Well, I am 25 now! The birthday went well, I think! My office shared a bottle of Jonnie Walker Whiskey (which was nice, because usually in Mongolia celebrations include vodka!) and Peter met us at the local nightclub, Queen. We had lots of fun, dancing and laughing.
The next morning, I think I was a little exhausted still, and my office offered to send me on a trip to go to Bulgan and Erdenet (a neighboring aimag and city-aimag) for cooperative development training meetings. Come to find out later-- the trip was already started, and the car was on it's way from UB (the capital city) to pick me up in less than an hour! Also confusing the matter was the length of the trip. I was told it could be anywhere from 1-3 days! Packing NIGHTMARE! So I run home, pack enough underwear to carry me through a week and the car takes me to the Darkhan city crossroads where the UB car is waiting to pick me up.
Of course, the group that invited me has a full car, and there is no seat for me in their already packed car that is waiting at the crossroads. They ask me to go on this trip, and then there is no seat!! So we cram in the CHF suv. Halfway to Erdenet, the driver realizes that there is a seat in the trunk he can pull up, so we pull over, rearrange, and we're on our way again, much more comfortably. We stop for lunch in Erdenet, and then we continue on to Bulgan, where we meet the local governor, and get settled in.
We end up staying in the nicest hotel in Bulgan. Which means when you are that removed from the city, that it's part of someone's house with three bedrooms. Of course, they have no heat yet in Bulgan, and it's beginning to snow. So luckily I packed a scarf hat and gloves-- put them on and hunkered down for the night. I have never been so cold in my life!! Lesson learned. I am bringing long underwear and wool EVERY trip from now on. I just assumed heat was turned on across the country!
The next day we go to this cooperatives meeting, where there was very little I understood-- I'm still learning so much about the way the Mongolian government develops and supports cooperatives, and how my agency assists in the process. Afterwards, we get in a russian jeep-- and someone says, "we're going to Erdenet" -- Do we go to Erdenet? Nope! We go to a soum, a small village, in the opposite direction off a dirt road 35 km to visit a cooperative. When we get there, they offer us a bucket of airag each (fermented mare's milk, um yeah-- we can talk about that later) and then eat buuz (mutton dumplings). This isn't the crazy part. After we're done eating, we end up having to pay money airag and buuz I didn't want to eat in the first place!!
And THEN we're on the way to Erdenet finally-- where I find I have no hotel room, and end up staying with Salomon, another volunteer that lives there. After that debacle in Bulgan, I was just happy to sleep in a room that had heat!
The next day, the counterparts from UB office that were on the trip said that maybe I should take a BUS back because they were too crowded in the car on the way here. I'd like to point out this is probably going to be even MORE crowded on the way home, especially since they bought 40 Liters of airag to take back to UB! I was a little surprised, but after some breaking down of communication barriers, we finally agreed I would ride in the SUV, even if it meant I carried the airag on my lap. :)
I get home later that week after continuing my trip to UB for a PC meeting, and find Peter had only eaten SANDWICHES while I was gone! I kid you not. Only sandwiches with salami we found in the market, tomatoes, and onions. We usually cook together, but maybe the idea of eating sandwiches for a week appealed to him.
Lessons I learned: Pack warm, watch out for airag, and make sure Peter has enough bread for his sandwiches before you leave!
Sunday, September 30, 2007
Friday, September 28, 2007
Expectations: Mongolia
When we first found out that we were going to be going to Mongolia, Cady and I were excited. We opened our Welcome Packet in the lobby of the International Peace Corps Headquarters in Washington, DC. It helped, of course, they we lived in the city. We gave each other a high five and then fervently read the enclosed information, sparse as it was, about our host country and our jobs. We were to leave in a month and a half. Needless to say, not much time.
For the next 40 or so days I read about Mongolia. I read what I could about the people, the culture, the landscape, the history, the language. I practiced, I realize now, more so than I would need to have, the Mongolian language.
I was almost always never nervous, only excited. I’d done the nervous, apprehensive thing 5 years prior. It was a different time and I was a different person. It didn’t work out then, but this time, this time it was going to work out.
