before. Galapagos got a fair amount of airtime as did Belize, but Mongolia took the cake.
One More Monastery
We stopped off at a monastery on our way back to Ulaanbaatar from the preserve. I never caught the name of it, so I can’t tell you, but of the three we visited, this was my favorite. And not just because it was so pretty inside. This monastery had a much more open attitude toward things like photography, the lifestyles of the monks, and friendliness to foreigners. They made us feel welcome.
Rough Road to Moron
We saw a lot of rough roads in Mongolia. The guide said they were trying to build one that would run all the way from the far eastern edge of the country to the farthest west, but that progress was slow for a variety of reasons including climate. On another occasion he said the roads in Ulaanbaatar were bad partly because of corruption. I understood this intellectually, but it didn’t really connect until I saw this.
Khovsgol Lake
Khovsgol Lake is one of the two largest lakes in Mongolia. It’s the largest by volume, but second largest by area. It’s at about 5,000 feet in elevation, which puts it pretty close to the elevation where I live. It’s close to Siberia. Though it was pretty comfortable when I was there, we talked to some people who had been there the week before, and they thought it was very cold. The main difference is that they had gotten more […]
The Dairy
One of the families we visited in Mongolia ran a dairy. Not that they called themselves that, but that everything they did revolved around cow milk.
A Hike Around the Lake
As long as we were camped along Khovsgol Lake, we thought we’d take a little day hike. Those of us on the tour who were in the mood walked along the shore of the lake until we got to a nice little promontory. Then we cut up along a ridge and came out at a spot with a great view, and the makings of a bonfire.
The Gobi Desert
Before I went to Mongolia, I had a clear image of what I thought the Gobi Desert would be like. I expected dry and dusty. We went in the rainy season.
On the Road Again
Dudu-dooo-do-do-do-doooooo I don’t know why Willy Nelson runs through my mind every time I hit the road. Got my house sitter sitting. Got my tires rotated. Don’t even need a map anymore. How about you? Spending the Holidays with family?
Oasis
We were driving around in a place that tends to look like the above picture when we ran across something that looked like the picture below. Yep. In the middle of the desert we found an oasis. Most of the water we found in the Gobi Desert was pumped up from various aquifers. Some were close enough to the surface that you could scoop it out with a bag on a long stick. Others were deep enough to require a […]
Hail on the Water
Months ago, in Mongolia, we were on our way to visit a family that raised and lived off of reindeer when a storm came up. I was so glad our boat came equipped with a hard top. It began to hail. The hail stones never got to be any larger than the size of a pea, but that’s more than enough if you can’t get away from them.
And We Have a Winner!
Yep. I made my NaNo goals. Not only did I write more than 50,000 words, I also covered my entire outline. In other words, I actually finished the book, ODE to Joy, in November. Every book is a little different, and this proved to be no exception. I wrote the original outline (in a spreadsheet) while traveling in Mongolia. I had certain criteria it had to fit. First, it had to include the Character named Flynn from the book Zackly […]
A Shaman in Ulaanbaatar
We went to see a shaman in Ulaanbaatar. I was surprised when the place turned out to be in the city itself, and the shaman to be female. Yeah, dumb on both counts, but there it is. In the picture above you can see the city in the background behind the ovo. We could see it from the street like a flag. I tried to get a picture from the street, but it came out blurred.
Tire Change
In the Gobi Desert we had a flat tire. Considering the condition of the roads, it’s amazing we didn’t have a break down of one sort or another much sooner. I can only think that the constant care and attention given to the vehicles by the drivers had something to do with it.
Progress Report
I’m writing a fiction book set in Mongolia for my National Novel Writing Month. (Yeah, like you didn’t know that already.) I’m using a lot of the things I experienced there as part of the book. For instance, there is a scene set at the Chengus Kahn Memorial statue. There’s another that features Turtle Rock, and a couple set in UlaanBaatar. So far. I expect to have several there before I’m done. Does the airport there count as separate? The […]
November 4th
We interrupt our regularly scheduled coverage of last Summer’s vacation to discuss a couple of things going on right now. First, today is November 4th. That’s peace day in the blogosphere. In honor, here’s my image: Blog blast for Peace Click the picture to read more about Bloggers for Peace. Second, it’s November. For me, that means National Novel Writing Month, affectionately referred to as NaNo. I am, of course, writing a book. I should have at least 50,000 words […]
