Mongolian horses and Super Ogii

Its been longer then I intended from my last post, but that's what happens sometimes. I was planning on posting something quickly before I left for a seven day horse-trek, but I ended up not having time before I left Ulaan Bator (UB). I also didn't really have anything to say either, as I spent about a week just hanging out in UB, and trying to learn my photo editing program.

On the tour to the Gobi I did some horse riding and really enjoyed it. In UB I also looked into doing some work, but volunteering is quite difficult (unless you want to pay 1500e for two weeks through European companies). I had thought it wouldn't be hard to find something but it actually was. So I ended up having only one option: horse riding. So I booked a horse trek for seven days in Terelj, a national park to the east of UB. This seemed OK as the earlier tour had been really good. And just so you don't get the wrong impression, I did have a good time riding. A few things did start to bother me.

I don't think I have ever done organized tours before and was hesitant to start on them when I got to Mongolia, but I thought it would be good to try and I have heard a lot of good things about them. I also booked through UB Guesthouse, which has a good reputation here. On this trek I started to wonder about the financial aspect, and specifically where the money goes. I (or actually my companions and I) started on some investigative work. I was quite disappointed. The only person directly involved with us for the entire trek got only seven percent of the money paid by us. We all felt quite bad about this, and this includes our guide. I could see that he was quite upset. Ogii, or Super Ogii as we called him, was the only professional and unselfish person involved with running the tour, and he got barely any money for it. I will be making sure in the future if I go on tours that the money goes to the people who deserve it. This also reinforces my belief that individual travel is far better then organized tours, and the farther from the destination you book your tour, the more the money goes to people who don't need it. So, go to the destination, and ask around. Nine times out of ten you have a more 'realistic' experience, and you never know, you could even meet real local people, or have a proper adventure.

But back to Ogii, our horse guide I respect and trust. He was the definite highlight of our trip. His english vocabulary consisted of only the following words: horse, guide, lunch (all food), good, bad, no problem, tomorrow, and super. What he lacked in english was offset by his acting skills. We ended up having tons of fun and found out lots of things about him, and vice versa. Just try to act out fireman, or graphic designer, without using any words and you will get the idea. He received his nickname after we had been saying how good of a guide he is with words like 'good' and 'very good' (the only ones he knew). After a little pondering, he just nodded and added "SUPER Ogii." Of course alcohol had no part in this whatsoever . The name stuck, and his family and friends loved it also. So if anyone is heading for Mongolia and wants a good horse guide, I have contact information for a really good one. We also made a point of trying to find clients for him, skipping the company entirely. I know when I go back I will definitely be seeing him.

The riding took a while to kick off properly, as the horses are used to tourists who are content with the horse following the one in front of it at a slow amble. After they realized I wasn't one of those the going got good, and there is plenty of energy in them. Also I loved learning a new way of riding. In Mongolia you half-stand in the stirrups, and reigns are held with only one hand. Much more fun then the way you ride in Europe. What was also fun is that Mongolian horses are only half-tame, and therefor are far more robust and coordinated then horses in the West. Places where horses would never be taken in Finland are routine here. It really makes for more enjoyable riding when horses can go on other surfaces in addition to flat fields.


Our guide Super Ogii helping with mare milking, as a mare wont give milk without the foal next to it.




More milk products, this time its only butter.



Unfortunately my visa runs out the day after tomorrow, so tomorrow I have to leave for China. I would love to spend another week with Ogii, but today I booked a local train to the last town in Mongolia, from where I'll take a bus over the border to China. Beijing will hopefully be the first proper stop there, as I need to get my camera serviced. The Gobi Desert is expanding yearly, and this year it also expanded into my Nikon lens, and as Beijing is the nearest place with a Nikon service, I have to head there. I doubt it will be much of a problem, just a good clean and it should be fine. So until then there will be a little less photography. And as an ending note, I hope The Dragon won't block access to blogger, as I've heard they have done to facebook. Although there is always www.pimpmyip.org.





RANDOM FACT GENERATOR

Timer started: 15 may 2009 (my last day of work)
Time passed: 48 days 4 hours
Doping control: no illegal doping used

Result: Beard length 27mm. Mustache trimmed three times. Today I will trim my beard.