Khustai National Park

With my time rapidly dwindling (less than 100 days!!), I've found myself longing to do everything and see everything this place, my home for the last three years, has to offer.  Due to my remote location the first two years, I was reluctant to travel and play tourist.  I wish I hadn't been.  Making up for lost time, I'm cramming in all I can these last three months. 

One thing I had always wanted to see was the Takhi horses of Khustai National Park.  Why?  Take it away, Wikipedia: "Most "wild" horses today, such as the American Mustang or the Australian Brumby, are actually feral horses descended from domesticated animals that escaped and adapted to life in the wild. In contrast, Takhi horses have never been domesticated and remain a truly wild animal."  BOOM!  How cool is that!?  Luckily, Khustai is only about 90 minutes outside of UB, the perfect distance for a day trip.  We we planning to hire a friend who works as a guide for tourists in the summer, but stumbled upon a budget tour and decided to go that route instead.  Hey, we're broke PCVs!  We got what we paid for, meaning not much (no guided tour, no museum stop, no visit to the cultural artifacts), but we got to enjoy a day out of the city and we did see about a half-dozen Takhi horses so I guess we can't complain.

The park is about 60 miles out of the city.

 Our first stop, right after we entered the park.  BEAUTIFUL day!

 Ovoo with the mountains in the background.

 Signs of Spring!

 Marmot!  These guys are becoming more and more rare as they are a traditional "delicacy" (gut, blowtorch the fur off, stuff with hot rocks, sew shut, let cook, enjoy).

 Yows.

 Our guide asking a herder if he's seen the Takhi horses.  I was really surprised herders were allowed in the park but I guess it's part of their "Buffer Zone" and Community Based Tourism initiatives.

 The home we stopped at; they're a friend or distant relative (?) of our guide.  

 Baby goats and sheep...

 ...and baby cows!

 They were just too cute!

 

 I don't know what it is, but something about it being Mongolia...It's just cuter!

 

The PC gang!

 This wittle won was swo tiny!

The babies even got their own gers.  So spoiled!

 View of the ger compound from the hill beside it.

 It really was a gorgeous day, even with the wind.

 Next we stopped along the Tuul river; had to get a shot with the Mongol horses.

 So clean and clear!

 Green!

 Snow.  :(

After lunch we started on our serious quest to find the Takhi horses.  Unfortunately, it was becoming evident we were not going to find the herd (of only about 300 horses in approximately 200 square miles!), but that we might be able to see a few stragglers roaming with Mongolian horses.  A couple more stops to consult with herders and we were pointed which way to go.  Over a rise we came and there he was, our first Takhi horse, consorting with his harem of Mongol horses (and yes Dad, they CAN interbreed according to Wikipedia:  Takhis "can interbreed with the domestic horse and produce fertile offspring (65 chromosomes)."

 We, no joke, stalked this guy for a good half-hour.

 Then we saw this group of three Takhi on a hillside!

 The view from where we stopped to see the above Takhi.

 On our way out of the park we saw this Takhi really slumming it with not only Mongol horses but with cows! 

 Pose for me, horsey!

He has a very diverse group of friends.

I was a little bummed not to see the Takhi herd or any of the other wildlife in the park (there's an elk-like deer, gazelle, a lynx-looking cat, eagles & vultures...) but again, this was a super budget trip, and my one true goal was to see the Takhi and we did.  It was really overwhelming to see a creature that was once considered extinct, only existing in zoos, knowing that it was brought back from the brink and is now thriving in its original, natural habitat.  Definitely a once in a lifetime experience.

Zaisan Part Two

The weather has been absolutely GORGEOUS here lately!  60s and sunny...Sorry Minnesota!  Okay, not really...  ;)  Last weekend we decided to take advantage and do some outdoor sight-seeing.  Cedell had never seen Zaisan, and though I went out there with my friend Bryce last year, I knew it would be good exercise (so many stairs!) and good company.

It turned out to be an awesome day: I got to hold a Golden Eagle, we successfully negotiated a lower price on souvenirs (by telling the seller, in Mongolian, that we were Peace Corps Volunteers and NOT tourists), and enjoyed the finally fresh air.

 Up at the top!

 Holding the Golden Eagle.  Apparently, that is my official giant bird holding shirt.

 In the memorial park across from Zaisan, with the Zaisan monument on the hill in the background.

At the big golden Buddha, I found my new pet kitty!

