so the past few nights we have taken to trying some new clubs around UBtuesday night ninj took us to a place called Strings. it was a very classy place -- we went early so we wouldn't have to pay the 8000 tugrig cover charge. they had a live phillipino band, that melissa was really excited about (she's the phillipino girl on the trip). the band performed mostly american cover songs, with a few mongolian and phillipino ones too. they were seriously amazing -- there were two girl singers and one guy -- and they could conform to make their voices identical to who they were covering. one minute you would think you were listening to shakira, and then it would be the black eyed peas, then maroon 5. it was really impressive. we had a really fun time -- and it wasn't even a sweatbox every other club we've been to is. there was this really crazy old mongolian dude that kept trying the dance with allie and melissa.... it was pretty priceless because he obviously watched one too many michael jackson videos -- and he though he could dance like mj. clearly not the case.
last night we went to Metropolis with zula, solongo, and munkho. they're the ladies from the international studies office, so they also brought a group of students who just arrived in UB that they're working with. they were korean and friendly enough, though they told me it was the first time they've ever been to a club -- and their dance skills confirmed that statement. i mean don't get me wrong, my dancing abilities are illustrative of stereotypical tall awkward white boy syndrome -- so when i call somebody a bad dancer... it's pretty bad. it kind of looked like they were doing jazz-aerobics or something. the club only played techno music, which got pretty old after a while, and the bright flashing lights and smoke machines have probably caused seizures at least once or twice. all in all though, it was a decent night.
Thursday, July 10, 2008
The Del Lady Returns, Molly
Mongolia functions on a system based around the idea of "I know a guy." That is to say, everyone always knows someone who can help you or accomplish what you wish to accomplish. When you want a del, if you happen to know Allison, she mentions it to her friend Ariel who, in turn, introduces us to her friend: The Del Lady.
The Del Lady, I am sure, has a name of her own. However, we never caught it. When the Del Lady comes, with her comes the Del Lady's Assistant, who is her younger sister. The former is a seamstress, the later someone learning how to be a seamstress. She's good, quick, and, most importantly, cheap. And, when you get something from her, you feel as though you made a difference in someone's life rather than when you buy a del from the State Department Store, which is both expensive and kind of intimidating.
According to the internet, a del is the "traditional dress of Mongolia." I think this is a poor description and about equal to calling "an ugly sweater your senile aunt gave you one Christmas" American traditional dress. Everyone here seems to own a del. They're useful. They're warm. Mostly older people wear them, but around certain holidays, everyone brings their dels out. Except dels are more comfortable and generally have better useful uses than as a doorstop, Halloween costume used to scare small children, or piece of blackmail. They have many purposes, several of which I won't outline here, I'm sure you can fill in the mental gaps when you learn that people take dels to the countryside, but they're quite similar to how Douglas Adam's describes a towel:
A towel, it says, is about the most massively useful thing an interstellar hitch hiker can have. Partly it has great practical value - you can wrap it around you for warmth...you can lie on it on the brilliant marble-sanded beaches...you can sleep under it beneath the stars...use it to sail a mini raft...wet it for use in hand-to-hand-combat...wrap it round your head to ward off noxious fumes...you can wave your towel in emergencies as a distress signal, and of course dry yourself off with it if it still seems to be clean enough.
You can also do all of those things with a del as well as look -damn- good.
So, of course, being the fashionistas we are, we all wanted dels. Allie and Emily researched for hours and days the prices and options for buying a del before we were introduced to the Del Lady. The Del Lady came to our home with books of designs and swatches. She took our orders, our measurements, and our money. Everyone began to talk to her with vauge ideas of what they wanted and she, being not just a talented seamstress, but an artist, discussed and drew. All parties, the Del Lady, us, and Ariel, who was acting as translater, slowly grew more and more excited as ideas began to take shape into what would become beautiful clothing. Today she delievered.
We weren't expecting our orders till after Naadam, because of how busy she is at this time of the year, when everyone wants new clothes for the holiday. As she took out each piece, we went "oooh!" and "ahhh!" in appriciation and approval. We had a mini fashion show. People took turns trying on one another's new clothing. It was fun. Some people got dels, I got a jacket, and Allison got a pretty spiffy dress.
We look -good-.
The Del Lady, I am sure, has a name of her own. However, we never caught it. When the Del Lady comes, with her comes the Del Lady's Assistant, who is her younger sister. The former is a seamstress, the later someone learning how to be a seamstress. She's good, quick, and, most importantly, cheap. And, when you get something from her, you feel as though you made a difference in someone's life rather than when you buy a del from the State Department Store, which is both expensive and kind of intimidating.
