Sarah's Mongolia Adventure

[Free To Canoe]

Sarah,

Thanks for sharing! What a great adventure.

Free to Canoe

 

[Meadbh]

Wonderful travelogue Sarah, thank you! Possible ER pursuit?

One of my colleagues was in Mongolia concurrently with you, climbing. She fell into three crevasses, and came home with snow blindness.

People seem to be at their most friendly in less travelled places! I admit I would not be up for that trip. I like my creature comforts.

 

[lazygood4nothinbum]

don't know how i missed this sarah. i must not have been in the travel section. what a great trip. thanx for sharing. good interview too. was curious to hear hansen trip up slightly in questioning you. seems you impressed even npr. nice job.

 

[Sarah in SC]

Awww, thanks!
I was mighty nervous talking to her, Lazy. But since we'd been up drinking like locals the night before (do not ever buy a $5 bottle of vodka, even if it has Chinnghis Khan's picture on it), I tried very hard to be especially coherent!

Wow Mead, I'm glad we weren't trying anything so extreme--snow blindness sounds terrible. Has she recovered?

 

[NW-Bound]

They are way tough hombres! I read somewhere that the Mongol army would run out of provisions, so they would keep going and just cut their horses necks open, drink some of the blood, and soldier on.

Can you imagine that Chingghis' army made it all the way to Vienna? And if it hadn't been for the death of the existing Khan that caused them all to turn around and go back home, I suspect they would have sacked all of Europe, and not just Russia, the Middle East, and the rest of Asia in the 15th century!

It was the 13th century. Tough as the Mongol were, they were not invincible. It took me some time to rediscover the following excerpt quoted below, referring to Kublai Khan, the grandson of Chingghis Khan, from a book I read a while ago.

"During the 13th century, the Mongol emperor Kublai Khan invaded Vietnam three times, pushing south to control the spice routes of the Indonesian archipelago. The Vietnamese, commanded by the illustrious Tran Hung Dao, repulsed each offensive. In the last great battle, which took place in the Red River valley in 1287, the Vietnamese routed 300,000 Mongol troops." Stanley Karnow. Vietnam - A History, 1991, p.113

 

[shiny]

I finally got a chance to log in and look at the photos - awesome Sarah!

A friend of ours here in Japan keeps talking about how great he thinks Mongolia is - he even made a documentary while he was there. I'll have to keep it in mind for a future trip while we are here in Asia.

 

[Eagle43]

Thanks for the great report and great pics. You're adventuresome to say the least.

 

[Meadbh]

Wow Mead, I'm glad we weren't trying anything so extreme--snow blindness sounds terrible. Has she recovered?

She's getting better, thank you, and planning a parachute jump for charity

 

[WanderALot]

Sarah, incredible trip! Thank you so much for sharing! I'll admit, Mongolia not the next country of my list, but I'd definitely like to go sometime.

Call me an NPR nerd, but I've very impressed with the interview. What's next? A job with Globe Trekker?

 

[Sarah in SC]

Thanks so much, Wander! I loved doing the interview, though I was mighty nervous and our connection was terrible!

With all the press (thanks to the Olympics) about visiting China and the incredible cultural treasures on offer, it occurs to me that I don't really want to go there, but I loved Mongolia. I think this is due to the sparse population of Mongolia (the least populous country on earth). There is so much open land that people are not crowded into dense urban areas. They also seem to appreciate their short warm season very much--since much of the winter is spent indoors.

Even in the one big city of UB, the outdoor parks were busy, active places, with lots of families getting exercise and enjoying themselves. I saw truly ancient people climbing the billion stairs up to the old Russian Friendship monument that has a great view of the city and surrounding mountains. The old folks struggled, but they still climbed the stairs, assisted by several generations of family, from the looks of it. Strong family connections and wonderfully independent kids everywhere you looked.

 

[Enuf]

Sarah, thanks for sharing your trip. Simply awesome.