Erdene Zuu Monastery

The Erdene Zuu monastery is probably the most ancient Buddhist monastery in Mongolia. It is in Övörkhangai Province, near the town of Kharkhorin and adjacent to the ancient city of Karakorum. It is part of the World Heritage Site entitled Orkhon Valley Cultural Landscape.
The monastery was built in 1585 by Abtai Sain Khan, upon the introduction of Buddhism into Mongolia as the state religion. Stones from the ruins of Karakorum were used in construction. It is surrounded by a wall featuring 108 stupas, 108 being a sacred number in Buddhism, and the number of beads in a Buddhist rosary.
The monastery was damaged by warfare in the 1680s, but was rebuilt in
the 18th century and by 1872 had a full 62 temples inside.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Urguu Tourist Camp

Urguu Tourist Camp was our next night stop. This super sized ger was the dining hall,

So cute !

A mongolian child we met on our way...

Her home

 

 

 

Her father preparing some fresh meat as the cold season approaches. It was middle of sept 2007 when we visited and the weather was turning cold rather quickly. Winter here is a miserable 40 below zero.

 

Marmot hunters

5 am in Mongolia

I got up early to catch daybreak. It was really cold but rewarding. The night was very cold and we kept warm by burning firewood in a heater to keep warm. I woke up every two hours or so to add more wood. Too little firewood you will be shivering and too much will convert the ger into a sauna as I found out on our first night.

Daybreak at Lake Ugii Tourist Camp 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Lake Ugii

From the ancient fortress, we drove on to Lake Ugii where we will stop for the night at a tourist camp.

Green living

A mongolian ger, this one has got a small wind turbine, a solar panel and a satellite dish. Typically self sufficient with the food coming from their herd of animals.

Ancient Khitan fortress

Next stop was at an ancient khitan fortress.

A local herdsman coming over to chat with us.

 

 

Mongolia, Land of Genghis Khan

One of the most beautiful country I have ever visited. There is just so many dimensions to it. Wildlife, lakes, deserts, ancient cities the list just go on and on..... 

This time I was better prepared having bought a DSLR just a week before the trip. I brought with me the D80, 18-135 kit lens, 70-300 VR and the Sigma 10-20 UWA. I also brought along the manfrotto MF3, kangrinpoche ballhead and a couple of filters.

This was a long trip and we were going to spend three weeks exploring this beautiful land. One week each at the ancient city of Karakoram, Lake Khuvsgul and Gobi Desert. We found a driver and guide from the internet and made all the arrangements online. Other than the days in Ulan Bator and the last day of the trip before we flew out. We stayed in ger camps during the trip. We had also made sure that we had a 4X4 land cruiser for the entire trip having read that driving across the Mongolian Steppes was going to be a tough journey. When possible we took domestic flights to save time. Lots of the planning was done online and with help from Chambar and Ganzorig.

First leg of the trip was to explore the ancient city of karakoram. I was looking forward to my first experience of sleeping in a mongolian ger. 

At the start of the long drive to Karakoram from Ulan Bator. A typical dirt road on the mongolian stepps.

Horses and sheeps are grazing everywhere along the stepps. Locals are very warm and friendly and won't hesitate inviting you into their homes.

 

Our 4X4 , a much more comfy ride compared to the russian military vehicles.
 

 

Lunch stop after 3 hours of driving..
 

 

This was the reason we insisted on having a proper 4X4 !