Domestic Goddess Travels

Our trip to the Dead Sea, Petra, Jordon

2012-11-04T15:52:00.001+07:00

Dead Sea, Petra, Jordon

Wednesday 24th October

We arrived in Amman after a short flight from Cairo. The process of arranging our visas on arrival was really quick, obtain some local money from the money changer then proceed to get our visa.We had arranged a pickup from the hotel so after about an hour in the car we arrived at the Kempinski Hotel Ishtar Dead Sea. The hotel was very impressive and before we knew it we where asleep.

Thursday 25th October

Today we woke up and we had planned a relaxing day enjoying the pools on the grounds of the hotel. After breakfast we decided that we would first experience the Dead Sea and see if you can really float.

Getting down to the beach was an adventure in its self as the grounds to the hotel are very large and as the hotel is set on a hill we had to weave our way down the levels to the beach.

View from our balcony room

Pool One

Pool two

Pool three

We reached the beach to see people rubbing mud on them selves. It seems the thing to do was to rub mud on yourselves, let it dry then take a dip in the Dead Sea. We decided to give the mud a miss and take a dip in the Dead Sea.

There was no sand at the beach but pebbles which made walking a little hard on the feet. Once we had entered the Dead Sea it was a very weird feeling. The water was warm and had a heavy, slimey feeling to it. Any sensitive parts on your body you sure felt as the salt levels were very high which in turn made you float.

Pool four and the beach at the Dead Sea

People covered in mud

Ben floating in the Dead Sea

Bernadette floating in the Dead Sea

Paige and Bernadette enjoying one of the pools

We spent the rest of the day relaxing by the pools and enjoying the sunshine.

700 hundred year old olive tree

Paige and Ben

Friday 26th October

Today we were going to take a tour of Petra. We had to drive around three hours to reach the township of Petra. The drive was very interesting and the scenery was quite interesting even that it was very desert like.

Paige in the car on the way to Petra

On the road to Petra

Town of Petra

When we arrived at the tourist entrance to Petra our driver arranged a guide and tickets. We decided to walk into the gorge and made our way a long the track. After a while we reached the Treasury which was just amazing to walk out and see. We walked on some more to discover what was like a small valley which were lined with the tombs. We did some exploring with our guide before it was time to make our way back to meet the driver.

About Petra

Petra, the world wonder, is without a doubt Jordan’s most valuable treasure and greatest tourist attraction. It is a vast, unique city, carved into the sheer rock face by the Nabataeans, an industrious Arab people who settled here more than 2000 years ago, turning it into an important junction for the silk, spice and other trade routes that linked China, India and southern Arabia with Egypt, Syria, Greece and Rome. Entrance to the city is through the Siq, a narrow gorge, over 1km in length, which is flanked on either side by soaring, 80m high cliffs. Just walking through the Siq is an experience in itself. The colours and formations of the rocks are dazzling. As you reach the end of the Siq you will catch your first glimpse of Al-Khazneh (Treasury). This is an awe-inspiring experience. A massive façade, 30m wide and 43m high, carved out of the sheer, dusky pink rock-face and dwarfing everything around it. It was carved in the early 1^st century as the tomb of an important Nabataean king and represents the engineering genius of these ancient people.

Entering the Petra site

Horse and cart on the small walk way

Tourist police

First sight of Petra

Paige, Bernadette and Ben standing in front of the Treasury

Carved into the rock areas

More carvings in the rock

Bernadette and Paige riding donkeys out of Petra

Saturday 27th October

Our last morning was spent by the pools as yesterday we had a full day of site seeing in Petra. Our flight wasnt until the afternoon so we enjoyed a wonderful last holiday breakfast and the morning by the pool.

Our trip to Luxor, Egypt

2012-11-04T12:30:00.000+07:00

Luxor, Eqypt

Monday 22nd October

Last night we arrived in Luxor, Egypt. It was a quick flight from Cairo to Luxor. Getting to the Cairo airport took a whole two hours due to the traffic but the main thing was we made our flight and we enjoyed waking up to explore the Jolie Ville kings Island Hotel where we were staying.

The Hotel itself is on a small island which had wonderful views of the Nile River. Our room was quite large but it needed an up date in decor inside as it was very 80's looking. Today we enjoyed one of the pool areas. In the afternoon we decided that because we had a full day of tours tomorrow we would explore the local tourist market. We headed into town to find the market closed and only opening up again at 5pm so we headed back to the hotel for some more lounging by the pool.

