"Keep The Ship Sailing"

Previous reference by me to “Ouagadougou” being the capital of Burkina Faso appeared to upset one reader, so in an attempt to make up, I will avoid any references to Ulaanbaatar (UB) being the capital of Mongolia - it simply does not do to upset one’s readers.

Also, time spent in Afghanistan has enabled one to develop, I believe, the ability to differentiate what is a stare at the “unusual”, versus a stare born of hostility, and rest assured, in UB, much to my delight and relief, I qualify as “unusual”, a categorization soon confirmed by the reciprocity to a nod of the head, followed by a wry smile from those to whom I appear “unusual”, and who without much success were trying to avoid staring.

In UB, there are two dominant features – “Chinggis Khaan” (the name of THE Mongolian hero) and “Meat”, in no particular order, yes, meat. At every turn, one is confronted by meat, lots and lots of meat – Beef, Lamb, Oxen, Yak etc – Meat is Mongolia’s main export. It is noteworthy that as a result of a very severe winter in 2009, 9 million herd of cattle died, interestingly enough not from the cold, I am reliably assured (they are used to it), but from inaccessibility to grass upon which they rely. Unfortunately much of Mongoia’s grass was buried under several metres of the white stuff – There are no “Mad Cows” in Mongolia, as for Mongolian cows, “Grass is the word” (sorry).

Staying with the theme of meat, one cannot help but feel that some restaurants in UB should come with a government health warning which might read, “No entry to vegetarians, or the faint hearted” – the sight of meat can be overwhelming. UB itself is referred to as Mongolia’s first city, though having been to Nos. 2 and 3 during previous visits, to describe the latter two as “cities”, some might say, is quite charitable, and even such charity does on occasion require quite some imagination and a very liberal interpretation of the word.

Mongolians themselves are without doubt the primary asset of Mongolia. Logical this link may seem, but having on occasion overheard a view to the contrary expressed about well …, perhaps lets not go there. Any fears one may harbour about getting lost in the mist of so much meat soon evaporate in light of the warmth, charm and friendliness of Mongolians. Modern shops are limited in UB and “distractions”, even more so (depending on your preference, I suppose), but for a carnivore, this is paradise.

Oh, regarding “Chinggis Khaan”, everything is named after “Chinggis Khaan” including the beer, airport, my hotel and not least of all, the Vodka, of which a generous gulp is a requirement at every turn, without the option not to partake. Even a simple “hello” is good reason to celebrate and yes, it has to be with “Chinggis Khan” vodka, though there are differing qualities. You know what they say, “Monkey by Grade”.