Central and East Asia - Clean Breaks: 500 New Ways to See the World - page 277

368 live with noMads,
Mongolia

A hundred or so goats head off bleating their
complaints in one direction, while a herd of
cows tramps off in another. A boy of perhaps ten
rides by on his horse, with no saddle. All around
smoke rises from the fifteen or so gers spread
across this high plain, surrounded by a ring of
forested hills. Here in the Terelj National Park,
fewer than 100km from the Mongolian capital
Ulaan Bator, the only signs of industrialization
are the occasional solar panel or motorbike.
A typical day on a trip with Ger to Ger, a non-
profit organization that promotes grassroots
tourism development, starts with a journey on
horse or oxcart (typically of around 10km) from
the ger where you spent the night onto your
next resting post. The rest of the day - once
the customary welcome of home-made biscuits,
clotted cream and cups of milky tea is dispensed
with - is spent doing what your new hosts do.
That could mean helping them collect the sheep
at dusk, milking horses (the local tipple is
Airag, fermented mare's milk only slightly less
alcoholic than vodka) or being taught how to use
a bow and arrow.
It is highly rewarding but can be pretty
exhausting. With no translator you have to
communicate with a Mongolian phrasebook and
any props such as family photographs you might
have with you. Vegetarians may struggle with
a diet that's almost exclusively meat and dairy,
and are advised to bring some extra supplies
along. But for anyone keen to get a taste of what
travel was like before everyone spoke English
and booked online, a few days riding across
Mongolia should suffice.

Need to know Ger to Ger's office is based
in Ulaan Bator. Treks start with a three-hour
introduction on what to expect, including a basic
language lesson, before guests take a public bus
to meet their first guide/host. All equipment can be
hired from the main office. For itineraries and prices
see W www.gertoger.org; T [phone].

(From top) A Mongolian herder rounds up her goats; Inside a typical ger; With few roads, horses
are the main form of transport