What I discovered was that Mongolia, of all places that I could be sent, was, for all intents and purposed, a “perfect” (note the quotes) location for me. It is much like Colorado in that it is at a higher elevation. Therefore, the skies are almost always blue and sunny. The air is thinner. The landscape is covered with hills and mountains. Also, Mongolia is infamous for its cold winters. Unlike Thailand and Cambodia (other potential Eastern Asian Peace Corps locations), Mongolia would not have the heat and humidity, the bugs. And after growing up in Wisconsin, the cold is no big deal.
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Mongolia
The national religion in Mongolia is Buddhism, a religion which I already interested in learning more about. Beyond that, though, and more interestingly, most Mongolians, I read, believe that nature is as true a religion, as true a spiritual being as any that exists. How perfect. For as I believe, I am no closer to God than I am when I am at the summit of a mountain.
The people of Mongolia, I read, are welcoming, respectful, peaceful and genuinely interested in cultures beyond their own. Because Mongolians are so, they also do not pose a likely disruptive political instability for which PCVs would have to evacuate. Who wouldn’t like this?
Mongolia, as I read, has a formal culture. People like to look their best. They may not have as many outfit options as Americans, but when the occasion calls for it their personal presentation is second to none. I can relate. I generally prefer to go to work in a dress shirt. I like to throw on the ole suit and dress to impress.
The best thing about Mongolia, I knew, was my attitude about it. I was going to have no real expectations. I wasn’t going to decide how things were going to be. I wasn’t even going to guess. I was just going to take things as they came. My excitement alone was enough to keep me going. Well, that and the fact that we only had a month and a half until our entire lives were going to completely change.
I expected only that this experience would make me a better, smarter, more capable person. To be so I would be challenged in ways I could not think of at the time. I would meet new people, see new places and learn new things.
One of my closest friends once told me something that I will never forget. In fact, it has become one of the philosophies by which I live my life. I had only recently arrived in Colorado and would soon begin my graduate work. We were driving to Rocky Mountain National Park. As we wound our way up higher and higher we talked about what we thought was most important in life. On one point we were in complete agreement. Justin said to me: “Just think of all those things that you are most proud of in your life. I’d bet that they were things that you took a chance on, things that you had to take a risk for, things that weren’t easy, things that might have been scary, things that you knew weren’t going to be easy and things that took a lot of work to get through. The things that we are most proud of in our lives are the things that challenged us the most.”
For the next 40 or so days I read about Mongolia. I read what I could about the people, the culture, the landscape, the history, the language. I practiced, I realize now, more so than I would need to have, the Mongolian language.
I was almost always never nervous, only excited. I’d done the nervous, apprehensive thing 5 years prior. It was a different time and I was a different person. It didn’t work out then, but this time, this time it was going to work out.
What I discovered was that Mongolia, of all places that I could be sent, was, for all intents and purposed, a “perfect” (note the quotes) location for me. It is much like Colorado in that it is at a higher elevation. Therefore, the skies are almost always blue and sunny. The air is thinner. The landscape is covered with hills and mountains. Also, Mongolia is infamous for its cold winters. Unlike Thailand and Cambodia (other potential Eastern Asian Peace Corps locations), Mongolia would not have the heat and humidity, the bugs. And after growing up in Wisconsin, the cold is no big deal.
.gif)
Mongolia
The national religion in Mongolia is Buddhism, a religion which I already interested in learning more about. Beyond that, though, and more interestingly, most Mongolians, I read, believe that nature is as true a religion, as true a spiritual being as any that exists. How perfect. For as I believe, I am no closer to God than I am when I am at the summit of a mountain.
The people of Mongolia, I read, are welcoming, respectful, peaceful and genuinely interested in cultures beyond their own. Because Mongolians are so, they also do not pose a likely disruptive political instability for which PCVs would have to evacuate. Who wouldn’t like this?
Mongolia, as I read, has a formal culture. People like to look their best. They may not have as many outfit options as Americans, but when the occasion calls for it their personal presentation is second to none. I can relate. I generally prefer to go to work in a dress shirt. I like to throw on the ole suit and dress to impress.