Site Visits

In an effort to be more transparent, as well as increase peer support, our post has decided to allow PCVLs and second year volunteers to go out on site visits and participate in site development.  I was unable to go in the fall (home leave) so I was super excited when Zorigoo, the Central Region and Health Program Manager, asked me to go with her this Spring. 

We departed from UB, went up to Darkhan, over to Orkhon Aimag (Erdenet City), then through Bulgan Aimag up to Khovsgol Aimag.  We spent 15 days and 14 nights on the road, visiting the volunteers who live in those aimags and developing sites for M23 extendees, M25s (the cohort coming this June) and even M26s/M27s!

For safety & security reasons (as well as confidentiality in case any of you M25s are reading this!), I won't post the exact locations we traveled to, but it was extensive.

It was awesome to spend time with the 13 volunteers who live in those areas, hear about the amazing work they're doing and, of course, socialize.  It was encouraging to see the first year volunteers flourishing and bittersweet to reflect on two years of service with the veteran volunteers.  But the really informative and enlightening part was to participate in site development.  When an agency submits an application for a volunteer, our Regional Managers have to interview them at least twice.  The first one is a preliminary visit in the spring to assess the agency, interview them (why do they REALLY want a volunteer?) and check out the community.  The second, after lots of meetings in the office and granting approval, is for housing checks in the summer.  Proximity to UB means some agencies can get another in-person visit, while the rest get follow-up calls.  While I couldn't do much but observe the Health and CYD potential agencies, Zorigoo let me take the lead on the standard line of questioning for the TEFL placements.  This way, we could informally assess their language abilities and gauge their interactions with a PCV.  There were two sites that especially stole my heart; I can't wait to hear if an M25 goes there!  After the "Why do you REALLY want a PCV?" line of questioning finishes, Zorigoo has to give each site a quick lesson on diversity (that they could get a PCV of any gender, color, religious background, etc) and our new Sexual Assault Policies.  She also goes over the housing requirements and safety & security.  If the agency agrees to it all and has a solid case for why they need a PCV, their application gets reviewed at the placement meetings that happen in the office in the late spring.  They are notified in early summer, and the second round of visits begin.  If housing passes muster, voila!  PCV placement.

I had a general idea of this process, but seeing just how in-depth the interviews are (hours and hours!) and just how many people are involved (not just potential CPs but directors, supervisors, key community members and even government officials) was very reassuring.  PC definitely does their homework before sending a volunteer to a site.  Sure, sh*t happens, but I truly believe PC does the very best they can, contextually, when selecting a site to receive a volunteer.

Below are some pictures, taken in the order we traveled back.  We drove straight to Khovsgol from UB, then did our visits on the way back Southeast.

 The horses in Murun, Khovsgol.

 Huh, thought I was in Murun, not on Lake Sturgeon!

 Driving to a soum (village).  Dang Mongolia, why you so beautiful!?

 Observing a volunteer's lesson.

 Coming back from a soum, the view of Murun.

 Some of the Khovsgol volunteers, and a visiting PCV from UB.

 A volunteer and her CP during a health seminar, demonstrating the Heimlich maneuver. 

 Mongolish (what we lovingly call English-Mongolian speaking clubs) in Murun.

 Sadly, this restaurant in Murun was closed.  I really wanted to see if they had chicken!

 No road? No problem!  Follow the power lines!  This is somewhere in...Khovsgol? Bulgan?

 Just such a beautiful country!

 The soum we stopped to spend a night in, in Bulgan.

 There were horses everywhere we drove!

VOLCANO!  In Bulgan.

 Observing a volunteer's lesson in Erdenet.

 Observing a volunteer's lesson in Erdenet.

 Observing the Film Club in Erdenet.

 The super gross waste "lake" just outside of Erdenet city in Orkhon aimag.  For more on the mine that causes this waste, check out this Wiki.

And the mine itself (taken when I visited Erdenet in June 2012).

 Loved seeing all the gers dottting the countryside; this was somewhere in Bulgan aimag.

 Ducks on a pond!  Spring has finally arrived!

 And because Spring had arrived, this was the muddy mess we drove though every time we would visit a soum.  (We slept in the aimag centers and drove out to the various soums every day.)  Thanks to our amazing driver Chuka, we never got stuck!

Even though I had been to many of these places before, it was still a trip of a lifetime, getting to see the wide open countryside and, of course, all the visits.  Grateful to PC for affording me yet another amazing opportunity!