According to the internet, a del is the "traditional dress of Mongolia." I think this is a poor description and about equal to calling "an ugly sweater your senile aunt gave you one Christmas" American traditional dress. Everyone here seems to own a del. They're useful. They're warm. Mostly older people wear them, but around certain holidays, everyone brings their dels out. Except dels are more comfortable and generally have better useful uses than as a doorstop, Halloween costume used to scare small children, or piece of blackmail. They have many purposes, several of which I won't outline here, I'm sure you can fill in the mental gaps when you learn that people take dels to the countryside, but they're quite similar to how Douglas Adam's describes a towel:
A towel, it says, is about the most massively useful thing an interstellar hitch hiker can have. Partly it has great practical value - you can wrap it around you for warmth...you can lie on it on the brilliant marble-sanded beaches...you can sleep under it beneath the stars...use it to sail a mini raft...wet it for use in hand-to-hand-combat...wrap it round your head to ward off noxious fumes...you can wave your towel in emergencies as a distress signal, and of course dry yourself off with it if it still seems to be clean enough.
You can also do all of those things with a del as well as look -damn- good.
So, of course, being the fashionistas we are, we all wanted dels. Allie and Emily researched for hours and days the prices and options for buying a del before we were introduced to the Del Lady. The Del Lady came to our home with books of designs and swatches. She took our orders, our measurements, and our money. Everyone began to talk to her with vauge ideas of what they wanted and she, being not just a talented seamstress, but an artist, discussed and drew. All parties, the Del Lady, us, and Ariel, who was acting as translater, slowly grew more and more excited as ideas began to take shape into what would become beautiful clothing. Today she delievered.
We weren't expecting our orders till after Naadam, because of how busy she is at this time of the year, when everyone wants new clothes for the holiday. As she took out each piece, we went "oooh!" and "ahhh!" in appriciation and approval. We had a mini fashion show. People took turns trying on one another's new clothing. It was fun. Some people got dels, I got a jacket, and Allison got a pretty spiffy dress.
We look -good-.
Wednesday, July 9, 2008
My Countryside Research Trip
For my independent project, I am looking at the interactions between tourism and the environment. One of the lectures we received from the National University was on the ecosystems and natural landscapes of Mongolia. The professor, Uuganbaatar, who gave us this lecture was a member of the ecology department, and had just started a program on Eco-tourism. He offered to let me tag along on a field research trip he was taking with his students to Bogd Mountain Strictly Protected Area. He was leaving the next day for another field trip, but said he would call me when he got back on the 25th or 26th.
Flash forward 2 weeks to the 25th at 9:15 am. My phone rings and it's Uuganbaatar:
"Hello, Emily are you ready to leave? Meet at the University in front of building 2 at 10:30."
"AM?"
"Yes"
So, I packed my bag, Allie and Allison ran to the grocery store to buy me some food, and off I went. In true Mongolian fashion, we did not leave the city until 1 even though scheduled departure time was 11. We arrived at the university field station in Bogd Mountain, set up our camp and talked about what we were going to be doing for the rest of the trip. While I was there we went on 2 day long hikes. The first was to the highest point in the park and to a very large ovoo nearby. The second was to an old Buddhist Temple that was mostly destroyed during the purges, but historically housed over 1,000 lamas. The students were looking at the accessibility of each location to tourists (trails, markers, information available, camp sites, tourist camps, etc.) In addition to the hikes, we had classes outlining problems in the area and challenges that the park faces in terms of tourism. What I found from these discussions (or at least the parts that were translated for me), is that the teacher and students were very good at looking at the short falls of tourism in the area, especially from a biological perspective, but struggled a bit in thinking of solutions. Some alternatives were put forth, but the implementation then proved nearly impossible.
In addition to classes, we had a lit of free time. I had a lot of fun interacting with the other students. Even with the language barrier, we could communicate pretty well. Among the things we did were cooking group meals (the Houshuur assembly line was quite impressive), showing the students my pictures, and playing volleyball. However, my favorite was our soccer games. Even in my Chaco's I gave most of the guys a run for their money. All the students were quite impressed with my soccer ability. I guess the 10+ years of experience comes in handy, even in Mongolia.
Love, Emily
Flash forward 2 weeks to the 25th at 9:15 am. My phone rings and it's Uuganbaatar:
"Hello, Emily are you ready to leave? Meet at the University in front of building 2 at 10:30."
"AM?"
