Title – Khousgol Nuur Lake
Date – August 2002
Location - Khovsgol – Mongolia
Khovsgol Nuur is one of the worlds truly great lakes with over 370,000 Billion litres of water it holds nearly 2% of the worlds fresh water and fresh water that is so clear and clean that you can drink directly from its shores. It is said the water is so pure that throughout much of the year when the lake remains frozen you can see straight through the more then 1m thick layer of ice that covers it and to the bottom of the more shallow parts of the lake.
Khovsgol Nuur remains frozen much of the year and freezes to such a degree that it used to be the preferred route for tankers delivering oil to the country from the old Soviet Union when Mongolia relied heavily on the aid it received from its communist neighbour. No one can give you an exact figure but it is believed that over the years some 40 of these disappeared through the ice of this lake that in parts is over 250 meters deep.
Drinking water is one he the daily struggles you have to overcome when travelling the world. In most places drinking the tap water is not a sensible option and even here on the massive Khovsgol Nuur’s shores you should use caution as although the lakes water is undoubtedly very pure, the water round the shore does not flow or dilute as much as that at the centre and with the animals and plant life that relies on the lake for survival, it can become contaminated fairly easily. Beyond The Blue understands these daily needs when you are travelling the world and on our Gap Year and Independent Travel Safety & Awareness workshop we examine your equipment needs and offer practical advice to help you to make the correct choices with the many situations you will face when you travel.
We maintains a particular interest in Mongolia. The Christina Nobel Children’s Foundation through their operations in Mongolia, work with street kids and children from poor families, to offer support and assistance in escaping the cycle of poverty. The invaluable work the Foundation carries out, helps provide opportunities to the children of this amazing country.
Some of the Street Kids of Ulaan Baatar are forced to live in the city’s sewer system, sleeping on top of the hot water pipes to stay warm and to stay alive. Temperature in the city regularly drops below -35C in the winter months and this is the only way they can survive. For more information we urge you to visit The Christina Nobel Children’s Foundation web site at www.CNCF.org
Title – Day Time Visitors
Date – August 2002
Location - Khovsgol – Mongolia
Being invited into a Ger (traditional round felt tent) is not unusual in Mongolia. When you are out in the countryside you will often dismount from your horse when passing and be offered tea and a snack of yaks cheese and occasionally bread. These are all acquired tastes; the tea tends to be bitter and often laced with sour yaks milk and the cheese can be unrecognisable when compared to what you might be used to, often with the texture of a stick of Brighton rock.
Be prepared for the comings and goings of a Ger, kids, animals, visitors and family members will come and go as if you were not there. The hospitality is legendary, but it sometimes it feels like you are at a busy train station rather then isolated in the middle of one of the world’s least densely populated countries.
Beyond The Blue welcomes anyone to attend our Gap Year and Independent Travel Safety & Awareness workshop whether you are planning a trip to Mongolia or Monaco we can help you prepare yourself properly to reduce the risk you will face and give you the confidence to enjoy the many positive opportunities you will encounter.
Beyond The Blue maintains a particular interest in Mongolia. The Christina Nobel Children’s Foundation through their operations in Mongolia, work with street kids and children from poor families, to offer support and assistance in escaping the cycle of poverty. The invaluable work the Foundation carries out, helps provide opportunities to the children of this amazing country.
Some of the Street Kids of Ulaan Baatar are forced to live in the city’s sewer system, sleeping on top of the hot water pipes to stay warm and to stay alive. Temperature in the city regularly drops below -35C in the winter months and this is the only way they can survive. For more information we urge you to visit The Christina Nobel Children’s Foundation web site at www.CNCF.org
Please visit our website at www.safegapyear.com
Image – ©Peter Mayhew
Title – Home
Date – August 2002
Location - Khovsgol – Mongolia
The Ger is the traditional round tent made from felt and wool that the majority of Mongolians still live in. The traditional Ger allows the occupants to take it down and move it from the summer grazing grounds to the winter ones. There is some etiquette when entering a Ger and if you spend any time in Mongolia, you are sure to be invited in several. Once inside, dairy based snacks, salty creamy tea and often vodka will be offered to you. When you enter a Ger step to the left and sit down on the left hand side accepting whatever you are offered even if you only have a small sip or tiny bite. Be warned that if you finish your plate or cup it will be refilled. An empty plate is in Mongolia a sign that you have not been fed enough by your host.
