Visiting Ulaanbaatar: Heart of the Steppes

“Say what you will about Stalinist-Soviet architecture. They know how to make a grand plaza that looks dramatic, regardless of deterioration.” -Old Sean

A Job Abroad

My teaching/franchising contract in China is nearly complete. After returning to China following a long trip through Southeast Asia, I got the green light for a new job. Soon, I’ll be working for a traveling brochure company going through Europe making booklets for Chinese tourists.

However, prior to this dream-job, I’m being asked to show proof-of-concept. My upcoming task is to select a country and then fly there. Then, I must take photos, conduct interviews, verify tourism points of interests and design narratives for the brochures.

I was told any nearby country in Asia would be fine. I boldly selected Mongolia.

Wrath of the Khans

I grew interested in Mongolia during my very first semi-travel job. Back during university, I worked for an auto-repair shop driving car parts around the US Midwest. I would swing through Nebraska, Missouri, Illinois, Iowa and Kansas, meandering through endless prairies.

To kill time, I started devouring podcasts with an undying passion. Those podcasts became lifelines of entertainment during endlessly long drives. One of those podcasts was the stunning retelling of Mongolian history, Wrath of the Khans with Dan Carlin on Hardcore Histroy.

Dan Carlin is one of the best podcasters out there, with intense, in-depth research narrating extreme events from human history. The explosion of Mongolian Steppe nomads across all of Asia, the Middle East and corners of Europe to create the world’s largest continuous land empire certainly fits the “extreme” criteria.

Fairly hooked, I ended up reading a lot about the Khans and by extension, Mongolia. I even spent a semester studying the history of the Khans in university, so seeing their influence firsthand was a treat. 

So, on the company dime, I booked a flight, visiting Ulaanbaatar.

The Highland Arrival

To be honest, my expectations for visiting Ulaanbaatar were scrapingly low. 

I’d been warned by colleagues and blogs that the capital city of Mongolia wasn’t much to see and a relatively bleak zone in an otherwise beautifully expansive country.

My initial impressions were in line with expectations.

A shamble-shack village with the occasional tents and gers (yurt) were camped directly outside of the airport. All of the land was a pocketed, uniform dead-brown color.

The drive into town wasn’t impressive either. I took a taxi under a gray sky, watching low, cheap housing clusters being built around an enormous cylinder breathing a steady trickle of smog into the air. 

Ulaanbaatar is the quintessential example of Soviet-era compact architecture with huge populations and extreme urban decay.  I almost wanted to find myself a battered military helmet, half-functional gas mask and ragged cameo-coat to fully commit to the urban ambiance.  

Monuments and Squares

However, once I got into the city, I found myself enjoying it. I especially appreciated the large plaza spaces dotting the city. 

Ulaanbaatar has a small army of public artworks and statues patterned throughout the city. Most of these sculptures depict the notorious Mongolians steppe-nomads and their famed conquerors of history.

Other statues include their legendary steeds and dramatic archers pulling back riding bows during moments of intense action. 

There were also several modern pieces tucked into gardens, such as the Predator riding a motorcycle shaped as the Alien. 

Additionally, I spotted odd, colorful abstracts that my father would look at while shaking his head. 

When I was growing up, he would often say “What’s that?  That’s art?  I could do that,” every time an abstract artwork was constructed around our neighborhood.  

Mongolian Museums

I enjoyed the abstract art regardless of my father’s ability to recreate it. I also appreciated the Central Mongolian Museum of Dinosaurs.

Mongolia, with it’s tundra and it’s dry desert, is an absolute treasure trove of dinosaur fossils. The museum acknowledges this. The small domed area hosts a pair of full skeletons, under-lit by blue and purple LED lights, giving the ancient fossils an oddly techno-look.

Afterwards, I wandered into the Natural History Museum (previously known as the National Museum). This venue hosts more skeletons and has a stronger focus on ancient and modern mammals that are unique to the steppes of Mongolia.  

I also swung by the National History Museum, where Mongolian’s most famous culture of steppe nomadic societies was on display. While the bows, saddles, tools and artwork were all impressive and insightful, my favorite museum piece were the traditional Mongolian knife-sheaths. Mongolians rode with curved blades in decorated sheaths. But the best part is the tiny side compartment which would hold highly-mobile chopsticks.