"Yes"
So, I packed my bag, Allie and Allison ran to the grocery store to buy me some food, and off I went. In true Mongolian fashion, we did not leave the city until 1 even though scheduled departure time was 11. We arrived at the university field station in Bogd Mountain, set up our camp and talked about what we were going to be doing for the rest of the trip. While I was there we went on 2 day long hikes. The first was to the highest point in the park and to a very large ovoo nearby. The second was to an old Buddhist Temple that was mostly destroyed during the purges, but historically housed over 1,000 lamas. The students were looking at the accessibility of each location to tourists (trails, markers, information available, camp sites, tourist camps, etc.) In addition to the hikes, we had classes outlining problems in the area and challenges that the park faces in terms of tourism. What I found from these discussions (or at least the parts that were translated for me), is that the teacher and students were very good at looking at the short falls of tourism in the area, especially from a biological perspective, but struggled a bit in thinking of solutions. Some alternatives were put forth, but the implementation then proved nearly impossible.
In addition to classes, we had a lit of free time. I had a lot of fun interacting with the other students. Even with the language barrier, we could communicate pretty well. Among the things we did were cooking group meals (the Houshuur assembly line was quite impressive), showing the students my pictures, and playing volleyball. However, my favorite was our soccer games. Even in my Chaco's I gave most of the guys a run for their money. All the students were quite impressed with my soccer ability. I guess the 10+ years of experience comes in handy, even in Mongolia.
Love, Emily
Monday, July 7, 2008
perfect day out in the countryside (without leaving UB)
so yesterday, our friend ninj invited us out to her sister's house out on the border of UB at the edge of the ger district. we met her at 10am in front of the tinggis movie theater and took a microbus out to the northern ger district where her sister's summer home is.
quick notes about a mongolian microbus -- they're the cheapest way to get around UB. they cram way to many people into them. the drivers are usually borderline psychotic. all-in-all they are an entertaining way to get around. the morning ride there wasn't bad at all, because the buses weren't busy yet.
riding through the ger district though was a bit surprising. the descriptions we have heard about ger districts make them out to be slums, that are too dangerous for foreigners to go to. however, i didn't really find that to be the case. maybe the mongolians that live in the ger districts are not as wealthy as those who live in the city, but there were some damn nice houses in the area. if you know nothing about ger districts, they are where the overflow of people who come from the countryside looking for jobs settle down. land is not regulated, so people just pick a plot of land, claim it for themselves, build a fence around "their property," and then put up a ger or build a house. the ger districts stretch for miles outside of the main city of UB, kind of like a makeshift suburbia. all the houses are complete random colors ranging from an acid pink to a vomit colored orange-green, which could potentially make more sensitive types break out into a seizure. but in all honesty, i think its a nice change of pace from the drab brown-grey buildings of pittsburgh.
ninj's sister lived in a gated community though, specifically for wealthier company workers who want to move out of the city during the summer. ninj's sister (who is also named ninj; ninj is both of their short names, they have different long names but those are harder to spell/remember) works for the mongolian equivalent of the U.S. FCC, her husband works for the USF (which i think is sort of like the U.S. FDA). the take-home message of that is that they're fairly well off compared to the average mongolian couple. they have a daughter who was one and a half, named heeshkai. i think she was not used to seeing foreigners though, because she was very shy around us.
ninj took us hiking around the area -- which was amazing. it was a beautiful day. if you reference my past blog entries, you'll notice that i've never actually experienced a nice day in the countryside, only sandstorms, rain, etc. this day was PERFECT. blue skies, not too hot, seriously amazing. we hiked up a few mountains and talked to ninj about her favorite movies, music, that type of thing. she'll be coming to stay at pittsburgh pretty soon, so we also taught her some necessary slang terms to know in america, like "bring it on" which she had heard but never understood from that corresponding awful movie with that exact title.
there was a freak rainstorm that blew in, but it only lasted for about 15 minutes. we had dinner after we were finished hiking. ninj's sister cooked us some sort of mongolian stirfry that was pretty awesome. we decided to head back to UB around 6pm. it took a while to catch a microbus back. this one was not as empty as before. in a van that should not seat more than 9 people in the back, we fit 16. impressive yes, comfortable no. luckily i was near a window so my clausterphobia didn't kick in too bad. plus when you are crushed against the wall with two people on your lap, you don't notice the manic driving as much because you can't move.