Beyond The Blue offers cultural awareness advice throughout our Gap Year and Independent Travel Safety & Awareness workshop, which will serve you well when you arrive at your chosen destination and prepare you for the culture shock you will encounter in the new countries you visit.
Beyond The Blue maintains a particular interest in Mongolia. The Christina Nobel Children’s Foundation through their operations in Mongolia, work with street kids and children from poor families, to offer support and assistance in escaping the cycle of poverty. The invaluable work the Foundation carries out, helps provide opportunities to the children of this amazing country.
Some of the Street Kids of Ulaan Baatar are forced to live in the city’s sewer system, sleeping on top of the hot water pipes to stay warm and to stay alive. Temperature in the city regularly drops below -35C in the winter months and this is the only way they can survive. For more information we urge you to visit The Christina Nobel Children’s Foundation web site at www.CNCF.org
Please visit our website at www.safegapyear.com
Image – ©Peter Mayhew
Title – Mongolian Family
Date – August 2002
Location - Khovsgol – Mongolia
Keeping your promises is very important; don’t offer what you are not willing to give. One of the most precious possessions of any Mongolian family are the very few photographs they have of their family. Many times these photographs are official photographs from the time of their military service. When the family realised that I was willing to send them some photos from my trip, they begged me to take photographs of the family and the next day family members from across the valleys gathered for a photo shoot that went on for half a day. The experience was certainly a stark reminder of the importance of family that remains very strong in the country.
At Beyond The Blue we keep our promises. Customer satisfaction is the top of our list of goals and our Gap Year and Independent Travel Safety & Awareness workshop can help you to keep those promises you have made to yourself; to have the confidence to get out and see all that the world has to offer.
Beyond The Blue maintains a particular interest in Mongolia. The Christina Nobel Children’s Foundation through their operations in Mongolia, work with street kids and children from poor families, to offer support and assistance in escaping the cycle of poverty. The invaluable work the Foundation carries out, helps provide opportunities to the children of this amazing country.
Some of the Street Kids of Ulaan Baatar are forced to live in the city’s sewer system, sleeping on top of the hot water pipes to stay warm and to stay alive. Temperature in the city regularly drops below -35C in the winter months and this is the only way they can survive. For more information we urge you to visit The Christina Nobel Children’s Foundation web site at www.CNCF.org
Please visit our website at www.safegapyear.com
Image – ©Peter Mayhew
Title – Night Time Visitors
Date – August 2002
Location - Khovsgol – Mongolia
The opportunity to spend the night in a Ger (traditional round felt tent) is not one to be missed and turning down the invitation might be considered rude. It turned out to be the best night sleep I had during the whole of my Mongolian trip. But the luxury came at a price; the space was shared not only with the whole family, but with some of the animals as well. This is a practice not unfamiliar in a country, where in winter; the average temperature can be in the region of -35C.
Many people would have concerns about sharing their sleeping quarters with livestock and the recent outbreak of Avian Flu in many countries round the world might give you good reason. But research further and you will note that to date (July 2006) only a few cases have been recorded in Mongolia and these were discovered in migrating birds and not domestic stock and no human cases have been recorded. It certainly has something to do with the fact that very few Mongolians keep domestic birds, unlike much of the rest of Asia.
In Mongolia the Marmots are the ones to look out for as some of them still carry the Bubonic Plague.
Beyond The Blue provides destination advice including a summary of health issues for your destination during our Gap Year and Independent Travel Safety & Awareness workshop.
Beyond The Blue maintains a particular interest in Mongolia. The Christina Nobel Children’s Foundation through their operations in Mongolia, work with street kids and children from poor families, to offer support and assistance in escaping the cycle of poverty. The invaluable work the Foundation carries out, helps provide opportunities to the children of this amazing country.
