Doing the laundry in the river. Dipping a tin pot into the river to boil and use for tea dinner. Setting off to find a place to camp. Bug spray. No shower. Using the resources at our disposal to make do... Washing up, airing out, keeping warm. Fay has been good at gathering firewood; she sets off immediately to find good, dry timber. Today I helped Eku set up the tent in the rain. He's been making hearty, delicious meals every night. The kid is young but has skills. He might be about 23. This is his third year with Tseren as a guide. He's a movie buff. I think he's seen All of the Movies, which is impressive since he's never left Mongolia. We talk about movies and The Simpsons and Family Guy.
Today began our horse trek. We had two pack horses. Fay rode the same horse as yesterday. I rode a beautiful tan horse which is much more responsive and has been good for my skill level. Very easy to ride up to a trot and loves being at the head of the pack. I'm glad we took some lessons before we went, but the style of riding here is much different and the horses are trained differently. The reins are held in one hand and the commands and body language also differ. But it was good practice for balance and basic skills. Fay said she thinks her horse is riding HER. It follows along and randomly trots when it feels like it. They seem suited to each other.
What a fantastic feeling, being in the open valley surrounded by evergreens and winding rivers. At times we'd run ahead with the wind in our hair, riding openly in the wilderness. THIS is riding, not some nancy trail back home with one horse behind another. There is a degree of paying attention, guiding the horse through bogs, around rocks, under trees, through herds of cattle and sheep. Then trying to keep the horse going when it wants to stop for a snack. Eku's horse is feisty, a former racehorse that sometimes just takes off in a zip with him on the back. His hands are red from pulling on the reins and I wonder how long until they're raw. But he seems a tough kid. Geldan is funny... One of the pack horses has some serious gas, and he likes to point to someone and blame it on them. He was kind enough to carry my camera under his jacket so it wouldn't get damaged on the pack horses, and so I could ride openly. He is weathered from the countryside and his life as a guide. I enjoyed riding alongside him as he sang Mongolian songs.
We passed other tourists along the way, really the first ones we've seen days. They were taking pictures of us and we waved back. Geldan always greeted everyone we passed. We saw other tourists riding past yelling Allez! as the horses galloped past. It's been raining on and off all day, but only when we stop for rest. I'm at least glad it hasn't rained while we've been riding else our pants would have been more damp than they already are. Speaking of pants, by the time this week is over, these jeans will be able to stand on their own. I'm doing an entire load of laundry when we get to Beijing. My knee is sore from the ride, my inner thighs tender, and my calves bruised from the stirrup straps, but not in nearly as much pain or ache as I had anticipated. But let's see what tune I'm singing in the morning.
First, I'm glad we brought half chaps. Geldan gave us a smile and a thumbs-up when he saw them on us. Eku also donned a pair with his boots. Geldan has the original Uggs, really. Leather boots with wool lining and toes pointed and turned up with Mongolian markings on the calves. I'm also grateful I brought a rain jacket, as bright yellow as it is. So thank you, Nat Geo Channel, for the Wicked Tuna raincoat. I'm not entirely sure I'd wear it often in Chicago but here it's godsent. And thank GOD for the gloves that I brought, which I first used when I learned to ride a motorcycle, and now are doubling as riding gloves. Yes, I have a lot of Things, but they've all been useful.
This is tough. This is a mentally and physical tough trip. It's the most adventurous I've ever done and definitely not for everyone. Fay is holding up incredibly well considering she's never been camping. And good lord, I'm not sure she was certain what she signed up for. If she had known the details, she may not have come. I purposefully didn't want to know the details because I didn't want to set any expectations. But I knew we'd be camping. It didn't phase me.
Last night was spent in the ger and I slept reasonably well. We built a nice fire in the stove also this morning. Tonight we're back in the tent. There are no cots. We sleep on a thin pad with two sleeping bags. Third thing I'm grateful for is bringing my sleep sheet/sleeping bag liner. It's clean and it's mine so I feel a bit of comfort. I also have a small travel pillow that I brought along with a fuzzy blanket tucked inside which I'll use tonight for more warmth. It is very cold at night. I could have been more prepared, but I'm far more prepared than I expected so I'm faring okay. But oh how I dream of a hotel at the end of this. And a 30 minute shower. And a clean toilet. ANY toilet.
Two things keep running through my head: Dances With Wolves and Long Way Round. Like Dances with Wolves, we had a pack of dogs follow us out of camp, then a couple hours later another pack followed us for about an hour. Like Two Socks the wild wolf. In Long Way Round, Ewan MacGregor and his best friend Charlie Boarman ride motorcycles across Europe and Asia, my favorite reality program. They found Mongolia to be one of the most difficult stretches of the journey. They considered giving up but found the country so beautiful that they wanted to conquer the trip and push on. So they did.
And so do we. I chose this trip for many reasons. One of them is that I knew it would be hard, but lately I have enjoyed the feeling of accomplishment I get after facing a hardship. Overcoming fear and comfort has been my latest journey the past few years. This is yet another. It puts my first world city life in perspective, when things get rough, I can look at the time I spent here, sitting in this tent with the rain tapping at the roof, muscles aching, sticky with bug spray, and know that I can overcome almost anything.
Today's entry can be summed up in two beautiful little passing moments. First was Fay on her horse, yelling out MONGOLIA!! And the other was Eku exclaiming to me, "I love my mother country!!"
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