Elsen Tasarkhai

S0 after the long journey to Mongolia, we settled into the hostel that is better than most hotels (Zaya Hostel) and began preparing for our 2D1N adventure into the Elsen Tasarkhai sand dunes. It was pretty exhausting waking up at around 6am and setting off. Our Guide, Mr Tulga was really great. He studied in England for 13 years and that resulted in his fluent english speaking capability. Apart from his language proficiency, his depth of knowledge, initiative and warm personality were other reasons why we found him as a great tour guide. So we set off on our 5 hour drive to the sand dunes. The views from the vehicle were pretty stunning as there were long, vast landscapes of snow and ice. For a guy like me who had never seen snow before, it was a heck of a new experience. We took a break about 2 hours in to stop for some hot tea and egg sandwiches and more importantly, to take photos!! After spending 30 minutes, we were back on the road. There was nothing much for the next 2 hours but to our great fortune, Mr Tulga (our guide) spotted a horse race in the distance. Took us alittle while but we managed to get a great spot from which we could see the horse race. Soon, boys of ages 6-15 were riding horses at fast speeds past us. The competition was no joke with the race taking place in a frigid -10 degrees celcius and spanning a total of 50km. It was amazing as some of these boys were less than half my age and were riding horses so effortlessly. After the race was completed, we were invited into the post-race celebrations with the village. The elders were happy to see us and the kids were very, very excited to see us. We began by entering the elders circle and they immediately began the Mongolian customs of offering us Mare’s Milk (which was much better than i expected) as well as their Vodka (which was of much better taste than the stuff one would taste in Singapore). After downing some vodka, we started taking pictures with them as well as playing with the kids. One cannot say this enough, the kids were so adorable as well as cute. They were so excited to take photos with us even if some were really shy 🙂 After quite some time, we said farewell to the village and headed back on the road. This was our first glimpse and taste of a nomadic village as well as life. It really energized us for the rest of our tour. However, on the last 30 minutes of our drive we fell into some misfortune, literally. Our vehicle had accidently drove on top of some snow and fell into a ditch. We struggled for about 1.5 hours to get the vehicle out using a whole manner of methods but it simply would not budge. Eventually our guide decided that we should continue with our camel ride and called our host family to fetch us to the camel ride area. The camel ride was pretty fun especially since none of us had attempted such a ride before. It was pretty painful on the butt, but the view, ride and especially the photos were worth it. By some miracle, our guide was there waiting for us by the time we arrived at our host’s Ger. We had no idea how he got the vehicle out but we did not care as the trapped vehicle threatened to derail our tour. Once we reached, our host invited us into his home for some vodka, tea and mare’s milk. Nomads home are called Gers which are dome-shaped houses that are great for regulating heat which is crucial in a country where temperatures can dip as well as soar. It was a bit awkward meeting our hosts at first due to the language barrier but they eventually warmed up to us. Once we had warmed up (physically due to the cold temperature), we jumped into the vehicle for the short ride to the sand dunes. While initially rather un-impressive, after some hiking the sand dunes were pretty stunning. Braving the cold was a small sacrifice to witness the beautiful sunset on the sand dunes as well as take some once in a lifetime photos. After all of this, we took some much deserved rest in our own guest ger. Our rest was short-lived as our host called us into the main ger for dinner. Dinner was something i was particularly excited for as we would be having Khorkhog. Khorkhog is made by cooking pieces of meat (mutton usually) inside a container which also contains hot stones and water, and is often also heated from the outside. Khorkhog was so delicious that i was so disappointed when it ended as i knew i would never try it again. We had some rounds of vodka (as the Mongolian way was to use one shot glass and share it around) and we thought that we be the end of the night. We were sorely mistaken. Soon, droves of Mongolian families (our host’s relatives) came to visit our host. As the Mongolian new year had just ended, visiting families was very common in this period. Hence, we were very very lucky to witness the gathering of so many families. They were all very gracious and curious about us. The repeatedly offered us vodka as is their custom. We made some new friends and had some good laughs. The kids… oh there were so many kids at this gathering and they just swarmed us which was the most adorable thing i ever saw. We shared photos of our lives in Singapore, we played with them (carrying them, throwing them in the air , etc) and took many photos and selfies with them. It was a sad sight to see all of them leave but it was an amazing 2 hours with the whole lot of them. The sleep in the ger was actually very comfortable for me but my 3 companions suffered quite a bit due to the cold. Perhaps the area in which my bed was placed was fortunate enough to be warm, so i count myself very lucky. The next morning, we took a 3 hour hike to a monastery in a mountains nearby. The trek in the cold was tough due to the cold and snow but it was a new experience that i am very thankful for. The views were stunning especially from the knoll we climbed as well as from the monastery. After the hike, we spent more time with our host, sharing laughs as well as stories. It was tough to say goodbye as even in the short time we spent with them, we felt like the 4 of us had a bond with our hosts. I find it amazing that descendants of the great Genghis Khan could be so gracious, kind and hospitable (even if it was hundreds of years ago haha). They are a hard people, who live a hard life but are as warm as people can get. I am eternally grateful for this opportunity for this tour that far exceeded my expectations. As for our Mongolian friends,Even though we did not speak the same language and communicate directly, i felt that we completely understood each other on every level.