Flew from Ulaanbaatar to Ölgii hoping
to have the best part of two days there, unfortunately the fight was delayed by 9 hours and when I arrived discovered that the time written on my bus ticket was wrong. Not 17.00 but 7.00
Luckily, helpful guest ger owner took me to a shop (closed) to get provisions for the journey and money exchanger ( 11pm) to get a few rubles to buy food in Russia.
Though she did charge me for the trip.
Ölgii was little more than a collection of widely spaced huts with dusty dirt roads surrounded by smooth mountains (glacial scouring) and a river meandering in forks through the valley.
I didnt get to see much having to walk through the town in the dark for dinner and to the bus station at 6.30 next morning. It was actually only 10 minutes walk and it didnt leave until 8.30
Long, long ride. 40 hours but quite comfortable bus. The worst was the 4 hours to get into Russia. The whole bus had to be unloaded, x rayed, sniffed by dogs and reloaded.
The landscape did not change but when I woke up next morning it was all rugged, rocky mountains and pine forests; the road following a rushing river.
The gers had changed into wooden houses with fences around little gardens growing potatoes.
We stopped for food at a cafe and, not surprisingly, had meat and potatoes. I had no idea what the menu said but got some one to read it to me and recognised Borsch and Goulash, so thats what i had. Delicious.
Another loo stop and they were so bad I went in the fields
Only 2 hours to unload and reload the bus laving Russia.
The visa cost 60 US dollars for the day.
Fields of sunflowers most of the way and flat.
to have the best part of two days there, unfortunately the fight was delayed by 9 hours and when I arrived discovered that the time written on my bus ticket was wrong. Not 17.00 but 7.00
Luckily, helpful guest ger owner took me to a shop (closed) to get provisions for the journey and money exchanger ( 11pm) to get a few rubles to buy food in Russia.
Though she did charge me for the trip.
Ölgii was little more than a collection of widely spaced huts with dusty dirt roads surrounded by smooth mountains (glacial scouring) and a river meandering in forks through the valley.
I didnt get to see much having to walk through the town in the dark for dinner and to the bus station at 6.30 next morning. It was actually only 10 minutes walk and it didnt leave until 8.30
Long, long ride. 40 hours but quite comfortable bus. The worst was the 4 hours to get into Russia. The whole bus had to be unloaded, x rayed, sniffed by dogs and reloaded.
The landscape did not change but when I woke up next morning it was all rugged, rocky mountains and pine forests; the road following a rushing river.
The gers had changed into wooden houses with fences around little gardens growing potatoes.
We stopped for food at a cafe and, not surprisingly, had meat and potatoes. I had no idea what the menu said but got some one to read it to me and recognised Borsch and Goulash, so thats what i had. Delicious.
Another loo stop and they were so bad I went in the fields
Only 2 hours to unload and reload the bus laving Russia.
The visa cost 60 US dollars for the day.
Fields of sunflowers most of the way and flat.
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