Western Sunset

I'm standing in a sand dune and trying to catch the light of the sun sinking to the left away from this meadow filled with wind-gnarled pine trees. Every summer several families come out these few miles from town to set up their Gers and camp. They bring their animals with them, which ensures plenty of food and work for the month or so that they stay. In the distance is a small lake caused by the only hydro-electric dam I've yet seen in Mongolia. It powers the town of Tosentsengel when the water runs strong enough.

Youngest Three

My teacher Turoo, on the right, is the youngest of 9 children. Here he is with his two brothers in their home Ger. In the foreground you can get a good idea of what they gave us for lunch. The white things in the glass bowl are meat filled dumplings called bodes. Pretty greasy, but pretty tasty if they have enough salt.

Snow Patch at 7000 feet

Near the border to the province of Zavhan in Western Mongolia.

Border sign to the Province of Zavhan

Dinasour Rock

Photogenic Fish

This one lived to die another day.

Roadside Fishing Hole

It's times like this you're glad you brought your fishing pole.

Little Grand Canyon

This rock gorge was grand and worth the rocky road induced flat tire to see. Had we not had to change a tire here, we may not have stopped to see the view. The picture isn't doing it justice.

Folk Tale Statue

This statue embodies a Mongolian folk tale about how evil entered the world. What I understood is that there was a hole where snakes and water kept coming up into the world. The hero comes along and crushed that snake and covered the hole with this huge rock. Has a familiar ring to it, does it not?

Tsetserleg, Arhangai, Mongolia

A Rare Lake on the Plains

This lake was quite an attraction after all the oceans of green we'd driven through at this point. It was a windy day, which helped keep the bugs off. This lake is about 10 miles long stretching West, to the right behind us. We drove the north shore on the right, then headed south west toward the capital of Arhangai, Tsetserleg.

A Roadside Rest Ger

We stopped for a piece of shade and a drink of tea this first day of our trip out west. These are friends and fellow travelers Maider, teacher Turoo, and Pieter and Dennis from left to right.

Western Horses

On a a beautiful early morning during a recent trip into Western provinces by car we were passed by this huge herd of horses. Another resemblence of this country to ours of about 100 years ago. Even the roads out here remind you of what the poineers must have experienced when they went west in wagons where there were no roads. You can't imagine how nice blacktop seems after thousands of miles without it.

After Church Summer Day

Hi there! We just got done playing outside in the dirt in our nice Sunday church clothes. Didn't we do a good job staying clean?

House hunting this week in Bowlgun was revealing. Most places that were for sale were unfinished. Even this unfinished log home was not for sale. These workers promised they could build us another like it. But they didn't say they started this one last year. With only about a four month building season because of frozen ground, building a new house from the ground up doesn't seem plausible for us.

Kindergarten Class

This picture was taken on the last day of Maggie and Lydia's kindergarten for the year with some of their friends from their class. Johanna popped in for the photo, but isn't an official member of the class, though she loved visiting whenever she could. That's Maggie and Lydia's teacher in the back.

Down the Stretch

Here's Renee and I with our teachers, Turuu and Boya on a sunny last day of May. June will be our last month in formal language study!