The best thing about Mongolia, I knew, was my attitude about it. I was going to have no real expectations. I wasn’t going to decide how things were going to be. I wasn’t even going to guess. I was just going to take things as they came. My excitement alone was enough to keep me going. Well, that and the fact that we only had a month and a half until our entire lives were going to completely change.
I expected only that this experience would make me a better, smarter, more capable person. To be so I would be challenged in ways I could not think of at the time. I would meet new people, see new places and learn new things.
One of my closest friends once told me something that I will never forget. In fact, it has become one of the philosophies by which I live my life. I had only recently arrived in Colorado and would soon begin my graduate work. We were driving to Rocky Mountain National Park. As we wound our way up higher and higher we talked about what we thought was most important in life. On one point we were in complete agreement. Justin said to me: “Just think of all those things that you are most proud of in your life. I’d bet that they were things that you took a chance on, things that you had to take a risk for, things that weren’t easy, things that might have been scary, things that you knew weren’t going to be easy and things that took a lot of work to get through. The things that we are most proud of in our lives are the things that challenged us the most.”
Thursday, September 20, 2007
Writer’s Block
In a course I am teaching, Spoken English, for my 3rd course students (a.k.a. Juniors), I am using the American movie Stranger Than Fiction to teach all sorts of things. I am using it for speaking practice, for reading, writing and listening practice. I am using it to teach critical thinking skills, something greatly lacking in my students. It has been a great teaching tool and it’s great entertainment. Will Farrell is great and Dustin Hoffman is brilliant. Anyway, if you haven’t already seen this film, you should.
One of the characters, Karen Eiffel, is an author struggling to finish a book she has been working on for the last 10 years because she suffers from writer’s block. But this is beside the point, too much pretext. Like Karen, I too have suffered from writer’s block.
Since arriving in Darkhan, I have found it extremely difficult to make time for myself to think, to write. I was good about this at my training site, Sukhbaatar Bagh 5. Needless to say, the differences between training and site have been vast. Here in Darkhan I have been mentally swamped. I have many times wanted to just sit down and write, a practice I have always found comforting, freeing and even therapeutic. My university life, the new scenery, the transition to yet another culturally significant location has, until now, created quite a sizable mental block. Just trying to live here has been so much work. It has been exhausting.
There are simply too many things getting in the way. How could I stop to write, to catch up on the recent events when I am still trying to catch up on life itself? I told myself many times before I came that I would be good about journaling. That worked for a little while. What changed was my reality. Training was fun. In many ways it was like camp or a vacation. The stressors, though real, didn’t feel a real kind of real. Now things are real. What I am doing now is why I came here. The work I am doing now is the work I am most passionate about in this world – university life. Sure, it’s different than it is in the states. It’s what I was expecting completely and yet not at all. It still is, though, a university. Whether in America or Mongolia, I see a career, a life in this world very clearly. I am fascinated, I am challenged, I am confused, I am confident, I am lost, I am happy, I am overwhelmed, I am completely invested.
Like Karen, but for different reasons, of course, I am freed from the trap that is writer’s block. I have been here long enough to get lost in my thoughts for too long but also long enough to know when I need to just stop, drop and write.
One of the characters, Karen Eiffel, is an author struggling to finish a book she has been working on for the last 10 years because she suffers from writer’s block. But this is beside the point, too much pretext. Like Karen, I too have suffered from writer’s block.
Since arriving in Darkhan, I have found it extremely difficult to make time for myself to think, to write. I was good about this at my training site, Sukhbaatar Bagh 5. Needless to say, the differences between training and site have been vast. Here in Darkhan I have been mentally swamped. I have many times wanted to just sit down and write, a practice I have always found comforting, freeing and even therapeutic. My university life, the new scenery, the transition to yet another culturally significant location has, until now, created quite a sizable mental block. Just trying to live here has been so much work. It has been exhausting.
