Finally!

After spending six days in UB waiting for someone to sign a piece of paper and put a stamp in my passport, I have finally been granted permission to hit the field. Tomorrow morning I'm tossing my gear into a Russian or Japanese jeep (TBD based on price), and am heading for Northern Mongolia. I'll be gone for nine days, and will be flying out of UB on July 23 back to Beijing.

Today marked the official beginning of the Nadaam Festival, which is Mongolia's biggest national holiday. It's a three day event, featuring the three "manly" pursuits: horse-racing, archery and wrestling. I went to the opening ceremonies this morning, which was an *interesting* experience. Mongolia has the lowest population density in the world, but i think that all 2.5 million Mongols were trying to make their way into the stadium; somehow, I wound up with somebody's kid in my lap for a large part of the show! I'm not sure if I'm going to bother catching any of the main sporting events, as I have no interest whatsoever in watching archery or wrestling. As for horse-racing, Mongolian horsemen are nuts! It's truly awe-inspiring watching them do what they do, but I think I might just wait until I get out of UB to see a real horse-race. I

suppose an honourary fourth "manly" category would be the alcohol-consumption contest. Apparently Nadaam is a particularly alcohol-drenched event. Mongolia's choice of poison: either vodka (thanks to the Soviet history) or beer. On a somber note, UB has a very high unemployment rate, which goes hand in hand with a very high rate of alcoholism. Single women (such as myself) are not advised to walk around UB late at night unaccompanied, due to the significantly increased chance of muggings and assaults that are alcohol-induced.

This is probably the last time that I'll have internet access for the next week and a half, so you are hereby relieved of reading my ranting and raving. Who knows, if I meet a Mongolian steppe prince and decide that life a nomad's life of salty tea and mutton meat actually really do suit me, this could be my last post ever! If that's the case, to all of you, come look for me if you ever decide to visit Mongolia!