we got back to the apt around 7pm, and we were all fairly tired and sunburned so we decided to have a calm night in, in spite of the fact that this was the first night we could go out without a curfew. i've been following the wimbleton tournament since i've been here (seeing as how it's one of the few stations we get) but i fell asleep before i saw who won the championship match between federer and nadal -- apparently it was a really exciting match that nadal won after a gruelling 4 hrs and 48 minutes. i caught 15min of it and passed out... oh well, there's always youtube for the highlights.
quick notes about a mongolian microbus -- they're the cheapest way to get around UB. they cram way to many people into them. the drivers are usually borderline psychotic. all-in-all they are an entertaining way to get around. the morning ride there wasn't bad at all, because the buses weren't busy yet.
riding through the ger district though was a bit surprising. the descriptions we have heard about ger districts make them out to be slums, that are too dangerous for foreigners to go to. however, i didn't really find that to be the case. maybe the mongolians that live in the ger districts are not as wealthy as those who live in the city, but there were some damn nice houses in the area. if you know nothing about ger districts, they are where the overflow of people who come from the countryside looking for jobs settle down. land is not regulated, so people just pick a plot of land, claim it for themselves, build a fence around "their property," and then put up a ger or build a house. the ger districts stretch for miles outside of the main city of UB, kind of like a makeshift suburbia. all the houses are complete random colors ranging from an acid pink to a vomit colored orange-green, which could potentially make more sensitive types break out into a seizure. but in all honesty, i think its a nice change of pace from the drab brown-grey buildings of pittsburgh.
ninj's sister lived in a gated community though, specifically for wealthier company workers who want to move out of the city during the summer. ninj's sister (who is also named ninj; ninj is both of their short names, they have different long names but those are harder to spell/remember) works for the mongolian equivalent of the U.S. FCC, her husband works for the USF (which i think is sort of like the U.S. FDA). the take-home message of that is that they're fairly well off compared to the average mongolian couple. they have a daughter who was one and a half, named heeshkai. i think she was not used to seeing foreigners though, because she was very shy around us.
ninj took us hiking around the area -- which was amazing. it was a beautiful day. if you reference my past blog entries, you'll notice that i've never actually experienced a nice day in the countryside, only sandstorms, rain, etc. this day was PERFECT. blue skies, not too hot, seriously amazing. we hiked up a few mountains and talked to ninj about her favorite movies, music, that type of thing. she'll be coming to stay at pittsburgh pretty soon, so we also taught her some necessary slang terms to know in america, like "bring it on" which she had heard but never understood from that corresponding awful movie with that exact title.
there was a freak rainstorm that blew in, but it only lasted for about 15 minutes. we had dinner after we were finished hiking. ninj's sister cooked us some sort of mongolian stirfry that was pretty awesome. we decided to head back to UB around 6pm. it took a while to catch a microbus back. this one was not as empty as before. in a van that should not seat more than 9 people in the back, we fit 16. impressive yes, comfortable no. luckily i was near a window so my clausterphobia didn't kick in too bad. plus when you are crushed against the wall with two people on your lap, you don't notice the manic driving as much because you can't move.
we got back to the apt around 7pm, and we were all fairly tired and sunburned so we decided to have a calm night in, in spite of the fact that this was the first night we could go out without a curfew. i've been following the wimbleton tournament since i've been here (seeing as how it's one of the few stations we get) but i fell asleep before i saw who won the championship match between federer and nadal -- apparently it was a really exciting match that nadal won after a gruelling 4 hrs and 48 minutes. i caught 15min of it and passed out... oh well, there's always youtube for the highlights.
Sunday, July 6, 2008
A Mongolian Anthropological Experience
I've been away from the group for a couple of weeks but finally found my way back to UB on the 2nd. My independent research project took me on a wild adventure hundreds of kilometers from UB with a group of 15 Mongolians. I left UB with one days notice and found myself piled into a massive truck thundering towards Kharkorum. I was sandwiched in the front of the truck with the driver and a graduate student, neither of which spoke much English and we all know y Mongolian is terrible. This made for a rather quiet drive. However, when we stopped for lunch the students were more willing to make an attempt at talking to me. My favorite was when one of the boys came up to me, extended his hand, and said "Let us meet!" His name was Erueka and it turned out that his English was very good. Between his translations and my pocket dictionary, communicating got easier and easier as the weeks progressed. At first I didn't put my dictionary down, but by the time we came back I was leaving the book in my tent for days and only referencing it for something particular. Slowly, my Mongolian improved too! I learned words that were important for the dig, such as: pot, rock, shovel, bucket, and brush.
