Mongol life

There are few people in the world more hospitable than the Mongols. 

view from inside the ger

As a matter of fact, you can pretty much invite yourself into any ger you might come up across along your way. Some people say you don’t even have to knock - you can simply open the door. 

friend having tea

While I would still definitely recommend knocking it is true that Mongol hospitality is something you can pretty much take for granted (in a good way). For that reason, it is relatively easy for travellers who are crossing the country. They know they will always have a place to have warm food and tea. Usually, the first thing you are offered is airag (fermented mare’s milk) or Mongol tea. I have personally grown very fond of the slightly salted milky Mongol tea. Airag, on the other hand, is really an acquired taste. Luckily, we stayed long enough to learn to appreciate it but many travellers admit they struggle at first. 

yak butter

One of my favourites is yak butter (also called yak cream) made from the cream of yak milk. It is absolutely delicious and insanely creamy. Very easy to eat a lots of it. Unfortunately not so easy to digest. Mistake too often made. 

drying meat

During the summer months meat is put to dry on the ceiling of the ger. And no, surprisingly, it doesn’t smell but it certainly is quite a sight. 

making bodtz

If there is anything on the stove (which is cooking on top of the fire) then they will offer you food, usually meat. It’s something to see a family, including the young ones, devour chunks of meat with no accompaniment whatsoever. I am not a big meat eater but I do really like the way it is cooked here, simply boiled. I find it very tasty. I also like bodtz, a kind of dumpling with mutton inside. I’ve heard a few foreigners say they find the taste of mutton too strong but Mongols don’t eat lamb. They don’t eat an animal that hasn’t yet given life. It’s a philosophy of replacement and sustainability that I find very appealing. 

Initially, it felt weird to be so close to the animals that were going to end up in our plates. After some time, however, it was good to know that the meat we eat came from animals that spent their whole live outdoors and free. One of our Mongol hosts told us that they knew vegetarians who only ate meat in Mongolia because they felt animals have a happy life here. Mongolia certainly has the luxury of space and animals are the first to benefit from it.

enjoying tea inside the ger

one of the families who invited us in