Even the Gobi greens when it rains….
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Tornado Take 2
Ever since the tornado that tore our neighbor’s roof off we have been on tender hooks when the weather changes. Last Saturday we were hanging out in our ger attempting to escape the heat when we heard a boom of thunder. Steppng out of our ger we were met with this sight to the west of town:
Fortunately, this tornado did not enter town and passed us by. It seemed like everyone in town was out watching it, many on their roofs. What followed the tornado did hit town, though. First, a nice layer of hail and then, a torrential downpour.
At one point the weather gods tricked us into thinking that the rain was subsiding so we went back to our ger to check on the rain damage. We had barely gotten into our home when the rain picked up again, and we made a mad dash back to Darhuu’s. In the 15 feet between our two doors we became drenched-it was that kind of rain.
Finally the rain did let up and we went out to check out the damage. Areas of town that are normally bone dry (i.e. the entire town) had become tiny rivers that kids had to be hoisted over.
What was most impressive, though, was an area of desert right outside of town that is usually a dry mini-canyon littered with trash and popular with dying camels. It had become a full fledged flash flood complete with waterfall and was an amazing display of nature’s force.
June 23, 2012 will forever be the day of our second tornado and Santiago got to swim in the Gobi desert.
P.S. Can you guess from the weather report what time the tornado rolled by?
“Ger” Conditioning
We have recently been experiencing a bit of a heat wave down here in the Gobi. There are several ways to escape the heat in a ger- close your roof flap to keep out the sun, buy a fan, move into your neighbor’s house….but we chose to install “ger” conditioning. Cheap, eco-friendly, and most importantly, pooch tested and approved.
The Goat Babies a.k.a. Tiny Goat Invaders
There are two herds of goats in Hanhongor-”The Goat Ninja Assassins” and “the Goat Babies” as we have named them. The Goat Ninja Assassins are famous in our ger for two things-their stealthy movements and their sidekick-Irreverent Pooch. I will post about them another time.
Today though, I want to introduce you to the Goat Babies-7 tiny goats that usually live on the other side of town but last week decided to check out our yard for yummy bits. Since Santiago feels that it is her calling in life to chase goats, it was a good thing our door was shut at the time because the Goat Babies are too small for her to harass safely. In her stead, Brian went out and gently herded them out of our yard. They were not too keen on leaving our delicious weeds behind, but eventually moved on. Squirrels in your yard can be entertaining, but I have a special place in my heart for goat babies.
Simple Living
One of my hobbies is reading about, and attempting to live, a simple life. A person who strives to live a simple life focuses on paring down their work expectations, extra curricular activities, housing, spending and/or belongings with the aim of only being left with what is most meaningful to them. These actions, while very hard to accomplish in our world of materialism, can be truly life changing.
Every day I, like most people I know, strive for a life of peace, satisfaction, enlightenment, and a sense of contributing to the betterment of the world we live in. In many ways I feel Brian and I have succeeded. We have no debt, enjoy our jobs immensely, have plenty of time to pursue our many interests, and can claim wonderful friends on several continents. Every day we get up to a beautiful Gobi sunrise, we know the names of all our neighbors, can buy things at the local store even when we forget our money because everyone knows and trusts us, and can, and often do, take daily naps.
I don’t have much to complain about. That doesn’t mean I don’t see areas in which I wish to improve, though. The number one battle that I have yet to win on my path to simple living is stuff. Belongings, memorabilia, things, crap-you name it, I have too much of it. Maybe I don’t keep things like a hoarder, or even to the level of the average American, (moving every few years helps keep things in check) but I still have a lot more than I would like. Of all those dozens of boxes in storage in America how many actually contain things that I need? Are they worth paying someone to keep in a glorified closet? Wouldn’t my mom like to have that large part of her basement back?
Whenever we move back to America I will definitely be glad to see my bicycle, dishes, favorite books, and handmade gifts from my family and friends. Those things improve my life in a positive and meaningful way.
How about the cheap Target furniture, the clothes I left in America because I knew they would get stained in Mongolia, and all the books I own that look impressive on the bookshelf and “someday” I swear I will read? Definitely not things I need to keep moving around, storing, dusting, and in general, filling my life with. Stuff is one of the hardest things for me to get rid of in America and even here in Mongolia the amount of things we have seems to always be increasing. I try to follow the one-in-one-out rule with new clothes and that works for the most part, but books, childhood toys, and memorabilia are much harder for me. Partly it is due to a worry I will regret getting rid of them, and partly it is the pressure/guilt of getting rid of something that was a gift to me or holds sentimental value for someone aside from me.
Simple living is something I think about constantly and try to take a step towards everyday. I would love to hear from anyone else who is on this journey. I see living a simple life as the way to live in the present, to be able to travel, to meet new people, and to have experiences without worrying about paying bills, someone stealing my car, or a pipe bursting in my house. Most importantly though it is about being able to live the life that makes me happy without being held back by things or expectations that only exists in my life because of societal expectations. Would most people be okay with living without running water like we do? Probably not. But for me, the lack of debt and stress in my life make up for all the things I sacrifice.
