|
|
Joined: Nov 2000
Posts: 866
old hand
|
OP
old hand
Joined: Nov 2000
Posts: 866 |
In January this year I nade a post from a gold mine in Western Australia. At the time the external temperature was 53 degrees C - warm by any standards.
Well. here I am months later, half a world away geographically speaking and even further than that in many other ways.
I am at another gold mine, but this time it's minus 20 degrees C outside in the sunshine and everything is dazzling white instead of red. I'm in Mongolia, about 250km south of the Russian border, north of the capital Ulan Baatar.
This message is a brief hi after a long absence from the Board. I intend to follow up with a more detailed list of impressions as time permits over the next week or so because there are many, many things I have seen and learned that I would like to share with you.
All I'll say in the meantime is that this is a fantastic place with fantastic people - both will forever be a part of me even after I leave this weekend.
Look forward to getting in touch again soon,
stales
|
|
|
|
|
Joined: Mar 2000
Posts: 6,511
Carpal Tunnel
|
|
Carpal Tunnel
Joined: Mar 2000
Posts: 6,511 |
Good to see your frozen fonts, mate. 
|
|
|
|
|
Joined: Jun 2002
Posts: 1,624
Pooh-Bah
|
|
Pooh-Bah
Joined: Jun 2002
Posts: 1,624 |
Selling comms gear to Al Qaeda, I bet ...
- Pfranz
|
|
|
|
|
Joined: Jun 2001
Posts: 2,636
Carpal Tunnel
|
|
Carpal Tunnel
Joined: Jun 2001
Posts: 2,636 |
Stales! Good to hear that you are being dazzled by the back of beyond! I can't wait to read what you have to type. [envy-e from a traveling fool]
|
|
|
|
|
Joined: Mar 2000
Posts: 11,613
Carpal Tunnel
|
|
Carpal Tunnel
Joined: Mar 2000
Posts: 11,613 |
Honey, let us hear from you a.s.a.p., please--I've been worried half to death about you in that frozen place. I won't feel better until I know you've gotten home safe and sound.
|
|
|
|
|
Joined: Nov 2000
Posts: 866
old hand
|
|
OP
old hand
Joined: Nov 2000
Posts: 866 |
Arrived home safe n sound last Saturday morning after about 18 days in Mongolia. Outer Mongolia that is, Inner Mongolia is part of China.
Spent a total of 3 days in the capital, "UB" (variously Ulaan Baatar, Ulanbaator etc). The locals call it UB so that gives me license to do so as well. Spent the rest of the time (during the days) on the mine site (well, acksherly it's a construction site for the next 7 months) and at a nearby village (Baruunkharaa - 'bar-roon-har-ra' ) at night. We had the full time services of a driver and interpreter cum communications engineer so were very well catered for. To be frank, it was the best organised and most pleasant installation our company has done - a credit to our client's management team in UB.
When boiled down, I guess 18 days spread between one small city, a mine site and a small village is hardly a representative slice of what is a very large and diverse country. Nonetheless, I have had an experience unavailable to millions (one still needs a letter of invitation to get into the place) for which I will always be grateful and which I will always treasure.
My overwhelming impression disturbs me slightly because it is the same as many servicemen had when they served in Vietnam. I refer to the kindness, gentleness, openness, affectionate and childlike nature of the people. In no way do I want to fall into the category of the fortunate, conquering westerner but I fear that that is exactly the impression we may have made on some people. Frinstance, pulling out the digital video and still cameras each night in our tiny hotel (in front of the locals), showing the day's pics on the laptop, buying wine and chocolate for people that had obviously never had either. My mate Bass and I were very conscious of the fine line between bringing enjoyment to the locals (it WAS just like a good old fashioned slide night) and coming across as a member of the bourgeoisie. We tried to compensate by giving copies of the photos taken to everybody, eating the same food as them, trying valiantly to speak their language and copying a few of their quaint (and very sensible) traditions. (One that we thoroughly enjoyed is the practise of a simple handclasp if you accidentally kick somebody under the table or bump them in the street. When a westerner offers their hand having committed such an offence it is always VERY well received - a big grin with the returned handclasp).
Whilst the vast white rolling country side was a huge contrast to the even vaster rolling redness of Australia there are some startling similarities. One can allegorically substitute the powder snow for Australia's red dirt. Both climates are harsh and will kill you if proper precautions are not observed. Dehydration is even more of a problem there than it is here. We get bogged in red dirt, they in powder snow. Both here and there there are great distances between settlements. In remote areas of both countries people are friendly and welcoming, their house, food and hospitality are offered unquestioningly and without expectation of reward to passing strangers.
The key difference must therefore be the people. These are people that have not forgotten that they used to rule the world - that they are descendants of one of the strongest empires the world has seen. The descendant of the warriors that were so feared that the chinese built a bloody great wall to keep them out of Beijing.
In three weeks I only met one stupid person - a retired policemen with fond memories of his 24 years on the job. He was proud of the fact that he'd only needed his fists to make his point during this time.