As for the actual digging, this experience was everything I had hoped it would be. We worked on a site that was on top of a mountain and near several ovoos. One of the structures was a very large rock pile that was about 80 m in circumference. however, we were working on some of the subsidiary structures that surrounded this main one. We believed that the rock formations may have been burial markers. Sadly, I won't know if they were or not. After three days of digging, a few local herdsmen came to the site. They were very upset about us digging so close to the ovoos, and literally grabbed our shovels from our hands and threw them to the ground. The even picked up the newly uncovered rocks and threw and kicked them out of place. So much for keeping them "in situ!" Our Professor tried to talk to these men and even went to a town meeting to beg these people to let us stay. They wouldn't hear of it. So that night, we packed up camp and moved into a National Park to stay the night and try to figure out where we could go to finish our excavation... and by that I mean start a new one!
I was away for over two weeks so it may take more than one post to explain it all. Look for the rest of my adventure soon!
Love,
Amber
As for the actual digging, this experience was everything I had hoped it would be. We worked on a site that was on top of a mountain and near several ovoos. One of the structures was a very large rock pile that was about 80 m in circumference. however, we were working on some of the subsidiary structures that surrounded this main one. We believed that the rock formations may have been burial markers. Sadly, I won't know if they were or not. After three days of digging, a few local herdsmen came to the site. They were very upset about us digging so close to the ovoos, and literally grabbed our shovels from our hands and threw them to the ground. The even picked up the newly uncovered rocks and threw and kicked them out of place. So much for keeping them "in situ!" Our Professor tried to talk to these men and even went to a town meeting to beg these people to let us stay. They wouldn't hear of it. So that night, we packed up camp and moved into a National Park to stay the night and try to figure out where we could go to finish our excavation... and by that I mean start a new one!
I was away for over two weeks so it may take more than one post to explain it all. Look for the rest of my adventure soon!
Love,
Amber
Saturday, July 5, 2008
Happy 5th of July
happy belated birthday america!
today to celebrate the day after the 4th (aka the 5th) we attended a party coordinated by the U.S. embassy. the place was at this apt complex where i suppose all the american ambassidors, important people, etc live. it seriously looked like they took a condo development in tampa florida and moved it to the center of UB -- a bit ridiculous.
they had patriotic music, imported american picnic food, milkshakes for a dollar (melissa was all over that one), everything necessary for a 5th of july celebration (minus the fireworks -- probably not allowed during the current state of emergency anyway...). we were actually a little overwhelmed being surrounded by that many americans... it was like a preview of the reverse culture shock to come.
we also entered a tug-o-war contest -- 5 people to a team. it was me, allie, emily, yelena, and molly. the last thing i said before we started the contest was "let's just not embarass ourselves" sadly enough, we weren't able to accomplish that. we were decimated by a team that consisted of 1 girl, 3 men, and a massive beast who tied the rope around his waist. we didn't stand a chance.
even if we would've won, it would've just delayed an inevitable defeat by the unstoppable force of the "storming mormons." it seemed like they had been practicing for weeks to prepare for this small little contest. they had the perfect tug-o-war technique, and matching short-sleeved white button-down and black khaki uniforms. i wasn't impressed.
anyway, hope you guys lived it up in the states -- not going to lie, the 4th of july made me miss the pirates games tailgates. later
today to celebrate the day after the 4th (aka the 5th) we attended a party coordinated by the U.S. embassy. the place was at this apt complex where i suppose all the american ambassidors, important people, etc live. it seriously looked like they took a condo development in tampa florida and moved it to the center of UB -- a bit ridiculous.
they had patriotic music, imported american picnic food, milkshakes for a dollar (melissa was all over that one), everything necessary for a 5th of july celebration (minus the fireworks -- probably not allowed during the current state of emergency anyway...). we were actually a little overwhelmed being surrounded by that many americans... it was like a preview of the reverse culture shock to come.
we also entered a tug-o-war contest -- 5 people to a team. it was me, allie, emily, yelena, and molly. the last thing i said before we started the contest was "let's just not embarass ourselves" sadly enough, we weren't able to accomplish that. we were decimated by a team that consisted of 1 girl, 3 men, and a massive beast who tied the rope around his waist. we didn't stand a chance.
even if we would've won, it would've just delayed an inevitable defeat by the unstoppable force of the "storming mormons." it seemed like they had been practicing for weeks to prepare for this small little contest. they had the perfect tug-o-war technique, and matching short-sleeved white button-down and black khaki uniforms. i wasn't impressed.
anyway, hope you guys lived it up in the states -- not going to lie, the 4th of july made me miss the pirates games tailgates. later
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