P.S.
If you are interested in learning more about simple living here a few resources that have helped me over the years and that I refer to over and over.
The Simple Living Guide by Janet Luhrs
Your Money or Your Life by Vicki Robin and Joe Dominquez
Mindfulness in Plain English by Bhante Henepola and Gunaratana
Zen Habits by Leo Babauta
Also here are two great articles about how to deal with books and sentimental items-the two things I struggle with the most. I am going to try out the suggestions next time I have access to my things in America.
Rainbows and Tornadoes
During the last week here in Hanhongor we have seen some amazing weather-both good and bad. Two days ago I got up and went out to go to the toilet around six in the morning and was greeted by a double rainbow going across the horizon in front of the Gurvan Saikhan mountains. It was a gorgeous sight that I got to share with the only other things awake at that time-the goats and camels.
Today, though, we were reminded of the harsher side of Mongolian weather. We had been expecting rain, and it had rained on and off for the last day or so but nothing big. At around 3 this afternoon we were sitting in our ger reading newspapers when all of a sudden we heard what we thought was thunder-except that it didn’t stop and grew increasingly louder. Santiago is generally not spooked by thunder, but this noise caused her to jump up and bolt for the door which was open at the time. Brian and I both yelled at her to stay put. Somehow we must have sense it wasn’t a good idea for scared dogs to be outside at that moment.
At about that time the booming and thundering sounds had stopped, and Brian and I stepped outside to see if a thunderstorm was approaching. To our surprise we saw a tornado heading away from our ger on the far side of our neighbor’s yard. It appeared to be about 20ft wide winding its way up into some very ominous grey clouds. Brian said that it was time we all went inside Darhuu’s house. We hustled Santiago into her front entrance way, and I went inside while he “battened down the hatches” on the ger. A few moments later he came in and told Darhuu and I that a neighbor’s house, no more than 75 yards from our ger, had had its roof completely ripped off. We all hustled out to make sure no one was hurt in the house, and other neighbors began appearing to help. It was settled fairly quickly that no one was hurt, and just in time because then came the hail. We all made our way back to our homes and waited out the hail and then a torrent of rain.
(Some super ominous rain clouds)
The rain subsided and the sky began to clear about 10 minutes later, and we stepped out again to survey the damage. We finally got a clear sense of what happened. The tornado ripped through the roof of the house picking up roof tiles and beams (the thundering) and then travelled down the lane next to our ger throwing the gnarled pieces at fences and buildings (the booming), and somehow got to the open area just past our neighbor’s yard only taking out a section of his fence and not damaging anything else seriously.
We could deduce this from the trail of roof tiles and puncture holes in walls and fences in a line across the neighborhood.
Things happened so fast there wasn’t anytime to be scared, but then afterward there was time to think and, wow, that was close.
Thankfully no one was injured, and almost within the hour of the tornado people from around town began to gather in front of the house and help with clean up. Amazingly only the roof was torn off, and the ceiling remained intact and no windows were broken.
As a consequence, there was no serious water damage during the heaviest down pour. This being the land of portable, temporary homes, people set up a ger across town (incidentally really close to the path of the tornado on that side of town) and started moving furniture, clothing, and other household items to it.
The tornado happened around 3pm, and by 8pm the family was set up in a temporary place to live.
That was the first tornado Brian and I have seen, and we hope it is the last. Just another exciting, if unwelcome, part of living in the Gobi.
A trip to the store
Last night on our way back from the dog walk I went into the store near our house while Brian and Santi waited outside. I picked up the cookies and soda for pizza night, and as I was leaving, I was asked by the store owner to return a precocious 2 year old who was hanging around to her home. I had a general idea of where she lived but she insisted that she lived around the corner in another house. As I approached the house she insisted was hers, a man stuck his head out the door. The tot yelled “Dad” to which he firmly replied, “That’s not my kid.” Now fearing that I was going to be permanently stuck with this kid, I went to the house that I thought was actually hers. Peering inside the ger, a woman looked up from where she was sitting on the floor and without missing a beat said “Where have you been?” to her daughter (keep in mind this kid was as big as Cindy Lou in the Grinch). As I left the house, I could hear the little miss in tears-she clearly was not finished with her evening out.
Update: Today as I was leaving the same store, I met my little friend on her way in. She had some money clutched in her tiny hand this time, so clearly she had plans to make a purchase. As crazy as it seems that any parent would be alright with their two year old going to the store on their own, I think it is even crazier that a kid that size has the guts to do it. Mongolia-where bold kids are born and raised!
Our Ger
Recently a friend, after looking at my blog, commented that she still was not sure what our ger looks like and what it was like to live in a ger. Here is what our ger does and doesn’t consist of.