Our night plans didn't turn out that well as we arrived back to the market and after a short time the power in the area went out so that put a dint in our plans. Exploring the market wasn't meant to be.

The outside of our room

One of the pool areas

Paige watching the sunset on the Nile River

Sunset on the Nile River

Tuesday 23th October

We had a full day of site seeing today as we tried to fit as many sites in as possible. We had booked a tour with a private tour guide to ensure we went to see what we wanted to go and see. It is suggested to do your tour in the morning of the Valley of the Kings as the heat does take a toll on visitors.

Our first stop was the Valley of the Kings, visitors are not allowed to take photos but I was able to find some on the Internet to go with our blog. We relied on our guide to suggest the best extra tombs to see and on his recommendation we paid the extra cost to visit Ramses 3rd which we saw some amazing hieroglyphics. We had already seen all Tutankhamun's treasures in Cairo so we gave his tomb a miss.

Looking down the Valley of the Kings

Valley of the Kings

The Valley of Kings is the ancient burial ground used by the Pharoahs and dignitries from the 18th to the 20th dynasties. Among 63 royal tombs is the famous Tomb of Tutankhamun (KV 62) that was discovered virtually intact in November 1922. Ticket (80 LE) is valid for entry to three tombs.

Extra tickets to visit the tomb of Tutankhamun can be purchased at a cost of 100LE, Ramses V and VI at 50LE and the tomb of Ay in the Western Valley costs an extra 25LE. Ticket for electric train (LE 4 return) . Not all tombs are open to the public, but the valley is open daily though Tutankhamun's tomb closes for an hour between 1 and 2pm

hieroglyphics

Our next stop was visiting the Temple of Hatshepsut. The day had started to warm up and without any shade we found ourselves glad we were not here in the heat of summer. We found our guide was very informative which made our visit more interesting. Paige really liked the nick name of "Hot Chicken Soup" the guide had given the temple a lot easier to remember.

Temple of Hatshepsut

Temple of Hatshepsut

A mortuary temple dedicated to the longest ruling female of Ancient Egypt, Queen Hatshepsut. The temple is decorated with statues, sphinxes, and reliefs, which have been meticulously restored over time.

Bernadette, Ben and Paige standing in front of the Temple of Hatshepsut

Paige waiting for us to finish looking at the temple

On the move again we headed to have some lunch and a quick rest at a local restaurant. On our way we made a quick stop to see the Colossi of Memnon.

Colossi of Memnon

Two enthroned statues of Amenhotep III, each soaring more than 60 feet into the sky, are the first monuments visitors see upon arrival at the West Bank. Standing sixty feet high, they originally guarded the mortuary temple of Amenhotep III, thought to have been the largest in Egypt, but plundered for building materials.

Bernadette and Ben standing in front of the Colossi of Memnon

Another stop on our tour was to visit a Alabaster Carvers and shop. It was interesting to see how the process of how Alabaster was carved.

One stage in the process of Alabaster carving

Paige and Bernadette watching one of the stages of carving

Bernadette and Paige watching the man shine a light in one of the stone carved vases

Our tour continued and we went on to see the Karnak Temple and Luxor Temples. Both temples were amazing to see. So much history an we were glad to have the tour guide as he pointed out interesting aspects of both temples. I think if we had of visited the temples on our own we wouldn't of found out many interesting facts.

Karnak Temple

The temple of Karnak was known as Ipet-isut (Most select of places) by the ancient Egyptians. It is a temple complex, where pharaohs built for over 2000 years. The temple is dedicated to Theban triad of Amun, Mut and Khonsu.

This derelict place is still capable of overshadowing many of the wonders of the modern world and in its day must have been awe inspiring.

For the largely uneducated ancient Egyptian population this could only have been the place of the gods. It is one the largest religious buildings ever made. Todays pilgrims are mainly tourists. It covers about 200 acres 1.5km by 0.8km The area of the sacred enclosure of Amon alone is 61 acres. The Hypostyle hall at 54,000 square feet with its 134 columns is still the largest room of any religious building in the world. In addition to the main sanctuary, known as the Precinct of Amun, there are several smaller temples and a vast sacred lake.

