Have you ever been kicked by a horse?

We were driven to the Mongolian National Park for our day of traditional Mongolian food, horseback riding and exploration.  We first had to stop at a local market for provisions of water, toilet paper, and of course, vodka.  We went in on a bottle with two other people who we would be sharing our Ger with.  We went a little crazy and managed to spend way more money than we actually had however.  I insisted that James put the Kit Kat bar back, along with my Coca-Cola and crackers.  They were after all, just junk food!  The couple we were with spotted us, even after my original rejection of their charity.  It was one of the more embarrassing moments one could have.  “Hey there strangers, do you mind paying for my American indulgence of unnecessary food?”  In the end, it was fine, but I couldn’t help asking James, “Как тебя не стыдно?”  Or “How have you no shame?”

We arrived at the Ger and were told lunch at 2, horses at 4.  That was about all the interaction we originally got from our host family.  After taking some amazing pictures of our scenery, we decided to rest up after the long drive to the wilderness then embark on a hike after lunch.  Our lunch was delicious, although we were served on a little table next to the dogs; it was a dangerous task, eating lunch while simultaneously pushing hungry dogs away from your plate.

 After an afternoon hike, I was pumped and ready to horseback ride!  I have only done it a few times, but I figure it is in my blood, so I was going to make the best of it.  There was one wild black horse in the pack – James got him.  I was a little worried, but I didn’t think much of it until later when we started our journey.  James’ horse liked to stop and just stand still, and after the second time doing so, the horse decided to simple go down and lie down, effectively getting James off of him.  We all thought it was funny until James started chasing after his horse and got a good bucking to the thigh!  That is something you don’t see every day!  Luckily, he was just fine but his horse had gotten loose.  Our Mongolian guy who came with us tried multiple times to lasso the horse but he was unable.  Feeling pretty confident on my horse, I decided to help and managed to stop James’ horse and grab onto his reign.  I was feeling very proud of myself to have been able to catch a wild horse.  Our tour guide switched horses with James so he no longer had to fear the wrath of black beauty.

The rest of the afternoon was unreal. I got my horse to rapidly gallop all around the Mongolian country side.  I pretended I was in the movie Avatar and made Navi war cries as I flew through the air.  My mother would be proud of my riding skills if she had seen me.  All was going well until James’ saddle came loose and he started shifting up and down the horse’s neck!  He had to eject, catching his foot in the stirrup.  Again, luckily, he was just fine.  James is a resilient guy.  I don’t know too many people who would take getting bucked and kicked that calmly. 

All in all, the Mongolian countryside is a beautiful place to visit.  It was unfortunate however that there was so much trash and debris everywhere.  It was shocking to find a National Park with a landfill right in the middle of it.  Hopefully, as Mongolia continues on its way to becoming a more prosperous nation, I imagine it will begin to value and take more pride in its national landmarks.  This prehistoric countryside is definitely worth preserving.

Mongolia just keeps getting better and better

James and I literally had just a few hours to explore Ulaan Baatar before having to go back to the hostel to get ready for an evening out.  We briskly power walked to the main square, took pictures with Mongolian historical figures and kept our valuables extremely close.  Although supposedly violent crime is low here, pick-pocketing is on the rise. 

James and I wandered down a street, taking an occasional picture, when I noticed a huge red flag.  A man started to stare at James and proceeded to point at him with this menacing look of disgust that yelled to me “I’m gonna get you.”  The man was approximately 5’1’’ and if necessary, I probably could have wrestled him to the ground.  Never the less, my fight of flight came into play when he started following us. 

E: “James, that little guy is following us…”

J: “Should we stop and let him pass?”

E: “No… let’s… Take a look in this store!”

We jumped into a local store just as the man managed to approach James.  The man knew he couldn’t follow us into the store, so he just yelled something in Mongolian at James, clapped his hands in a “damn it, so close” sort of fashion and walked away.  I am not sure what he wanted, but I was proud of myself to have noticed a potential threat and thwarted it.  Maybe I am part of the Survivor’s Club.  More a little later on that amazing book that I just finished reading.

After successfully posting previous blog posts that I was unable to upload in communist Beijing, we got ready and went out of a night on the very small town.  I got enough fashion tips by looking around during the day; turns out Mongolian women have a very awesome sense of style!  A delightful departure from Beijing’s frump meets knock off designer clothes.

First we went to a brewery restaurant and ordered a beer.  The place was called MB, the beer was amazing and the people were friendly.  We proceeded to look for a dance club.  We were more weary this time about traveling at night, fearing we would have a run in with xenophobic drunk, so I walked with a switch blade in my hand at all times.  I would ocassionallly flash it in a typical East Lost Angeles fashion – figured it is in my blood, might as well utilize the fear factor. 

The club was bumping Shakira’s “My hips don’t lie” and Will Smith’s “Getting Jiggy with it.”  I broke it down, and might have scared some of the Mongolians there who have only ever seen good dancing on television.  I can’t really tell you if I made friends or enemies that night.  The men seemed to love it, because they all managed to leave their beers and join the circle that promptly emerged.  I danced with one of the girls there and she seemed very happy.  Another girl actually started a dance fight with me!  We were circling and fist throwing and all that jazz you would see in movies like Step Up. Although at some point she decided she couldn’t beat me so she tried to carry me out of the circle.  It was very strange – but in the end, I think we were friends because she was sad to see me run off when James and I had to make our midnight curfew.  Unfortunately, the curfew was a lie and we could have stayed out later.  We had to regain our strength for the journey to the Mongolian National Forest so I was happy I got to bed at a reasonable hour.