On the seasons: Ulaanbaatar in the Anthropocene

Hope I have three blog posts going simultaneously now, and am ill-advisedly starting this fourth one, but this is what I woke up thinking about today, so I am going to start and hopefully finish it, so I can get back to the others. I am back to posting once (maybe twice) a week now, … Continue reading On the seasons: Ulaanbaatar in the Anthropocene →

Ulaanbaatar: What it’s like

One of the first photos I took in Mongolia, driving in from the airport I’ve been wanting to write a general post about Ulaanbaatar for a while now. This is mainly about my impressions, because it’s impossible to write about every aspect of a topic, especially one as complex as this city, in a single … Continue reading Ulaanbaatar: What it’s like →

Slogging through the blah days, in search of bagels

It’s just past mid-February, and the weather forecast for today is 22°F and sunny. Emma is reading Webtoons (her Sunday morning ritual) as I write this, and we are about to take the bus downtown to see How to Train Your Dragon 3, which Emma has been asking me about for a while. I figured … Continue reading Slogging through the blah days, in search of bagels →

Manzushir Monastery and the legacy of religious persecution in Mongolia

Manzushir Monastery The last stop on our Tsagaan Sar trip was close to Ulaanbaatar, so we spent the night at home. Unfortunately, it was a reeaaally cold day, so I decided that this would be more of a reconnaissance trip for a later visit when the weather warms up a bit. I’d also really like … Continue reading Manzushir Monastery and the legacy of religious persecution in Mongolia →

Our Tsagaan Sar. Or, why we never need to eat food again

Sunrise on Tsagaan Sar The next part of our trip was about experiencing Tsagaan Sar, “white moon,” the Mongolian celebration of the lunar new year. It’s a three-day holiday, this year falling on February 5, 6, and 7. The night before Tsagaan Sar is called Bituun, also a celebration. The point of Tsagaan Sar is … Continue reading Our Tsagaan Sar. Or, why we never need to eat food again →

Kharkhorin: A visit to Mongolia’s former capital and its oldest monastery

Modern Karkhorin, with the Erdene Zuu monastery to the right I’m continuing from my last post about Elsen Tasarkhai and our ride on Bactrian camels. On Sunday, February 3, after lunch, we headed for Kharkhorin, for the next part of our trip around central Mongolia. On our way, we stopped off to clamber on some … Continue reading Kharkhorin: A visit to Mongolia’s former capital and its oldest monastery →

A day with camels at Elsen Tasarkhai

As anticipated, not everything went according to plan on our trip around central Mongolia for Tsagaan Sar (lunar new year), but everything went very well, and we had a great time. The first change of plans happened the night before we left, when we found out that the horse racing we were planning to see … Continue reading A day with camels at Elsen Tasarkhai →