One of the several smaller Temples, is The Temple of Ptah, for any traveller visiting the temple this is a must see! The temple is small and set on the North Eastern boundary of the complex. To get there you must go through the pillars on the north side of the great court (left as you walk in) and travel through what appears to be ruins to the outer wall. Near a large gate there will be a small set of pillars and at the end a small closed temple. Unless you are travelling with a guide you may have to tip to get in but it is part of the temple you are allowed to visit. The reason it is so special is because it has the only remaining statue of Sekhmet still in place. The room is small and dark and provides a real insight into what temples may have looked like in the past. The light shines down on her wonderfully carved head and lights it up as any priest would have seen it thousands of years ago.

The row of Spinx

One of the statues

Hieroglyphics and the original colours

Obelisk

Luxor Temple

Built during the eighteenth dynasty by Amenhotep III and added to by Ramses II, Luxor Temple was built to celebrate the annual Opet Festival when the statues of Amun, Mut, and Khonsu were taken in procession from Karnak to Luxor. The temple features colossal seated statues of Ramses II and large open courts surrounded by elegant papyrus columns. Open daily.

The temple is open after dark and the special lighting makes many of the stone inscriptions easier to see and read. If possible, view it both during daylight and at night for 2 different perspectives.

Of particular interest are the reliefs covering the side walls of the Colonnade of Amun-hetep III which, although userped by Hor-em-heb, are the major surviving monument from the reign of Tut-ankh-amun.

Luxor Temple

Our tour guide showing Paige and Ben part of the temple

After finishing our day of touring the amazing temples we headed back to the hotel for some down time and some swimming which Paige couldn't wait to do.

Wednesday 24th October

Today was an early start as we went Hot Air ballooning over Luxor area. We were picked up at the hotel by the Ballooning company and taken to the Nile to cross on on of the local boats.

Our boat for crossing the Nile

Paige and Bernadette waiting for our boat crossing

One of the Hot Air Balloons taking off

We arrived at the Hot Air balloon area to find around ten other companies readying the balloons for other tourists. It was great arriving with some darkness as the effect from the balloons being heated was really interesting.

Another of the Hot Air Balloons taking off

Paige and Ben waiting for our Balloon to be ready

Looking up at the balloon

Paige, Bernadette and Ben in the balloons basket ready to take off

We climbed into the basket and waited for the take off. The ride was wonderful we floated over a part of Luxor were we saw many of the temples from the day before. To see the sunrise from the balloon was amazing even if there was a bit of haze in the air.

Ground Crew as our balloon took off.

Sunrise

Ben in the hot air balloon basket

View of the Valley of the Kings

River boats

After a perfect landing we made our way back to the river for another crossing and we went back to the hotel for our last breakfast and to get ready for our next leg of our holiday and our flight to Amman, Jordon.

It was worth travelling to Luxor as we got to see another part of Egypt which had more of a country feel and seeing other temples and the Valley of the Kings was worth every minute of travelling.

Cairo, Egypt

2012-10-21T19:48:00.000+07:00

Egypt, Cairo

Wednesday 18th October

With a bumpy start to our trip and having trouble with our tickets at the UB airport we had three flights to catch to reach our destination, Cairo. They say "the adventure is in the journey", as we had about twelve hours between our first and second flights we decided once we reached Beijing we went to stay in a hotel near the airport. Paige was very happy as she was able to have a swim at the hotel. Our next flight from Beijing to Doha took around eight hours and once we reached Doha airport

we had a nice surprise as we where able to go into the first class lounge while we waited. It was our first time flying with Qatar Airlines and we found the staff very helpful and friendly.

Paige outside the first class lounge

Thursday 19th October

Arrived at the the Cairo International airport and found getting a visa on arrival very easy. All we had to do was pay for a visa sticker from one of the bank booths and put it in our passport.
Waiting to go through immigration was a different story. A number of flights had arrived at the same time so the line that we were in took around one hour to go through the immigration. Once we had located our bags the craziness also continued. With only two spots to exit the baggage hall there were a number of lines that where converging on to the two check points so it was crazy.

Once out we where met by the hotel's driver and it only took around forty minutes to reach the Kempinski Nile Hotel where we were staying.

As the afternoon was fading and the jet lag was catching up with us we had an early evening to ready ourselves for our adventure.

Outside the Kempinski Nile hotel , Cairo

Part of our room

Friday 20th October

We woke up quite early and had a wonderful breakfast at the hotel.

