“Do you speak a little English?”

Inside the handicraft shop

In the past few weeks, I’ve accosted every non-Mongolian person I see with this question.  If the answer is yes, I deliver my little spiel about our craft ger shop where everything is handmade right here in Khovsgul. I invite them to visit the ger open from 9 to 7 every day and filled with local crafts at reasonable prices: all kinds of felt products including slippers, hats, vests, and handbags, wood carvings, watercolor sketches, some paintings, and a variety of other items.

For these first few weeks that the shop has been open, I’ve spent most of my time in the shop or out looking for customers.  The tourists tend to fall into three categories: 1) Mongolian tourists who generally look but don’t buy, 2) Young adventure travelers backpacking their way across the country so not much room to pack things, and 3) older travelers generally on a tour who have been our best customers.  I’ve enjoyed meeting people from various parts of the world including Canada, France, Switzerland, Spain, Belgium, Sweden, U.S., Australia, England, and Italy.

Most of the tourists are only passing through Muron and are heading north to visit Lake Khuvsgul, our province’s major tourist attraction.  They aren’t really looking for a place to buy souvenirs or crafts.  So we have to go out and find them.  Now that I am a seller of handcrafts rather than a tourist myself, I see things from a different perspective.  When people come to this country, they partake of the spectacular beauty of our countryside, enjoy the hospitality of the people, and are exposed to the rich nomadic culture.  I think tourists or travelers, call them what you will, also have an obligation to give back.  Not just to pay for the tour and transportation, but to seek out ways to give to the local people, to encourage the practice of the traditional craft-making and show appreciation for their skills and creativity.  They will be so grateful, and so will I.

Friends visit and we celebrate Naadam

Just before our local Naadam celebration in the third week of July, some friends from California and one from Switzerland arrived.  So with the shop open and wanting to spend time with my friends, time went fast.  I took a day trip up to the lake with the California friends and went out to my favorite ger camp west of town overnight with my Swiss friend.  The scenery there is always amazing and we were able to do a little horseback riding. Remember, you can click on any photo to enlarge and see the amazing scenery more clearly.

View from Harganat Ger Camp

Click to enlarge. Can you see the mountain goats on top?

Sunset at Harganat Ger Camp

And then there was Naadam. Both last year and this year, Muron had a big Naadam celebration—this year celebrating Muron’s 90^thanniversary.  The town has been spiffing itself up for months.  Everywhere I looked someone was painting something.   We even have a new children’s park and two new fountains.  If you’ve followed my blog, you know Naadam celebrates the “three manly sports”: horse racing, wrestling, and archery.  Horse racing takes place on the edge of town–I still marvel at seeing little 6, 7, 8 year-old kids on horseback, with or without saddles, racing across the steppe.

Naadam horse race

My Swiss friend taking a picture of wrestlers in pre-Naadam parade

And I enjoy the wrestling too. It takes place in the stadium and it’s my kind of violence: two men face off and simply try to force each other to lose their balance and touch a knee or more to the ground. Match over.

People say that when Naadam is over, autumn begins. But so far, it is warm in the 70s. I’m in no rush for cooler weather.

 

 

And now, a parting picture… 

Flat tires are a dime a dozen. In fact, no trip to the countryside is complete without at least one.  On the way to work early one morning, I saw this car parked at the edge of the road.  Driver probably had no spare and is apparently snoozing, note feet, awaiting rescue.  Couldn’t resist taking the picture.

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