Some of the Street Kids of Ulaan Baatar are forced to live in the city’s sewer system, sleeping on top of the hot water pipes to stay warm and to stay alive. Temperature in the city regularly drops below -35C in the winter months and this is the only way they can survive. For more information we urge you to visit The Christina Nobel Children’s Foundation web site at www.CNCF.org
Please visit our website at www.safegapyear.com
Image – ©Peter Mayhew
Title – Tsai
Date – August 2002
Location - Khovsgol – Mongolia
Tsai is the traditional Mongolian tea that is drunk morning, noon and night. When riding all day these regular breaks, where your guide jumps off and sets a fire no matter what the weather, make even the bitterness of the tea seem palatable. Try to offer and help set the fire when the rain is coming down in sheets, by offering a lighter or similar fancy lighting tool and your kind offer will be refused. My guide like many Mongolians was the original fire-starter, his match box was always close to him and well protected from the elements, and with just one match he lit the fire each time, rain or shine.
If you go to an outdoor equipment supplier these days, they will sell you every tool and every gadget you could possibly want. They will convince you that all their selections are vital for any trip, everything from the sink plug, to a GPS locator.
At Beyond The Blue we know that the choice of equipment that you will be taking on a trip is vitally important; but the sink plug can be bought at your local hardware store for a third the price and a GPS system, though vital for some trips, really is overkill for the average gap year traveller and more relevant for the well planned and experienced expedition. Our Gap Year and Independent Travel Safety & Awareness workshops are tailored to be appropriate for you. We believe that in many cases our session on equipment needs can save you the cost of the workshop itself, in savings on unnecessary equipment and the cost of over packing and either sending home or dumping the excess.
Beyond The Blue maintains a particular interest in Mongolia. The Christina Nobel Children’s Foundation through their operations in Mongolia, work with street kids and children from poor families, to offer support and assistance in escaping the cycle of poverty. The invaluable work the Foundation carries out, helps provide opportunities to the children of this amazing country.
Some of the Street Kids of Ulaan Baatar are forced to live in the city’s sewer system, sleeping on top of the hot water pipes to stay warm and to stay alive. Temperature in the city regularly drops below -35C in the winter months and this is the only way they can survive. For more information we urge you to visit The Christina Nobel Children’s Foundation web site at www.CNCF.org
Please visit our website at www.safegapyear.com
Image – ©Peter Mayhew
Title – Public Transport
Date – August 2002
Location - Ulaan Baatar - Mongolia
Pubic transport comes in all shapes and sizes and in all different standards. In the heart of Ulaan Baatar you know when a bus is coming by the clouds of smoke on the horizon. When it finally arrives it looks like one more pothole will collapse it like the clowns car at the circus.
'Don’t judge a book by its cover' is a saying that you will often have to convince yourself of in some parts of the world. It is difficult to deny that the vast majority of vehicles on the Mongolian roads leave you wondering how it is that they are even still moving. You will also have to get used to break-downs and flat tyres that inevitably result from the unpaved, uneven and un-drivable roads; but there is a saviour on hand. You would think that to get a drivers license in Mongolia, you must have to do a mechanics apprenticeship at the same time, as sometimes it seems that they can fix any problem with a wrench and a screwdriver at the side of the ‘road’.
Beyond The Blue does not judge the individuals attending the Gap Year and Independent Travel Safety & Awareness workshop based on where their chosen destination is, we do not encourage people to travel to destinations outside of their comfort zone or to countries where they may not yet be experienced enough to travel safely. We train people going to Europe for a few weeks alongside people planning going to the heart of Mongolia. Whatever your plan is, we have the skills and experience to help you.
Beyond The Blue maintains a particular interest in Mongolia. The Christina Nobel Children’s Foundation through their operations in Mongolia, work with street kids and children from poor families, to offer support and assistance in escaping the cycle of poverty. The invaluable work the Foundation carries out, helps provide opportunities to the children of this amazing country.
Some of the Street Kids of Ulaan Baatar are forced to live in the city’s sewer system, sleeping on top of the hot water pipes to stay warm and to stay alive. Temperature in the city regularly drops below -35C in the winter months and this is the only way they can survive. For more information we urge you to visit The Christina Nobel Children’s Foundation web site at www.CNCF.org
Please visit our website at www.safegapyear.com
Image – ©Peter Mayhew