There are simply too many things getting in the way. How could I stop to write, to catch up on the recent events when I am still trying to catch up on life itself? I told myself many times before I came that I would be good about journaling. That worked for a little while. What changed was my reality. Training was fun. In many ways it was like camp or a vacation. The stressors, though real, didn’t feel a real kind of real. Now things are real. What I am doing now is why I came here. The work I am doing now is the work I am most passionate about in this world – university life. Sure, it’s different than it is in the states. It’s what I was expecting completely and yet not at all. It still is, though, a university. Whether in America or Mongolia, I see a career, a life in this world very clearly. I am fascinated, I am challenged, I am confused, I am confident, I am lost, I am happy, I am overwhelmed, I am completely invested.
Like Karen, but for different reasons, of course, I am freed from the trap that is writer’s block. I have been here long enough to get lost in my thoughts for too long but also long enough to know when I need to just stop, drop and write.
Wednesday, September 19, 2007
Training: Sukhbaatar Bagh 5
This past summer was an amazing one. It was like a cross between summer camp and Spanish class, throw in a little bit of AmeriCorps and a lotta bit of something I have never experienced before. It was radically different from how life is now. It was perfect.
What follows is the most authentic voice from those days, some journal excerpts:
6 June 2007, 7:15 a.m., Wednesday (my very first entry)
I do not know how often I will make entries to this journal, perhaps only when it feels right will I do so. This morning marks such a time, the first time. Much has happened, too much to fully recount. In brief, however, we’ve thus far been on a constant move. From Denver to Atlanta to Seoul to Ulaanbaatar to a ger camp (“ger”) to where we are now, Darkhan. To say that I am tired of hauling luggage around is somewhat of an understatement. Our accommodations, with each new location, have grown less comfortable (though none bad – far from it actually) – the Atlanta Hilton = American comfort at its finest and the Darkhan Hotel = Mongolian comfort. There is quite a difference.
Mongolia. This is such a beautiful country. It is also a country very much in need. The current PCVs see this place through an already time-colored lens. They see Mongolia, its people, its good and its bad for what it is – Mongolia. The ger camp, as pictures show, had all the comforts of the good life. We arrived there late in the night, a night as dark as dark can be. The stars were stunning and the excitement from all of us, my class of 48, readily apparent. We are finally here. We’ve seen these people we’ve waited so long to meet.
A morning hike. Deodorant. No enough sleep. Hite beer. Water. Blue sky. Mountains. Poverty. Change. Formal Clothing. Ambassador Minton. Sunlight at 4:30. Heat. Sweat. Sain bain uu. Mutton. Uncertainty. Relaxation. Hope. Inspiration. Questions. Fewer real answers. Planes. Buses. Walking. Exploration. Beginning. Sadness. Happiness. One day at a time.
10 June 2007, 6:20 p.m., Sunday
Today has been one of those momentous days – today I moved in with my host family.
The day began like several before it. I woke up in my single bed across the room from Cady. I took a shower and got ready. After breakfast we all packed our things, loaded them into Meekers (mini buses) and headed North to Sukhbaatar (10 mi. from the Russian border). Again, the sites were breath-taking. The mountains were beautiful in the morning rain and mist. Including our driver, the 8 of us (Julie, James, Cassandra, Allie, Chris and I) passed gers, horses (wild and otherwise), sheep, goats. What a magnificent morning drive.
When we arrived in Sukhbaatar Bagh 5, our host families were awaiting us. At the school where we will attend daily language, culture and job technical classes, in a small classroom, we aw for the first time the family members with whom we are to live for the summer. A sign above our heads read, “welcome to our school” in English. Now joined with the other half of our group, we all sat along a bench looking excitedly at a group of parents, siblings and grandparents.
First, one by one, we stood and took, from a young girl, a sip of milk tea (tsai) in a traditional metallic cup. We each sat after we sipped. When done, one of our language teachers called our names one by one to stand and meet our “family.” Now, with our families, we went back outside, unloaded the meekers, gathered our own things, said goodbye to one another for now and droves off to our “homes.”
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Peter and his host mom
12 June 2007, 10:12 p.m., Tuesday
I’ve been told not to climb the highest peak in Sukhbaatar. Jacob and I will make our assent Saturday! Supposedly there are bears and wolves. How this is possible from looking out at it is beyond me. On the other side is Russia. I’ve also been instructed not to take photos of Russia as there may be soldiers there. Now that I believe. Bears and wolves? Not so much. Saturday!