We decided to go see the Liberation Square (Midan El-Tahreer) as this was apart of the Cairo history as the uprising had occurred in early 2012. There wasn't much to see at the square and the area was a circle not a square, some of the locals were gathering for the days activities as we were told they do in the afternoons on a Friday after preys. We didn't stay long and as our next destination wasn't far away, we headed to see the Egyptian Antiquities Museum.

Breakfast buffet

Liberation Square (Midan El-Tahreer)

The Egyptian Antiquities Museum is one of the must see places that any visitor needs to see. The museum built in 1902 and houses the world’s largest collection of ancient Egyptian artifacts most of the information says there is more than 120,000 items on display featuring the famous Tutankhamun collection. That was what we really wanted to see.

Once the doors opened we headed straight to the Tutankhamun collection before the room was over run by people. The room it's self is painted black and on entering the temperature changes. The collection was very impressive with Tutankhamun beautiful gold death mask and sarcophagus. We were lucky that the other tourists were quite slow in reaching the room so we had the whole room to ourselves with one other lady so it felt like we had a private viewing.

We wondered through the museum and paid the extra cost to enter the royal Mummy room, which feature a number of mummies. The museum is very old and in need of restoration, it feels it hasn't had any maintenance on the place since its opening in 1902. Most of the displays where in glass wooden framed cabinets which adds to the overall historic feel to the place.

The Egyptian Antiquities Museum

Rock carving on the grounds of the museum

One of the floors in the museum

One of Tutankhamun's viscera coffin

Tutankhamun's death mask

One of the jars the internal organs were stored from the king

One of the mummies and coffins

One of the many mummies inside the museum

We headed back to the hotel for a swim and some lunch which Paige really wanted to do.

In the afternoon we adventured to the Khan Al-Kalili Market which was a short taxi ride from our hotel. There where locals everywhere as there was a very large mosque in the same area. The market is located in the heart of Islamic Cairo. The market was a colourful open-air bazaar which was filled with unique and exotic items from spices, perfumes to jewelry and souvenirs. We found at the time of our visit there wasn't many tourists and the locals were very friendly, "How can I take your money today" and "I have what you want, come inside" rang in our ears. We enjoyed wondering through the lanes and small streets of the market. Getting back to the hotel took a while as everyone wanted to catch the taxis which all you had to do was hail one from the road side.

One of the streets at the Khan Al-Kalili Market

A couple of women on the street

Man carrying bread

One of the stalls at the Khan Al-Kalili Market

Spices for sale

Lamps for sale

Some items

Handmade toys

Another section of the market

Saturday 21st October

Paige decided that after breakfast she wanted to have a morning swim before we headed to the Gizeh Plateau.
We decided that we would take a private tour which I had pre booked to visit Giza before arriving in Cairo.

Gizeh Plateau

The plateau was home to the three great pyramids of Khufu, Khafre, and Menkaure as well as the Sphinx and numerous tombs, and mortuary temples. The Pyramids were built in the 4th Dynasty( circa 2550 B.C). The Pyramids of Ancient Egypt were built as tombs for Kings (and Queens).

It was amazing standing there looking up at the pyramids. We decided to enter the second pyramid which was an extra charge but worth going inside to see what the burial chamber was like. There wasn't anything displayed inside and it was very easy except you had to bend over to walk.

The tour guild arranged for us to have a Camel ride to venture to the desert side and look back over the area. For 120 Egyptian pounds each I think was well worth the cost. It was quite an interesting way to view the pyramids. We made our way to see the Sphinx which was a short drive away. Paige very much liked seeing the Sphinx as did Ben and I.

Pyramids from a distance

Bernadette, Ben and Paige standing in front of one of the pyramids

Ben, Paige and Bernadette standing at the base of the Great Pyramid

Paige looking quite tall

Bernadette, Paige and Ben on the camels around the pyramids

View looking back to city from base of Great Pyramid

On the other side looking back at the pyramids

The Sphinx

Our afternoon was spent looking for some local army uniforms for Ben but to no luck we didnt find any. We did meet some nice local people who where very helpful.

One thing we have found is the Egyptian people are very friendly even most taxi drivers. Everyone likes to give advice on pick pockets and where to go. I didnt know what to expect of the local people but turns out they have been one of the most friendly people we have met on our travels to date. We found getting around town was quite easy using the local taxis. We always check the price before jumping in a taxi to ensure we know how much the fare will cost.