The rest of the people I met include some of the smartest, most genuine people I have ever met. This was summarised beautifully by one of the Australian construction workers, "Mate, if you want to get something done in this place the best way is to come up to their level". Smart people I met included our 'translator', a demeaning term for a degree qualified communications engineer fluent in Mongol, Russian and English - fluent not only in speaking, but also writing at both the social and technical level. The other interpreters included a civil engineer with a masters degree in construction engineering, a petroleum engineer, a geophysicist and an associate professor of law with expertise in international criminal law and six years teaching experience. All were trilingual (at least), all but one were women and all but one were in their mid to late 20's. Whilst I was looking at a condensed sample of the population I have no reason to believe it was not also a representative cross section of society. One of the benefits of the russian socialist government Mongolia had until 1991 was that everybody was educated to a high standard - these are the people I had the pleasure of working with. People who, without the opportunity to work at the site, would have been earning $30 to $60 US per MONTH in UB. In a country where a cheap quilted chinese jacket essential for the -30 to -40 degrees C winters costs around $60 USD in the black market. It breaks my heart.
I referred earlier to the openness and affectionate nature of the people. Never in this society of ours (unless I make an embarrassing mistake in my choice of bars!!) will I be asked, nay dragged, onto a dance floor by so many good looking men so often. Similarly, when exhausted from a bout of said dancing, I am most unlikely to sit cuddling one or more males in a bar here at home, no matter how long I have known them. The western (and Eastern - take the Japanese for instance) concepts of homosexuality and need for personal space are essentially unknown. I felt very comforted by these frank and open displays of affection - if they like you you are shown just how much. On the other hand, if they don't like you you will never know, their politeness is reminiscent of the stereotypical "Inscrutable Oriental". Never once did we hear one Mongol raise their voice to another - and apparently that observation rings true all the time, it is a rare event for one to 'do their block'.
One of the things we noted was their tendency to talk to each other in whispers. It wasn't that they were concerned about being overheard, it is just a polite way of conversing. When volume is not necessary why use it?
The Mongol language is an absolute cruncher for the uneducated antipodean monoglot. There are many throat, bottom of the tongue and back of the mouth sounds (rather like those of german) which we found impossible to master in the short time available to us. On the other hand, the Mongols pronunciation of english tended to be very good, not surprisingly it often had a russian accent. If anything, the only problem they seemed to have was the 'th' sound (as in Perth). Again, there were similarities to german in that it comes out as an 's'. Even those without english had no problems with my name, Roger. None of the "lodge-a" that I've come to expect from Japanese and Chinese.
I'm told that Mongol is Mongol and for always has been so, but with links to ancient Turkish.
In terms of other links, I was struck by the appearance of the locals as they reminded me very much of the few native americans I have seen. Subsequent research shows a genetic link from native americans back to Siberians and, lo and behold, further back again to the Mongols. Just another piece to the story that these people conquered the known world in ancient times. One oft quoted item of evidence is the "Mongol blue spot" present on 95-100% of Mongol, Siberian and native american babies. (This is a substantial blue bruise-like birth mark at the base of a baby's spine - it has usually disappeared by the time the child is 2 or 3). Apparently this is also present on 100 % of black babies so it seems it is not as good an anthropomorphic indicator as some authors would hope.
I cannot continue with my objective appraisal of Mongol (as it is known locally) without referring to the consistent beauty of the woman. Quite simply, they are the most beautiful I have ever seen. Tall, slim and with stunning features - the high cheek bones and strongly slitted eyes are show stoppers. Again I believe this is similar to the few native american women I have seen. One lady at the site (the doctor to be precise) must have been in her late 50's if not mid 60's. Her caramel coloured, wrinkle free (not including her "laughter lines" ), heart shaped face radiated a serenity the likes of which I'd never seen. I used to sit and try not to get caught staring at her during lunch. Unfortunately I never plucked up the courage to ask if I could photograph her. Ah the things we'd do if we had our lives over!
In three weeks I only saw 3 ladies that one could regard as unattractive - a far lesser rate than one sees here. I don't think I was just smitten by the Asian appearance either, I've spent time in Singapore over the past two years and only saw a handful of beautiful women each time. Couple the features I've described with the inevitably high intellect AND the fact the ladies drank beer pint for pint with me all added up to a very impressive package!! Finally, I'm happy to report that it wasn't only the guys that wanted to dance with me and Bass at the couple of night clubs we visited!!
One of the things that we never quite got used to was the ubiquitous 'open door' policy in our little country hotel. If somebody walking down the corridor wants to see who is in 'that' room - they do so! The just open the door, have a look around, stare at you blankly, don't say a word, close the door and go on their way. Knocking is unheard of. It probably relates back to the fact that the majority of the population live in a 'ger' (don't use the word 'yurt'; it is the russian word for the traditional mongol residence and just demonstrates how ignorant you are if you use it). Mongols never knock on the door of a ger - only a fool would stand outside patiently knocking when it's blizzarding outside and minus 40 degrees! Besides which, gloved hands knocking on felt lined front doors are hardly likely to catch anybody's attention! Better to call out in your best Mongol, "Hold the dogs!" and march right in. Sort of the Gobi version of, "Halloo the house!"