14 June 2007, 9:45 p.m., Thursday
CADY STOPPED BY LAST NIGHT!!!
15 June 2007, 8:01 p.m., Friday
I think I am really fortunate to have gotten the group that I have here in SB5. Today after class a bunch of us (Dwan, Jacob, James, Rachel, Philip, Cassandra and Allie) went to a del guur (store) and got some liquor and beer and sat out on some stone slabs in a field behind a haasha (fence/family property) and talked. It was great to hang out. We certainly didn’t have much to drink and not everyone drank, but it was cool to hang out and celebrate the completion of our first week at our training site. …
3 July 2007, 6:42 p.m., Tuesday
Well, here we are, going back to Darkhan again. That hotel used to seem run down and a bit disgusting. Now all I think about is SHOWER, SLEEPING WITHOUT FLIES (p.s. just killed 2 in one swat!!), NO FAMILY RULES. Ahh, the little things.
Things to legitimately piss and moan about just because: 1) the holes in the screen in my window letting in countless dive-bombing flies (particularly irksome during the wee morning hours. 2) the inability to power (or charge) my beard trimmer and hair clippers. 3) Forgetting the rechargeable batteries and re-charger in the winter baggage.
30 July 2007, 1:50 p.m., Monday
The heat has been oppressive and debilitating. It’s been two weeks of this. There just hasn’t been much to say. The heat and humidity cloud all else. I’m told this is a hotter than usual summer. Lucky us.
29 August 2007, 10:16 a.m., Wednesday
This is truly the end of the magical mystery training tour. Time with friends is now limited. For that reason the tours [of UB] are more fun than might ordinarily be. In a matter of days we will part ways, spreading across the vastness of Monglia. Jacob and Dwan both to the Govi, different areas, of course. This ride has been a great one.
People begin to leave. We stay. More leave. We remain. Cady works. I hang out. I read. I eat. I walk. I eat. I watch movies. Internet. Cady works. I don’t.
Home. Wow. … This place is great. And compared to the other, really nice, too. We meet our landlords. … We get the tour, some family background. The father, living in the huudo (where the mother will live as the 17-year old daughter moves to UB for college) is a wolf hunter. They say we are welcome to visit them, that I can join in on a hunt. Ooh, buddie! This just gets better and better!
What follows is the most authentic voice from those days, some journal excerpts:
6 June 2007, 7:15 a.m., Wednesday (my very first entry)
I do not know how often I will make entries to this journal, perhaps only when it feels right will I do so. This morning marks such a time, the first time. Much has happened, too much to fully recount. In brief, however, we’ve thus far been on a constant move. From Denver to Atlanta to Seoul to Ulaanbaatar to a ger camp (“ger”) to where we are now, Darkhan. To say that I am tired of hauling luggage around is somewhat of an understatement. Our accommodations, with each new location, have grown less comfortable (though none bad – far from it actually) – the Atlanta Hilton = American comfort at its finest and the Darkhan Hotel = Mongolian comfort. There is quite a difference.
Mongolia. This is such a beautiful country. It is also a country very much in need. The current PCVs see this place through an already time-colored lens. They see Mongolia, its people, its good and its bad for what it is – Mongolia. The ger camp, as pictures show, had all the comforts of the good life. We arrived there late in the night, a night as dark as dark can be. The stars were stunning and the excitement from all of us, my class of 48, readily apparent. We are finally here. We’ve seen these people we’ve waited so long to meet.
A morning hike. Deodorant. No enough sleep. Hite beer. Water. Blue sky. Mountains. Poverty. Change. Formal Clothing. Ambassador Minton. Sunlight at 4:30. Heat. Sweat. Sain bain uu. Mutton. Uncertainty. Relaxation. Hope. Inspiration. Questions. Fewer real answers. Planes. Buses. Walking. Exploration. Beginning. Sadness. Happiness. One day at a time.
10 June 2007, 6:20 p.m., Sunday
Today has been one of those momentous days – today I moved in with my host family.
