At 5am we were rudely awaken by the carriage attendant as we had to be off the train at 6am in MONGOLIA!! It's hard to believe we are in Mongolia - normally you only change countries after a flight (or that's how it feels to me)!

We were met at the station by our new honcho - Odka - explained to us as 'Like Vodka but without the V' (did she know about our vodka exploits on the Russian train we mused??) and then got dropped off at the hotel for a couple of hour's well needed sleep.

The group met for a delicious breakfast of sausage and omelette and we headed out into Ulaanbaatar. On this walking tour we saw Sukhbaatar Square, the State department store and the legendary Beatles monument (erected due to a politician being a huge fan!).

We then headed for the Gandan Monastry - a beautiful area and we went straight into a temple where there were about 40 monks chanting, studying and praying. It was very eye opening to see but I felt a little disrespectful being there as a tourist. Odka explained about the prayer drums and how you make a prayer and spin them around 3 times each - I had a go at this but my prayer is a secret! The main temple on the site houses a huge copper Buddha measuring 26.5 metres tall - it felt cold and spooky in here. Okda had told us to watch or bags and pockets as a lot of pick pocketing was done here. It seemed wrong to me, there was money sitting under the various smaller shrines around the temple that was out of respect left alone, and it was a religious place that people had to pay to get into - it seemed just unnatural that in a place supposed to be sacred, people would commit crime?

After this we headed for the local market - Narantuul Black Market. It was huge! Again after another warning about pickpockets from Odka (which seems to scare us and put us on edge more than anything else) we headed into the market to have a look around. It was packed to the rafters with everyday stuff, clothes, shoes, bags, food, hardware - you name it, it was there. It was a really good insight into normal daily life and we were left alone to peruse the stalls. In my haste I hadn't bought a padlock from home which I was now regretting, and having spied a nice shiny purple one on one of the stalls I decided I would try my hand at buying it. I approched the stall, grabbed the padlock and asked how much, the lady said 8 to me, which meant 800 (40p!) so I was hardly about to barter, I handed my cash over and both customer and vendor were very pleased with themselves!

Back on the minibus we headed for some food at a local restaurant. I had some dumplings with mutton, cabbage and carrot with a side of potatoes with onion and bacon - Yum and fairly cheap. Some of the other members of the group experimented with liver and horse which was met with a variety of responses. After dinner we went to a local Buddha park and look-out point over Ulaanbaatar, the walk up to it about killed me, but once there we had great views of the construction sight that is the capital city - they seem to start a million things but never finish them. After this we headed back to the hotel and had some free time. Neil and I took the opportunity to relax in the room and watch some english films on TV while preparing for the Ger camp.

We left Ulaanbaatar at 10am the following morning headed for the Ger camp stopping at the supermarket for a few supplies including gifts for the local family we were going to visit. It is customary in Mongolia to take a gift to someone when visiting, so we clubbed together and got some rice, oil, sweets, juice and fruit (not the usual bottle of wine I take when visiting someone!). The bus was very hot, and this coupled with the crazy driving and bumpy roads was making me feel ill. Even the fresh air at the Gengis Khan statue didn't make me feel much better. The statue itself is huge and silver - it's amazing and stands out from the rest of the stark surroundings which is planned to become a holiday area (if it ever gets finished!). We went up to the top of the statue and had great views of the surrounding Terelji National Park that was to be our home for the next two nights. It was then back on the bus and we went to the Ger camp.

The Ger camp was amazing - set in such a beautiful area and the Gers themselves are a work of art painted in such pretty colours as well as being a feat of engineering so as to keep the heat in. In our Ger, which we shared with Becky and Stu, we had 4 beds, a table, some stools and a wood burning fire. We had lunch at the camp - creamy mongolian soup for me (warm and filling) before heading to visit the local family. However, before we left I needed the toilet having put it off since we got here due to it being my first sqaut toilet. Not only was it my first squat toilet but it was a makeshift squat toilet that was simply a hole in the ground hidden in a small cubicle. I thanked my lucky stars it had a door, and just got on with it - I was very proud of myself! (please see attached photo album for a picture of the 'toilet'!). We then went off to see the local mongolian family who actually lived in a Ger - it was small and compact, the beds doubled as seats and there was only a small table but it had all the mod cons such as a TV and fridge. We were all given the traditional tea of milk, water and salt. I tried it but thought it was horrible - far too salty for me but Neil had two cups full! There were also some traditional nibbles that the lady had made so everyone had a few but these also were salty and some rather hard (I hid one in my handbag so I didnt have to eat it!). It was difficult to remember that you always have to accept things with your right hand as a sign of respect. Other Mongolian customs are that when you enter a Ger you have to walk clockwise and leave the opposite way, and if you kick someone by accident you have to shake their hand as way of an apology. We were also offered snuff - another custom - I passed up trying some, but Neil had a go - it smelt like incense to me. It was crazy to think that every six months this family pack up and move on to land more conductive to their produce and what they live off. We have it so easy at home!