We ventured out to a local Lebanese restaurant not far from our hotel call "Taboula" which was suggested but the hotel staff turns out it had a nice atmosphere and the food was quite pleasant.

Sunday 22nd October

Our last day in Cario before we where to fly out to Luxor. We started our day with another lovely breakfast and Paige wanted to take advantage of another morning swim. Sundays in Cairo is quite slow as many of the sites are closed to being a Sunday. We decided to go check out the Hilton Ramses Mall which was a disappointment especially being a Sunday and many of the stalls were closed. We head back to the hotel and sat by the pool for the rest of the afternoon before we headed off to catch our flight to Luxor.

To sum Cairo up without the history it has in Gizeh and some of the other historic sites there isn't much else on offer here. The people are very friendly and helpful. The city really needs a good clean and rubbish needs to be collected as its everywhere.

Geocaching

2012-10-20T22:43:00.003+07:00

With winter nearly here in Mongolia we took advantage of the last remaining warm sunny days and headed out to a location called Gatsuurt to do some geocaching. A long for the ride was our friend Jenni. It was a great morning of being in the country side.

Jenni and Paige checking out the gps

View of the river we crossed

Jenni crossing the river

Paige holding the geocach

Paige and Ben checking out whats in the geocach

Bernadette and Paige on top of the hill

Paige, Jenni and Ben

Different coloured sashes around a group of trees

Ben and Bernadette

Ben and Paige

Ben and Paige having fun

Intersting facts I never knew about Mongolia

2012-10-08T12:56:00.002+07:00

While doing some reasearch on the net I found some interesting information about Mongolia I didnt know;

National Anthem of Mongolia

Our unwavering independent nation
All Mongolis' sacred ancestry
All world's good deeds

Always stable, forever continue

With all honest nations of the world

Strenghten our bonds

With all our will and strenght

Let's develop our beloved Mongolia

Our great nation's symbol blesses

The peoples' fate supports

Our ancestry, culture and language

Let's forever cherish and prosper

Bright peoples of brave Mongolia

Have freedom and happiness

Key to happiness, column for prosperity

Our great country prosper

About the Mongolian Flag

The flag of Mongolia consists of three equal sized vertical stripes - the left and right stripes are red and the middle one is blue. On the left hand side of the Mongolian flag, in the red stripe is the country's national emblem which is a 'soyombo', a columnar arrangement of abstract and geometric representation for fire, sun, moon, earth, water, and the yin-yang symbol.

Other instersting information

The 6th largest country in Asia, and the 18th largest in the world.

Average altitude 1.580m above sea level.

Not only is population counted so is the Livestock Numbers counted
According to the 2004 livestock census, the number of livestock in Mongolia was 27,996,800: up 10% on 2003.
Preliminary estimates indicate that there are 1,999,600 horses, 1,835,500 cows, 11,659,000 sheep and 12,215,400 goats. Compared with 2003 the number of horses has increased by 30,700; cows by 42,600; sheep by 903,500 and goats by 1,562,700. The number of camels fell by 400 to 256,300.

Mongolian garbage trucks sound like ice-cream vans.

Genghis Khan had a 'celestial insurance' policy. He tolerated all religions hoping that at least one of the Gods would show its appreciation.

Roy Chapman Andrews made the first discovery of dinosaur eggs in the Gobi. His exploits inspired the creation of Indiana Jones.

Ulaanbaatar is the coldest capital city in the world.

Wooden electricity poles are attached to a concrete base, because without it the pole would simply snap from the pressure of the freezing ground.

Mongolian Money is printed in England.

Some symbols you see in Mongolia

Ulzii Khee (Өлзий Хээ) or The Endless knot or Eternal knot

symbol for happiness and eternity

Khaan Buguivch (Хаан Бугуйвч) or King Braclet

symbol of honesty, peace and love.

Khatan Suikh (Хатан Сүйх) or Queen Carriage

symbol of love, invincibility and honesty.

ISU 20th Anniversary Celebration

2012-09-19T14:46:00.002+07:00

On September 14th ISU had their 20th Anniversary Celebration at the school. The day was filled with speeches, a presentation of a time capsule, two Mongolian horse riders and entertainment by the students.