The day began like several before it. I woke up in my single bed across the room from Cady. I took a shower and got ready. After breakfast we all packed our things, loaded them into Meekers (mini buses) and headed North to Sukhbaatar (10 mi. from the Russian border). Again, the sites were breath-taking. The mountains were beautiful in the morning rain and mist. Including our driver, the 8 of us (Julie, James, Cassandra, Allie, Chris and I) passed gers, horses (wild and otherwise), sheep, goats. What a magnificent morning drive.
When we arrived in Sukhbaatar Bagh 5, our host families were awaiting us. At the school where we will attend daily language, culture and job technical classes, in a small classroom, we aw for the first time the family members with whom we are to live for the summer. A sign above our heads read, “welcome to our school” in English. Now joined with the other half of our group, we all sat along a bench looking excitedly at a group of parents, siblings and grandparents.
First, one by one, we stood and took, from a young girl, a sip of milk tea (tsai) in a traditional metallic cup. We each sat after we sipped. When done, one of our language teachers called our names one by one to stand and meet our “family.” Now, with our families, we went back outside, unloaded the meekers, gathered our own things, said goodbye to one another for now and droves off to our “homes.”
.jpg)
Peter and his host mom
12 June 2007, 10:12 p.m., Tuesday
I’ve been told not to climb the highest peak in Sukhbaatar. Jacob and I will make our assent Saturday! Supposedly there are bears and wolves. How this is possible from looking out at it is beyond me. On the other side is Russia. I’ve also been instructed not to take photos of Russia as there may be soldiers there. Now that I believe. Bears and wolves? Not so much. Saturday!
14 June 2007, 9:45 p.m., Thursday
CADY STOPPED BY LAST NIGHT!!!
15 June 2007, 8:01 p.m., Friday
I think I am really fortunate to have gotten the group that I have here in SB5. Today after class a bunch of us (Dwan, Jacob, James, Rachel, Philip, Cassandra and Allie) went to a del guur (store) and got some liquor and beer and sat out on some stone slabs in a field behind a haasha (fence/family property) and talked. It was great to hang out. We certainly didn’t have much to drink and not everyone drank, but it was cool to hang out and celebrate the completion of our first week at our training site. …
3 July 2007, 6:42 p.m., Tuesday
Well, here we are, going back to Darkhan again. That hotel used to seem run down and a bit disgusting. Now all I think about is SHOWER, SLEEPING WITHOUT FLIES (p.s. just killed 2 in one swat!!), NO FAMILY RULES. Ahh, the little things.
Things to legitimately piss and moan about just because: 1) the holes in the screen in my window letting in countless dive-bombing flies (particularly irksome during the wee morning hours. 2) the inability to power (or charge) my beard trimmer and hair clippers. 3) Forgetting the rechargeable batteries and re-charger in the winter baggage.
30 July 2007, 1:50 p.m., Monday
The heat has been oppressive and debilitating. It’s been two weeks of this. There just hasn’t been much to say. The heat and humidity cloud all else. I’m told this is a hotter than usual summer. Lucky us.
29 August 2007, 10:16 a.m., Wednesday
This is truly the end of the magical mystery training tour. Time with friends is now limited. For that reason the tours [of UB] are more fun than might ordinarily be. In a matter of days we will part ways, spreading across the vastness of Monglia. Jacob and Dwan both to the Govi, different areas, of course. This ride has been a great one.
People begin to leave. We stay. More leave. We remain. Cady works. I hang out. I read. I eat. I walk. I eat. I watch movies. Internet. Cady works. I don’t.
Home. Wow. … This place is great. And compared to the other, really nice, too. We meet our landlords. … We get the tour, some family background. The father, living in the huudo (where the mother will live as the 17-year old daughter moves to UB for college) is a wolf hunter. They say we are welcome to visit them, that I can join in on a hunt. Ooh, buddie! This just gets better and better!
Tuesday, September 18, 2007
Pictures and More...
Well we've uploaded a LOT to shutterfly and facebook... and I hope you can look at them! And just in case you've forgotten what we look like, here's a teaser:
Facebook Photos
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Cady at Ambarbaisalant Monastery
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Peter, the largest Mongolian!
Facebook Photos
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Cady at Ambarbaisalant Monastery
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Peter, the largest Mongolian!
