Just 2 1/2 weeks after returning from Slovenia, and I was back at the airport. I was beginning to feel like Chris when his work schedule has him traveling a great deal.
I had two legs of the trip: London to Beijing and then Beijing to Ulaanbaatar, with a 6 hour layover in the Beijing Airport. By the time I boarded my plane in Beijing I was really starting to feel pretty exhausted. But, it was all a little surreal thinking I was actually going to Mongolia. I had no idea of what to expect on the other end!
My First View of the Mongolian Landscape
Landing in the Capital City
I arrived safely in Ulaanbaatar, along with my luggage, and Heidi was just outside waiting for me with one of their mission drivers, Demrol. It took us a couple hours to get home from the airport, even though it’s not too far from their home. The traffic was horrible with no one following any kind of traffic laws. It was truly amazing!
Church Office Building
Heidi and her family live on the top floor of the Church Office Building. This building is the hub for the church in Mongolia. The mission offices are housed here, as well as an employment centre, humanitarian services, institute, etc.; as well as holding church meetings.
Building Signs
After a good night’s rest, I was ready for the full day Heidi had planned for us. We started out getting the essential grocery shopping done for the week. This included going to 5 different shops and a fresh food market. It was really neat to hear Heidi use her Mongolian. She says it’s not very good, but she speaks with confidence and I’m sure that is half of being able to speak it!
Fruit Market
After our morning of shopping, we went out for some touring of the city. Our first stop was Zaisan Hill, where there is a monument built to honor Soviet soldiers killed in World War II.
Heidi & Kids Climbing the 300 Steps to Monument
It was actually on this hill that Elder Neal A. Maxwell dedicated the land of Mongolia open to missionary work in 1993.
Zaisan Monument
All around the monument is a mural that depicts scenes of friendship between the USSR and Mongolia.
Zaisan’s Mural
Tommy, John, Marianne, Bella
Being on top of the monument gives you a great panoramic view of the city.
Panoramic from Zaisan
Even though I wasn’t sure what to expect when I landed in Mongolia, I don’t think this was anything like I was thinking. I had envisioned a few buildings surrounded by ger communities, but it is the opposite – a few gers surrounded by city buildings.
Growth of Ulaanbaatar
There is a lot of construction of apartment buildings. The mines seem to be bringing in a lot of work . . . or they are just being prepared for the future.
More Growth
Few Gers Left
I also didn’t envision Mongolia as a place for much tourism, but there were always people on the street selling paintings. A few were staked out at the bottom of the Zaisan Memorial.
Tourist Paintings
We then went to the main square in the city, Sukhbaatar Square. This is where all the government buildings are.
The Square
Sukhbaatar was a hero to the Mongolian people as he helped Mongolia gain their independence from China.
Sukhbaatar’s Statue
A few years ago, a monument to Genghis Khan (Chinggis Khan) was built to honor the 800th anniversary of his coronation. The square has started to be called Chinggis Khan Square, although I read that is a sore subject for many.
Chinggis Khan
On the square is a Dinosaur Museum. Some dinosaur bones were found in the Gobi Desert, but later on they were illegally sold at an auction to someone in the USA. There was a big court case that ended with the bones being sent back to Mongolia just last May, and thus this new one-roomed Dinosaur Museum!
Returned Dinosaur Bones
I was actually in Mongolia for two Sundays, but had two very different experiences.
Church Building
Kids in Front of Church
The first Sunday was interesting as there was no power in the building. Heidi said that was ‘typical’. That also meant no electric piano or headsets for translating. A new missionary sat behind us and tried to translate for us but without the microphone, it was even hard to hear the speakers, let alone translate! We were grateful to find the power on the 2nd Sunday and enjoyed wearing our headsets for translation!
Becca & Bella
The more we travel and attend church in different countries, it is really incredible to feel that the church is the same wherever you go – even if you can’t understand the language, it feels the same. I am so grateful for the few hymns that have been translated and put into little hymn books . . . but even more grateful that I can still sing them in English!
Mongolian Hymn Book
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