All the museums have a small entry entrance fee which is fine. But sadly, most museums here also request a photography fee for the privilege of taking pictures.  As such, I saved a little money here but failed to compile too many images of the displays.

Aimless Wandering

In between museum trips, I spent a lot of time sampling restaurants. This was an interesting, but not-delectable experience. Mongolians eat a lot of pastries and meats, making the food far heavier than I was expecting. I was fairly bloated throughout the day.

While Ulaanbaatar is known as the world’s coldest capital, I was happy to arrive while weather was transitioning into summer. Walking around while visiting Ulaanbaatar was nice during this time of year. The sun was high, the temperature was mild and the lands are flat and easy to navigate.

Plus, all of the Soviet-era architecture makes an interesting and consistent backdrop. Some buildings are half-collapsed. Others are stark concrete apartments with water stains. Some buildings are pastel colored, looking oddly heavy against a blue sky. The downtown area has a derelict amuseument park. And of course, old fashioned ads dot peeling billboards, especially Coca-Cola logos.  (That’s bold-white lettered Coca-Cola, not coke, according to almost every sign). 

Overall, the direct downtown plaza-and-shop area is really nice. But the areas just beyond those zones have considerable character.

Meeting Mongolians

I want to take an aside here and mention that most societies on Earth are hospitible.  There’s the odd cranky individual once in a while.  But a legion of grumpy, frowning locals casting grim glances my direction with barely contained curses?  No, not so much. 

So a “Quite Friendly Populace” is within the spectrum of my normal, trending-optimistic faith in humanity.  When I say “Exceptionally Friendly” like in Sri Lanka, I’m actually saying that I feel largely unworthy of the kindness heaped upon me.

Mongolians are “Exceptionally Friendly.” I was helped often, frequently and with brave attempts at English.

As an American, (or maybe just a mild cynic) my first instinct is to assume that kindness is a method of extorting something from me. 

Which is an okay instinct when visiting a tourist-area. This instinct keeps travelers away from fake taxis and first-offer-hawkers hanging out on market streets. 

However, the longer a person is on the road, the more a person reaches a comfortable middle ground. Generally, if someone approaches you first, be wary but not dismissive.  If you approach someone local, be polite and accept (but don’t expect) rebuffs.

There were no rebuffs in Mongolia.

Elsewhere in Ulaanbaatar

Sadly, after a few days in Ulaanbaatar, I ran out of things to do.  For a major capital city stretching into the horizon, Ulaanbaatar is surprisingly quiet.  I ended up enjoying a lot of activities very rapidly.

I browsed the Fine Arts Zanabazar Museum, an amazing building with long tapestries of Mongolian-styled artworks. 

Further along, I entertained myself with rides at the State Department Store. They have an array of escalators to their uppermost souvenir section.  I was very tickled by the curving nomadic knives which have a traditional sheath including the side pocket for travel chopsticks.  

On another day, I picked my way towards Dashchoilin Monastery with a compelling New Yorker named Travis. After walking past the prayer wheels, we ducked into the Horned Owl Bar.

In the afternoons, I visited the enormous, central Sukhbaatar Square.   Sukhbaatar Square is a large cement plaza but holds a range of Mongolian cavalry statues with images of the great Khan himself presiding.. 

And finally, on an off night, I swung by the local movie theater to catch a movie with Mongolian subtitles (Pacific Rim 2). Lastly, I used my (relatively) excessive wealth to eat at every restaurant locals pointed at. Luna Blanca was particularly good.  

Meals in Mongolia

Mongolians love meat.  I had maybe two fruits and six vegetables during my entire stay.  Everything else was dense yak milk, horse meat, beef, goat, various pastries, meat pastries and stringy jerky.  By the end of my trip, I was ready to do some unspeakable things for a salad.  

After this, I left Ulaanbaatar.  I headed further into the countryside for other, stranger adventures. Overall, visiting Ulaanbaatar is nice and the smallish city has it’s charms. There’s about two-days-worth of tourism activities. But after that, things get dull.

I talked to some expats staying in the city. The general consensus was that there wasn’t much to do in the urban sprawl.  Entertainment was better sought beyond the city limits.  Mongolia’s countryside is exponentially richer in terms of things to do.

So that’s where I’m going.

Until then,

Best regards and excellent trails,

Old Sean

Written March 23rd 2018

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