Sunday, September 16, 2007
It's Cold!
Friday was 85 degrees Farenheit... 30 in Celsius (we're trying to get the conversions down). And now today, Monday it's 5 degrees Celsius, or 40 Farenheit. We're already on our way into winter, and I'm not really sure how it's going to be manageable. We'll get through it somehow, I suppose!
We've begun to upload lots of pictures on Shutterfly-- you can view our albums at cadyandpeter.shutterfly.com. And for those of you that haven't seen our wedding shots on there, they're fun to look at too!
We met the Hudoo (countryside) PCVs in town on Friday and Saturday and had fun catching up and hearing their adventures. We spent all summer living in places like they do, but now we have heat and running water-- they've got to build fires to keep warm and take sponge baths. We're pretty lucky in terms of services we have in Darkhan, I suppose. You never really think that heat and running water are luxuries, but they are in Mongolia, and we've got 'em! We went to the local "dance club" and had fun experiencing the cultural differences seen even there. Mostly, men are the big dancers in Mongolia, and the tend to dance in the American 1970s style -- this is probably mostly because they've listened to Abba their entire lives!
Our new address is posted below in a previous blog. We'll send out an email tomorrow with the new address and photo website once it's completely ready. We can't wait to show you all what we've been up to.
Here's some photos we have borrowed from other PCVs of one of the performers in our Welcoming Ceremony. He sang for us while the girl pictured below danced. The children performing were beautiful and we may be imagining things, but it seems like everyone is so talented in music and arts. We think it may have something to do with the fact that winter is so cold and you just stay inside and practice!
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Hopefully it stays cool for awhile before it dips into freezing. We need time to adjust! We miss you all and can't wait to hear from you.
We've begun to upload lots of pictures on Shutterfly-- you can view our albums at cadyandpeter.shutterfly.com. And for those of you that haven't seen our wedding shots on there, they're fun to look at too!
We met the Hudoo (countryside) PCVs in town on Friday and Saturday and had fun catching up and hearing their adventures. We spent all summer living in places like they do, but now we have heat and running water-- they've got to build fires to keep warm and take sponge baths. We're pretty lucky in terms of services we have in Darkhan, I suppose. You never really think that heat and running water are luxuries, but they are in Mongolia, and we've got 'em! We went to the local "dance club" and had fun experiencing the cultural differences seen even there. Mostly, men are the big dancers in Mongolia, and the tend to dance in the American 1970s style -- this is probably mostly because they've listened to Abba their entire lives!
Our new address is posted below in a previous blog. We'll send out an email tomorrow with the new address and photo website once it's completely ready. We can't wait to show you all what we've been up to.
Here's some photos we have borrowed from other PCVs of one of the performers in our Welcoming Ceremony. He sang for us while the girl pictured below danced. The children performing were beautiful and we may be imagining things, but it seems like everyone is so talented in music and arts. We think it may have something to do with the fact that winter is so cold and you just stay inside and practice!
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Hopefully it stays cool for awhile before it dips into freezing. We need time to adjust! We miss you all and can't wait to hear from you.
Thursday, September 13, 2007
Random Things!
Our "Harvest Days" Trade Fair was on Friday - Sunday and our clients made over 7 million tugriks (about $7,000) in total. It was a really successful fair, and our clients had learned a lot about marketing and promoting your products. One client even packaged her vegetables as "salad in a bag" with a recipe!
Sliced bread is a new thing here.
Star Wars has lots of Mongolian themes in it. The traditional dress is very similar, and the Ewoks even speak some Mongolian in the movie, so if you want to hear the language we are speaking/learning here-- think about how the Ewoks sounded! We're actually learning Ewokian!
I got to ride a camel on Friday! Also, in Mongolia, they play polo on camels.
Our apartment is the on the highest hill in town. When we look out of our window, we see mountains and a beautiful view of the Mongolian steppe.
Darkhan has hidden gems everywhere. I found a cheeseburger on a menu the other day! It turned out to be a mutton burger with ketchup. Not so good.
Peter's students are just beginning to arrive in Darkhan for University, even though classes started August 27th....
