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.