Mongolia - the Gobi

Some facts about Mongolia:

GDP per capita: $3

Drives on the right (like in the UK)
national sport: wrestling (even while horse riding!)

Around 30% of its 2.8 million residents are nomadic.
Main religion: Tibetan buddism

A third of the population lives in the capital city, Ulan Bator.

A bit of History:

In the 13th century, the highly respected Gengis Khan, a military chief, unifies the Mongolian tribes, creating an empire. After being the centre of the Mongolian empire, Mongolia was governed by the Mandchoue Qing dynasty from the 17th until the beginning of the 20th century. After the Russian invasion at the end of the 17th century, North Mongolia (the lake Baikal region) is annexed by the Russian empire. South Mongolia would have sought Russia's support to get rid of the Chinese political control. In 1924 the Mongolian People's Republic was proclaimed and the Mongolian People's Party created with support from the Soviet Union.

While officially keeping its independence during the Soviet era, People's Republic of Mongolia closely aligned its politics with Moscow. During the Soviet-Japanese Border War of 1939, the Soviet Union successfully defended Mongolia against Japanese expansionism. The Mongolian army later took part in the Soviet attack against the Japanese armed forces in Inner Mongolia in August 1945. The Soviet threat of seizing parts of Inner Mongolia induced China to recognize Outer Mongolia's independence, provided that a referendum be held. The referendum took place on October 20, 1945, with 97,8 % of votes in favor of the independence under the control of the Red Army.  Mongolia being closely linked to the USSR, many Soviet military bases during the Cold War. After the collapse of the USSR and with it communism, Mongolia adopted a democratic constitution in 1992.

 

Climate:

In winter the whole of Mongolia comes under the influence of the Siberian Anticyclone. The country is subject to occasional harsh climatic conditions known as zud. The annual average temperature in Ulan Bator is 0°C, making it the world's coldest capital city. Mongolia is high, cold, and windy. It has an extreme continental climate with long, extremely cold winters (down to -50) and short summers, during which most of its annual precipitation falls.

The Gobi region: 

The name "Gobi" is a Mongol term for a desert steppe; however, Mongols distinguish Gobi from desert proper (as Westerners understand it): Gobi rangelands are fragile and are easily destroyed by overgrazing, which results in expansion of the true desert, a stony waste where not even Bactrian camels can survive.

 

Economy:

-Minerals (mostly coal, copper and gold) represent more than 80% of Mongolia's exports, a proportion expected to eventually rise to 95%. About 3,000 mining licences have been issued. Mining is rising fast and has become a major industry of Mongolia as evidenced by number of Chinese, Russian and Canadian firms opening and starting mining business in Mongolia. When we stayed at the hostel in Ulan Bator, I met a young Canadian architect working for mines in different parts of the country and he told me how fast and strongly this business is growing.

-Agriculture. In 2002, about 30% of all households in Mongolia lived from breeding livestock. Due to the severe 2009–2010 winter and storms, Mongolia lost 9.7 million animals, (22% of total livestock).

 

Mongolia in pictures:

 

-Inside a yurt-

 

 

  Roof of a yurt

 

The door is always to the North

  The most important and respected part of the yurt is the central, back part (for elder people), on each side are the family's most precious belongings (pictures, postcards, candles for special occasions (funerals), children's sport competition medals...)

Always attached to the roof is a rope made of the family's livestock's hair

 

 Welcoming snacks offered everytime you arrive at a yurt to visit the family: biscuits and milk omelette (as a biscuit topping)

  Playing ankle bones games with goat anckle bones

 

Each of the fourth sides of the bone has the name of an animal: camel, goat, horse, sheep (animals  owned by the nomads)

 

 

-Holy place-

 

 

 

 

 People go round the stone mountain once. It is said to cure people, this is why you see crutches (béquilles en français) left at the beginning of the holy walk supposed to cure you.

 

 As they go round, people touch the first stone with their forehead to receive a blessing, then  ring this bell once.

 

Finally, once they've completed their round, they throw milk and grains to the numerous scarves (blue or yellow are religious colours)

 

 

 

 

 -Landscapes of the Gobi-

 

 

Steppes

 

 

 

 

 

Sand dunes

 

 

From the right to the left: the dunes (and they continue on both sides)

Because of unusually high precipitations during the spring, an oasis has formed on the dunes. This is the particularity of the Gobi: its landscape diversity. It does not only consist of sand dunes but also, according to the seasons, bushes, trees, lakes (swan lake faces these dunes), steppes (more or less arid depending on the regions) and high stony mountains.

First plan: on top of a dune, second plan: an oasis, background: high stony mountains.

 

-Mongol horse riding-

 

 

 Nomadic family always keep at least one horse tied to the rope in front of their yurt so that they can always catch other horses with the one tied. Although all family members know how to ride since they're 5, only males are given their personal horse which they rides most of the time).

Mongol saddles are very different from the European ones: much more narrow and less comfortable. This saddle is typically used for tourists (it has a cushion). Mongols do not ride their horses sat on the saddle, they just stand up on the stirrups. 

 This is a typical Mongol saddle, made of wood and a very thin layer of fabric (nothing similar to European padded saddles). Mongol saddles are much higher than European ones, this is to help the horserider to "sit" against the top of it. Each horseman, from his teen years, has his own saddle, recognisable by its distinctive metal badge.

 

 

 Mongol horses are most of the time absolutely left free in the vast steppes. They are very close to each other and stay in herds.

 

 Because nomadic families leave their animals free most of the time, reproduction can't be fully controlled. As a consequence, Mongol horses have very different, colourful coats.