To say hello in Mongolian, it's "Sain Bain Uu?" If you accidentally say "Sain Bann Uu?" you've just asked someone how they are defecating. It's a very hard language.
That's all from here for now.
Sliced bread is a new thing here.
Star Wars has lots of Mongolian themes in it. The traditional dress is very similar, and the Ewoks even speak some Mongolian in the movie, so if you want to hear the language we are speaking/learning here-- think about how the Ewoks sounded! We're actually learning Ewokian!
I got to ride a camel on Friday! Also, in Mongolia, they play polo on camels.
Our apartment is the on the highest hill in town. When we look out of our window, we see mountains and a beautiful view of the Mongolian steppe.
Darkhan has hidden gems everywhere. I found a cheeseburger on a menu the other day! It turned out to be a mutton burger with ketchup. Not so good.
Peter's students are just beginning to arrive in Darkhan for University, even though classes started August 27th....
To say hello in Mongolian, it's "Sain Bain Uu?" If you accidentally say "Sain Bann Uu?" you've just asked someone how they are defecating. It's a very hard language.
That's all from here for now.
Friday, September 7, 2007
The SHIRT...
Somewhere, somehow, someone decided it would be the best idea ever to import these old Russian Navy shirts into Mongolia. And now, because we see them everywhere we go, we have a count. Since July 1, I have seen 43 different men wearing this same shirt. There are tank top versions too, 3/4 length sleeve ones, and black and green striped ones. I only count the blue long sleeve ones though. 43. I found the market stall where they sell them! It's all they sell. Apparently the demand is high enough to warrant only selling these shirts. Peter and I may get matching ones.
Saturday, September 1, 2007
Our New Home!
We are now in Darkhan, Mongolia, our new home for the coming 2 years, and we've both started work and have been spending the last two weeks getting oriented with our new digs.
Here's the view (thanks for the picture, Emily!) from the drive into our city- it's a relatively small city, and within 5 minutes walk you can be in the countryside again. Mongolia is absolutely breathtaking.
We have an address! Remember to use both Mongolian Cyrillic and English so it gets to us!
Peter Gerlach, PCV or Cady Sinnwell, PCV
P.O. Box 690
Darkhan
MONGOLIA
(via China)
Peter Gerlach (Петер Гэрлах) or Cady Sinnwell (Кэди Синбелл)
Энх Тайвны Корпусын сайн дурын ажилтан
Шуудангийн хайрцаг 690
Дархан-Уул аймаг, Дархан сум
Монгол улс
We also have cell phones now, so you can call! There are relatively cheap calling cards out there, and also skype is a great option if you have high speed internet. Unfortunately on our end, skype is pretty challenging due to the speed of our internet and computers.
Peter: 957 423 41
Cady: 957 423 73
The country code: 976
Looking forward to hearing from you! We were able to post our blogs and emails from this summer, so you can catch up on what we've been up to. Also, now that we're posted at our permanent site, we'd love to have visitors.
Keep in touch!
Here's the view (thanks for the picture, Emily!) from the drive into our city- it's a relatively small city, and within 5 minutes walk you can be in the countryside again. Mongolia is absolutely breathtaking. We have an address! Remember to use both Mongolian Cyrillic and English so it gets to us!
Peter Gerlach, PCV or Cady Sinnwell, PCV
P.O. Box 690
Darkhan
MONGOLIA
(via China)
Peter Gerlach (Петер Гэрлах) or Cady Sinnwell (Кэди Синбелл)
Энх Тайвны Корпусын сайн дурын ажилтан
Шуудангийн хайрцаг 690
Дархан-Уул аймаг, Дархан сум
Монгол улс
We also have cell phones now, so you can call! There are relatively cheap calling cards out there, and also skype is a great option if you have high speed internet. Unfortunately on our end, skype is pretty challenging due to the speed of our internet and computers.
Peter: 957 423 41
Cady: 957 423 73
The country code: 976
Looking forward to hearing from you! We were able to post our blogs and emails from this summer, so you can catch up on what we've been up to. Also, now that we're posted at our permanent site, we'd love to have visitors.
Keep in touch!
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