After this we went to see Turtles rock which is basically as described - a rock that looks like a turtle - one of the things the national park is known for we were told by Odka. As we returned to the Ger camp I was gobsmacked by the beauty of it with the sun setting over it - a truly magical sight. We chilled out in the Ger (must never be called a tent - very disrespectful to the Mongolians!) and Neil started the fire before we went for tea. Again another hearty warm mongolian meal - I think I am starting to gain a little bit of weight with all this stodge - but it's nice! After dinner we watched a documentary about Mongolia before returning to our now cold Ger for the night.

We had a freezing cold night's sleep - the fire had failed to keep going so we all shivered all night long, even the Mongolian ladies who come in and stoked the fire during the night must not have been able to get it going. After getting dressed and using the facilities (consisting of a squat drop toilet, babywipes, and brushing your teeth outside the Ger with bottled water) we went for breakfast which like all mongolian meals was plentyful and warm. Neil and I ducked out of the horse riding offered and instead opted for a walk in the surrounding hills to take in some views. Wow - what views they were, the photos simply do not do the place any justice.

After lunch of warm filling soup again we did some Mongolian stuff such as dressing up in traditional dress, playing archery, making dumplings, eating said dumplings for tea and then playing knuckles (a weird game using knuckle bones from some animal or another). Neil and I managed to become captains of this game, and as my team lost it was customary to sing a song to the other team. We of course decided on Brenton's Banana song and dance (ask me to show you - so funny!) which was a little embarrassing especially as there was also another tour group in the Ger with us!! After all the fun and games we returned to our Ger with the prospect of a warm night's sleep as Neil had mastered the fire earlier. To say it got warm in there was an understatement - I was so hot it was untrue and at one point through the night, just as the lady had stoked the fire again, I thought I might suffocate it was that hot! As Alex (one of our tour group) said 'It's like Mongolian Hell!'.

The following morning after breakfast of cucumber and sausage omelette (surprisingly refereshing) we headed back to Ulaanbaatar. At this point we had some free time so Neil and I did a spot of souvenir shopping before getting ready for the Mongolian show and Mogolian all you can eat BBQ restaurant. The show was really good with acts such as contortionists, throat singers, and dancers - and the food, that was even nicer. We all then headed to the Irish pub, there are loads of them, and had a Mongolia beer - light for me and dark for Neil - before heading back to the hotel and making sure we were all ready for our last trans-mongolian train journey to Beijing for which we had to be up at 6am for!

We have both really enjoyed our time in Mongolia - the countryside and Ger camp was the highlight as the city is a little hostile feeling. Mongolia has a lot of chinese influence with its decoration, and a lot of Russian influence with it's food. I feel like it is country still trying to find its identity. A great place for us to go and a huge learning experience but I am not sure I would come back.

So bright and early the next day we headed for the train station and boarded our last train of the tour to Beijing. Once we had sheets and were settled we all went back to sleep for a while. The train travelled from the snowy area of Ulaanbaatar (it had snowed during the night) through to the stark contrast of the Gobi desert - it was very weird seeing nothing for miles around each side of the train. By now we were all a little bored with being on the train, so Sam (one of our tour members) made a checkers board and we used almonds and peanuts as counters. This passed a few hours for us all - but Sam remained champion! We soon reached the border crossing, and with none of the hilarity of getting into Mongolia we were soon out and crossing onto Chinese soil. The bogies (like wheels on the train) had to be changed as the tracks in China are different to Mongolia, so we spent some time in the bogie shed being mechanically lifted up and down and shunted about as this happened. The Chinese side of the border went smoothly and we were all excited about being in China and getting to Beijing in the morning!

In the morning as we slowly pulled into Beijing station we had noticed that the scenery had changed again, there were now more trees, hills and tunnels than before and we truely felt like we were somewhere new again. We got off the train and met our final honcho Roxie. Neil and I are excited about exploring China!

Lots of love xxxxx