The things we don’t have:
- Running water
- An indoor bathroom
- An oven
- A refrigerator
- Storage
And the things we do have:
- One room
- One lightbulb and one electrical outlet
- A bed handily crafted by Brian
- A dry sink
- A comfy chair lent to us by Darkhuu
- One rug
- One desk and two tables
- Two wooden school chairs and four stools
- One kitchen cabinet
- One wardrobe and two chests which constitutes all our storage
- One bookshelf
- Three buckets totaling 70 liters for our water storage
- One coal stove and one hot plate
- Oh and one slightly smelly dog who is perfectly happy there is no bathtub for her to be tortured in.
Because gers are round, most of our furniture is situated around the edge with the main table and stove in the middle. Here are a few pictures moving from left to right after entering through the ger door (which faces south)
The door from inside
Two views of our lovely roof
The wall curtain pulled away to show the lattice wall and wool insulation behind it,
And the outside of our ger
So, as you can see, the things and comforts that we have definitely outweigh what we don’t have, and for the most part we very much enjoy our way of life. Of course, there are those really cold mornings when we wish we had a furnace, those days when the pile of laundry to hand wash seems as big as a car (which we incidentally don’t own) and I would kill for a washing machine, and, on the random day when the well lady decides to lock the well and disappear, a sink with running water would be divine. Oh, and eating by candlelight is not so much romantic as a reminder that the power plant down the road is an 8 million dollar pile of junk.
In exchange, though, we can watch the moon move across the wholly non-light polluted night sky while we lie in bed, it takes approximately 30 minutes to dust, sweep, and mop our entire house, and our monthly household related costs (we own our ger outright) are between $35-$103 for water, internet, and power depending on whether or not we have to use our generator. I can’t see us living in a ger forever (just the thought of living in a one room house with a teenager gives me a stomach ache) but for now, we think it is just right.
Water: Something not to be taken for granted
Here are some facts about water consumption for perspective:
- According the the EPA, the average American uses about 100 gallons, or 378 liters, of water a day.
- This figure is about 2.5 times higher than used in England, and 3.5 times higher than Germany, two other industrialized nations.
- 99% of Americans have access to hot and cold piped water, showers, and flush toilets.1
- In comparison, a 2009 report by the UNDP, UNICEF, and the Mongolian Government states that only 22% of Mongolians have access to piped water. Add in improved wells and tankers and only 39.2% of the population has access to improved water, about 20% lower than the world average.
- Mongolians who live in cities with piped water use about 285 liters a day, a figure not far from figures seen in Europe.
- On the other hand, Mongolians who live in the countryside use less than 7 liters a day.
- As a household, we use about 160 liters a week, or a little over 10 liters per person a day. This figure is above the average for Mongolians (we’re still Americans!) in the countryside but 28 times less than used by Mongolians in the city, and almost 40 times less than the average American (in America).
- 100% of our water is brought to our ger in a canister on a cart by Brian, or a neighbor. Brian hand pumps all our drinking water to remove heavy metals and such but we are the only ones in town who do.
- Lastly, we shower in the public bath house on the other side of town once a week and share an outside pit toilet with 7 people.
So the next time you grumble about cleaning the bathroom, put off doing laundry in your washing machine, or think that taking a shower is a hassle, take a moment to be thankful that you have all those options and that your water is not going to make you sick.
1. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Water_supply_and_sanitation_in_the_United_States
Children’s Day
Every June 1st, Mongolian kids get dolled up in fancy, and often hilarious outfits, attend parties, participate in games, and eat enough candy to rival Halloween. Hanhongor’s celebration was held on the town playground and was wonderful. Here are just a few of the attendees:
Yaisuu, the English teacher’s “full of attitude” baby
Nomiin, “the terrified of Santiago” girl from Tsagaan Sar. Later I saw here running around with a headful of curls but I like the colorful rag curler look better.
A pair of fat babies.
Mandaa, the worlds smallest golfer.
This little one spent the entire morning hanging from bars, often upside down so as to best display her undies.
This doll had a fake fur coat and wore makeup.
My friend Undrakhaa and her super sweet baby Uulsay.
And lastly 2nd grader, Gonchigdulam. This is definitely an award winning outfit.
In addition to looking cute, all the kids participated in games based on age. The babies had to grab balls, the 1-2 year olds had a running race
The 2-3 year olds had a bike race (I just love the ties. Tie=bike race winner!)
and the older kids did various running and athletic games.
Lastly, the kindergartners put on a concert. This is the area I feel where Mongolian kids really differ from Americans. Can you imagine a 2 or 3 year old in America confidently striding onto a stage and reciting a poem? How about an entire class of kids like that? That is what happens here. A few tiny performers
A group of lovely lady singers,
Some pink dancers,
and yellow duck dancers,
and one super tiny yet confident poet.
Happy Children’s Day to children large and small!
