Day 5: Mike and Bone Bobble Heads Day 2!!!

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The next morning Mike and Bone were tired, bit up, and fed up! The bathrooms were so non-functional and dirty, there was no freakin way they could take a (cold only) shower with all the mosquitoes and flies in the bathroom. A sullen set of Boys were not amused with another breakfast of boiled beef and onions, and ate and drank their coffee quietly with Bataar and Sinhee. Soon, they left the decrepit Binder Ger Camp in the dust, or more accurately, the mud!!!

Muddy-Ass Morning!

Bataar slid sideways and lurched forward following the path they had com in on through a much soggier landscape than even the day before! They were on their way to visit the Chinggis Khan's monument at Deluun Boldog, but to get there they needed to cross a river, well guess what!?!

"Ain't Going That-away!"

That bridge was long gooone! As Ernie Harwell used ta say! Baatar stopped the car to investigate how deep was the water and how fast was it moving, it didn't take him long to shake his head. Needless to say, they were not gonna see Deluun Boldog!!!

The stop, did allow the Boys to get off of the buckin' bronco (actually a Toyota!) and stretch their legs a bit. Walkin' around Mike and Bone were able to marvel at the endless steppe in weather that felt more like March than August!

After accepting their fate, Baatar and Sinhee plotted a new path to start heading back west via Binder.

A Path Less Travelled!

The "back-track" led the muddy SUV back past the mess called the Binder Ger Camp and into the village of Binder.

Mike and Bone in Front of

The "No-See'um Museum" in Binder!?!

Binder built a Museum to Chinggis's childhood in the Village, but it wasn't open. Fact was Mongolia has built a lot of museums in their drive to create a larger tourism business, but some of it was ahead of their infrastructure and ability to staff those attractions! After a quick pic, Baatar, Sinhee, Mike and Bone once more lit out to hit a bridge that had not been washed out so they could start heading back toward UlanBataar.

Stepping through the Muddy Eastern Steppe

Baatar plotted a classic football move, swing to the corners! Baatar swung about 30 miles (in the mud!) to the north to finally cross the river on a still working bridge. However there were several more rivers their would have to cross!

You really gonna drive that Prius through that river!

Öndörkhaan is a town in Mongolia located 290 km east of Ulaanbaatar. On November 18, 2013, the city was renamed to Chinggis City in honor of that Khan guy. Chinggis Town is no different than most Mongolian town, they are typically no more that 20,000 people. In fact UlaanBaatar is the only city of over 20,000 in the whole country, so much of the Mongolian population, by choice, still lives on the wild, cold steppes. Driving through the muck into an actual gravel road on Baatar's mud-spatters SUV, the Boys reveled in the thought of staying in an actual hotel, with a hot shower, after the gruesome experience the night before at the Binder Ger Park, warmed the cockle's of their cholesterol clogged hearts!

Checking in Sinhee wanted the Boy to join her and Baatar for the next round of boiled beef and onion! The Boys wanted none of it at also wanted to stretch their legs and two days of bouncing like an soccer ball made their tailbones feel like mush!

They declined dinner and headed out hoping to find a bar for a beer and some pizza!

Mom and Young Chingghis

How could Öndörkhaan be renamed Chinggis Town with some statue of Chinggis, and this small town didn't disappoint! They had two statues dedicated to both Chinggis (below) and his Mom (above.) Chinggis’s Mom, Hö'elün definitely merited a status. Born into the Olkhonud clan of the Onggirat tribe, Hö'elün was originally married to Chiledu, a Merkit aristocrat; she was captured shortly after her wedding by Yesügei, an important member of the Mongols, who abducted her to be his primary wife. She and Yesügei had four sons and one daughter: Temüjin(aka Chinggis), Qasar, Hachiun, Temüge, and Temülen. After Yesügei was fatally poisoned and the Mongols abandoned her family, Hö'elün shepherded all her children through poverty to adulthood—her resilience and organisational skills have been remarked upon by historians. She continued to play an important role after Temüjin's marriage to Börte—together, the two women managed his camp and provided him with advice.

After checking out the Statues the Boys took a walk around the rest of the town.

Chinggis, In Chinghis Khan City!

Which didn't take long the "town" was only a few blocks long, and there was no one out walking around, in fact is was a bit of a ghost town. They went to check out the one bar they saw, but it was very apparently out of business! Walking around Mike and Bone very shortly led them back to the Hotel! Not really much of a town!

"Mike and Bone, Join the Party!!"

Walking back in the Hotel a little resigned, the Boys were heading to the stairs when a group of locals that had rented the restaurant for the evening. grabbed the Boys and offered them some shots and started toasting together!!! Now Mike and Bone had no idea what they were toasting, but damn! they sure were not gonna turn down some local courtesy and free shots, evening if it was more of that milk-vodka!

Feeling a little better! (or buzzed) Mike and Bone succumbed to another boiled beef and onion dinner with Baatar and Sinhee on a small second floor conference room since the dining room was being used to celebrate a local being promoted to police captain! Nothing like doing shots with the police!!! After dinner Mike and Bone belched their way to their room, which was a little shabby, was still light years ahead of the Binder Ger camp, so the Boys got a great nights sleep!!