Saturday afternoon, half of our team (Scott, Ron, & Sharon) set out with Mike to see some of the sights of UlaanBaatar. They wandered around Sukhbaatar Square, drove by the Wrestling Palace (not Sumo ... don't get too excited), and visited a museum that chronicles the history of Mongolia.
Sukhbaatar Square -- the hub of all things historical including the square itself, which is said to be bigger even than Red Square in Moscow -- commemorates (you guessed it!) Sukhbaatar. He was one of this country's greatest leaders ... second only, perhaps, to Ghengis Khan (or Chinggis Khan, as they say it) himself. Sukhbaatar was part of the revolution in 1921 that brought the Russians in and pushed the occupying Chinese forces out. He continues to be celebrated as one of their greatest heros. (The "baatar" in Sukhbaatar and Ulaanbaatar means "hero".)
One of the other highlights (according to Sharon and Scott) was seeing the traditional costumes that were on display in the history museum. The museum has a collection that spans time and region to display the changes and variety in Mongolian dress over the centuries.
21 June 2008
the Zax (prounouced Zah*glottel throat sound*)
Imagine the biggest, baddest, muddiest outdoor market you've ever seen. Rows upon rows (in the loosest sense of the word) of stalls filled with clothes old and new, shoes, antiques, hardware supplies, hats, housewares ... anything and everything you could ever want or need.
We spent the morning here checking out the wares, making a few purchases, and then escaped without any pickpocket incident. That, ladies and gentleman, is a feat worth talking about.
We spent the morning here checking out the wares, making a few purchases, and then escaped without any pickpocket incident. That, ladies and gentleman, is a feat worth talking about.
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