All about ISU

Speech by the schools director

The time capsule

Mongolian horse riders

David, Sue and Ben

Bernadette and Ben

Paige waiting to perform peeking around the curtain

Mongolian boy holding the Mongolian flag

Paige (far left) on stage

Paige on stage

Children holding the different countries flags

Gemma, Paige's friend holding the flag from Canada's flag

ISU schools song

Government House Ulaanbaatar

2012-09-18T08:33:00.002+07:00

Outside Government House

In the last couple of weeks the Mongolian Government has opened part of the Government House in UB to the public and a surprise the entry is free. Before this opening to the public the closest you could get to the building was at the bottom of the stairs now you are able to see the large Chinggis Khan statue up close and enter the building.

A little history

In 2005/2006 the palace was renovated and extended, as a result of which Sukhbaatar's Mausoleum, which housed the remains of the most well-known leader of Mongolia's 1921 revolution, was torn down and replaced by a hall that houses a grand statue of Genghis Khan. Other bronze statues of khans and generals of the imperial past also flank the building. The extension has green glass-domes in a shape reminiscent of traditional gers. During the renovation, the main grey-coloured building was painted white

As you walk up the stairs you are greeted by the large Genghis Khan Statue on the right, as you enter the building you have to walk through a metal scanner and have all bags scanned before leaving any bags including your hand bag in the lockers provided. You are allowed to take photos. As you walk upstairs you pass the nine flags of Mongolia then you walk down stairs to the display room.

Nine flags of Mongolia

The display room houses many of the government treasures which are labelled in both English and Mongolian but the descriptions of the items are only in Mongolian.

The Khaan's Seal of the Great Mongolian State

The medal of Chinggis Khann

One of the Khan's Genterals outside of Goverment House

The Government House opens at 10am until 6pm but closes for an hour during the day for lunch.

Our Visitors Sue and David

2012-09-16T13:10:00.001+07:00

It has been very exciting to have our second lot of visitors, Sue and David (Ben's Mum, Paige's Grand Parents) come to visit us here in Mongolia. They stayed for a week and they were able to see many of the sites in the capital city of Mongolia, Ulaanbaatar.

Every day we were out and about seeing a site and experiencing daily life in Mongolia.

Traffic played a big part in the visit, it was no surprise to see how bad the traffic was and the lack of people following simple road rules here. Mongolia is a developing city but with the rich culture and history experienced here by visitors many are left wondering how will the city develop in the future?.

It was wonderful to share our daily life with Sue and David in Mongolia and to give them an insight to this interesting country.

Paige with Nanna Sue

Sue and Paige with one of the costumes from the Mongolian National Dance, Music and Cultural Show

Paige, David, Sue and Ben

Paige and an eagle

David holding an eagle

David, Sue and Paige next to a Camel

David at the Chinggis Khan Statue

Turtle Rock at Terej National Park

Paige at Terej National Park

Paige, Sue and David walking around an Ovoo

David and Sue at the top of Zaisan Memorial

Sue and David visit Paige's class room

David and Sue at the gates to the Winter Palace of Bogd khan

Sue and David at the Grandantegchenling Monastery

Sue and David spinning the prey wheels

Undra, Mishel and Paige

David and Sue at the Government House

The flags of Mongolia inside the Government House

Bernadette and David at the Beatles Monument

Visiting the International School of Ulaanbaatar

David, Sue and Ben at ISU

Bernadette and Ben at ISU

Paige (far left) performing at the ISU 20th Celebrations

Paige on stage

School paper cake for the 20th year celebrations

Car Stickers

2012-09-06T08:28:00.001+07:00

Left sticker is for the car check and pollution sticker, right sticker is for the registration

As we have had our car for a year in UB it was time to change the stickers on the car.

One sticker is for the registration and one sticker is for the pollution charge and good working inspection.

Every year each car on the road here must up grade the stickers.

With anything it takes time to do, first I had to arrange the registration sticker where you go to the office, pay the money on one level then take the papers up to another level, get the two documents signed and stamped and then you are given the sticker, cost were all of $60.

Next I had to take the car to the inspection workshop where waiting is something that has to be done in line for nearly an hour before you reach the inspection part to find the car is looked at for a whole two minutes to ensure the car is of good condition. I had to laugh as there are some many cars on the roads here which have easy spotted defects with lights, pollution and falling apart that I wonder how these cars pass this simple test. After the inspection and the $10 is paid then you receive the sticker.

