Idea: Borrow a bike from a friend in the aimag center and use it to travel back to my village Trip: 110km (70 mi) through the rolling foothills and mountains of southern Khuvsgul. Two days on the road, one night on a mountain’s rocky outcrop, a few new friends, some great memories, and a couple … Continue reading Bikepacking in Khuvsgul
Mongolica. One hour outside of the capital, surrounded by rocky peaks, frozen rivers, and chalky earth, this resort was the location of a week long Peace Corps conference for project design and management. This annual conference is an opportunity for first-year volunteers to learn the basics of grant writing, project management, and planning for sustainability. … Continue reading Project Design and Management (PDM)
After circling the ovoo three times with his offerings, the man looked back upon his village. He unscrewed the red coca-cola cap to the bottle that he now used for milk, and thrusted the bottle forward. Across the blue hue of twilight’s last hurrah, I could see the milk slosh momentarily before being launched into … Continue reading Tsagaan Sar: Lunar New Year
Electric guitar in hand, the Dalai Lama stood in the shadows. Pink and blue lights crossed the darkened stage, revealing a wooden cart, a dog, and glints of His Holiness’s blessed axe. The fog machine sprayed a jet of smoke, and he stepped into the light. Hard rock blasted the speakers, and the club erupted … Continue reading Mongol Spaniel
“He’s concerned about your ham.” “My what?” “Your ham.” When I first arrived in Ikh Uul, I had a sausage on my shelf. Tucked in wax paper and loosely encased by the folds of plastic wrapping previously torn open, the summer sausage had been my chosen form of protein. Sandwiches, egg scrambles, cabbage stew; its … Continue reading Community
At one o’clock, Saturday morning, I arrived in Ikh-Uul. The stars were the first thing that anyone could notice. Entering the cement silhouette of my new apartment complex, I was led up five flights of stairs to my home for the next two years. It became quickly apparent that my apartment is not just new … Continue reading Many Mountains
The other night, I had to use the bathroom. Although volunteers of past and present have had outhouse stories that inhabit a spectrum of lost phones, surprise birds, surprise family members, and one horrific tumble into the brown void that landed said unfortunate volunteer into Peace Corps Mongolia lore, the profundity of this night’s bathroom … Continue reading Rooster Egg
Underestimation of vintage microwave wattage had been my doom. A peaceful cup of afternoon relaxation had been nuked into a scramble for paper towels. While my host dad hustled outside to find anything absorbent, I tore off some toilet paper from a nearby roll, and began my redemptive journey of blotching and scrubbing. At the … Continue reading Camel, Camel, Goat
Iderjavkhlan is five years old. His hazelnut hair spikes up, and remains still as he bounds across the yard. Sometimes, he carries a volleyball whose plastic skin has just started to peel. Other times, he smiles wide and points his index finger at the empty space in his gums - a cheerful homage to the … Continue reading One of the Family
Hi there! My name is Nathaniel, and I am a Peace Corps Volunteer serving in Mongolia. Over the next couple of years, I hope to capture my story, and the stories of what is happening around me, through blog posts and photos. Hopefully this site can function as a lens for family, friends, and anyone … Continue reading Eternal Blue Sky