At the risk of boring you, another of the numerous things I noted was the lack of team sports at any level. The most revered Mongol sports person is the guy who just won the Japanese Sumo championship. Hard on his heels are several Mongol wrestlers (they have their own style similar to Sumo in that it involves putting the opponent on the ground from an initial stand-off). Beyond this are archers and horsemen. I'll refrain from using the word jockey as it send the wrong idea. Picture instead 4, 6 and 8 year olds with wooden saddles and rough bridles on the toughest ponies you've ever seen - racing to a point many miles out of town and back again! All the while standing in the stirrups, their bodies hardly moving despite the exertions of their mount.
People are continually asking me about the food. I refuse to speak against it - shall we just say that you should not expect a gastronomic extravanganza. In a country as poor and harsh as Mongol the food, as one would expect, is about survival. Yes, there's boiled mutton in numerous different guises, every meal is laden with fat, fat and more fat and there's a distinct lack of vegetables, fruit and spices - but what do you expect? The fare will keep you warm and alive and isn't that the main thing? I'm proud to say that I ate everything put in front of me and didn't find it difficult at all. To be frank, I've never eaten so much in all my life - and didn't put on any weight, nor did I get any tummy upsets. Most pleasing was the fact it is 2002 and the golden arches have not yet made it to Mongol. Unfortunately, I suspect it is only a matter of time.
I thought about presents for a while before going, trying to decide what would be unique, "Roger-ish" (ie quirky - gotta be quirky) and Australian. With a bit of guidance from a work colleague I hit upon the perfect present......tanned kangaroo scrotum purses!! Available for about $8USD from all the Duty Free stores around town. As used by gold miners in days of yore because of their durability and because there are no sewn seams for your gold dust to hide in. Fortunately these appealed hugely to the Mongols (and every other person I've ever met!). After the initial period of incredulity and double checking that, yes, they really are kangaroo sacks there were smiles all around!! Same tradition as Australia and England - I was told that I had to put a coin in each one.
Unfortunately I only had a finite number so some friends had to miss out. In an effort to stop one of my closer colleagues feeling left out I gave him my plaited kangaroo skin belt (the sort with two rings at the front in lieu of a buckle). I'd had the thing for 21 years but hey, I can get another.
Also gave away a towel with the Aussie flag on it but had to be careful here. Really wanted to give it to our driver but his house doesn't have a bathroom or running hot water - I was concerned that giving him my towel could send the wrong signals. Many visitors leave as much as possible behind - isn't there an old saying about things only having true value if you are prepared to give them away?
So folks - if ever you get the chance......
Thanks for your indulgence.
stales
|
|
|
|
|
Joined: Jun 2002
Posts: 7,210
Carpal Tunnel
|
|
Carpal Tunnel
Joined: Jun 2002
Posts: 7,210 |
thank you for that, Roger.
formerly known as etaoin...
|
|
|
|
|
Joined: Mar 2000
Posts: 11,613
Carpal Tunnel
|
|
Carpal Tunnel
Joined: Mar 2000
Posts: 11,613 |
Fascinating, Sweetie--thank you. Isn't it amazing, the different kinds of lives lived, on this planet? And yet we all have so many basic similarities. I'm glad to know you're safe, and proud to know you! I expect this trip will have a lasting effect on you.
P.S.--Is Australian dirt red because of iron?
|
|
|
|
|
Joined: Nov 2002
Posts: 77
journeyman
|
|
journeyman
Joined: Nov 2002
Posts: 77 |
Dearest Stales,
My! This introduction to you is somewhat overwhelming for a stranger like me. I only recently found my way to AWAdie-land seeking a refuge of intelligent souls, (and I imagine have) but I've been stumbling around a bit awkwardly. Of course, having only just arrived in here a short while ago, I had no idea of your existence, much less your lengthy (and perhaps unexplained) disappearance from here, and your Mongolian visit has unfolded like a grand adventure for me. I have delighted in this little tale (do tell more!) and have been touched by the fondness your friends here have shown.
I am pleased and impressed (not suggesting that my opinion should matter to anyone else here, just sharing my thoughts....) by your appreciation of the people and the vast landscape, as well as the cultural sensitivity you have shown. I guess I just wanted to let you all know that today my world is a little happier place knowing Stales is out there somewhere, meeting new people and discovering new lands, keeping in touch with all of you in here. What a sweet, little story for this holiday season...
magimaria
|
|
|
|
|
Joined: Sep 2001
Posts: 872
old hand
|
|
old hand
Joined: Sep 2001
Posts: 872 |
Thank you Stales, through your eyes the people of Outer Mongolia took form and became real, while replacing tired images of what I thought they were in reading newspapers and books. Good report. And not incidentally, I would like to have one of those tanned kangaroo scrotum purses.
|
|
|
|
Forums16
Topics13,913
Posts229,326
Members9,182
| |
Most Online3,341
Dec 9th, 2011
|
|
|
0 members (),
585
guests, and
7
robots. |
|
Key:
Admin,
Global Mod,
Mod
|
|
|
|