Its so important to ensure all the documents are correct for the car as if you are pulled over by the police they will make sure they give you a hard time as it seem expats never get off lightly.

Our Visitors John and Margie

2012-09-01T16:32:00.001+07:00

It was very exciting to have our first lot of visitors come and stay with us here in Mongolia. In September we have our second lot of visitors coming as well.

John and Margie, Paige's Grandma and Pa arrived safely and over a number of days we showed them around the city of Ulaanbaatar and then travelled into the country side to show the them what I call the "two faces of Mongolia". The city and the country side are worlds apart and it was really nice to be able to show the two sides to the country we are living in.

John and Margie in Sukhbaatar Square

Margie, John and Paige

John, Margie, Paige and Ben at Gandantegchenling Monastery

Paige and Margie

The big Buddha at the Gandantegchenling Monastery

Bernadette, Ben, Margie and John at the top of the Zaisan Memorial

John, Paige & Ben knocking at the big doors to the Winter Palace of Bogd Khan

Margie and Paige in the car

Margie with baby Mishel

Margie trying her had at making Mongolia food

Home made Mongolian dumplings

Undra explains about the Mongolian flag

Tsengun and Paige

Mugee, Undra, John and Margie

The traffic we had to pass on the detour on our way out to the country side

John holding an eagle

Margie and the Camel

Paige & Margie in front of the Chinggis Khan Statue

Ben, Paige and Bernadette

John, Margie & Paige standing in front of a Ger

Paige & Margie walking around a ovoo

After walking around the ovoo three times clockwise Margie throws a rock on the pile

Our trip through Germany

2012-07-14T20:15:00.000+07:00

Munich

Thursday 28th June

After catching a lunch time flight from Amsterdam we arrived in Munich Germany.

We picked up the hire car and made our way to the Novotel Hotel where we were to be staying in Munich.

We decided to do a little exploring and found ourselves a little lost but had a yummy dinner at one of the many pubs that line the streets here in Munich.

One of the city fountains

One of the buildings near the weir

Where are we Ben?

Friday 29th June Friday

After our first breakfast in Munich we jumped in the hire car and headed to Fussen and then onto Schwangau where we visited two castles, Schloss Hohenschwangau and Schloss Neuschwanstein.

Our hire car

Schloss Hohenschwangau Castle

One of the rooms in the castle

The fountain in the garden at the castle

It was interesting to find out that the famous Sleeping Beauty castle located in California’s Disneyland Park was based on Schloss Neuschwanstein. Neuschwanstein, which literally means ‘new swan stone’ in German. Commissioned by Ludwig II of Bavaria as his personal refuge, the reclusive king spent less than six months here in his still unfinished castle before he was captured and fell from power. The barely-lived in symbol of 19th century Romanticism was an extravagantly designed homage to classical composer Richard Wagner and also contains thousands of depictions of swans sewn into pillows, drawn into wallpaper and carved into wooden door handles and frames.

Schloss Neuschwanstein Castle

One of the rooms in the castle

The area was quite large and we had to book tours to visit both castles as tourists can not walk through the castles on their own. As Ben says, “It’s good to be the king”. Both castles were beautifully decorated with walls completely cover in art work. On both tours we learnt more of the royal families who at one stage lived in the castles. Our favourite castle was the Scholss Neuschwanstein as the art work on the walls were more to our taste and it is kind of like a fairy tale castle.

Paige in the garden

The view from the castle

Ben drinking another very nice beer

Saturday 30th June

Today we visited Dachau Concentration Camp Memorial Site. The actual site was a lot larger than I expected and the actual site as you walked through the whole area gave you a very good in sight to the camps history. It's hard to express in words about feelings about visiting the site, it's hard to believe human beings could have been treated the way they were.

History and Facts about the camp, 1933 - 1945
Dachau was the first and longest operating Konzentrationslager.
The camp opened on 22nd March 1933 to keep German "political prisoners", people who were real or potential opponents to the Nazi regime (Communists, Social Democrats, Trade Unionists). The first Jews were sent to Dachau because of their political opinions, not because of the fact they were Jews. In the following years Gypsies, Homosexuals and Priests were imprisoned at Dachau.
It was the first concentration camp and the prototype for those that followed, and also a school for SS officers who supervised other camps. Dachau was never a "death camp" like Ausschwitz and Treblinka, although more than 40,000 of the approximate 200,000 (numbers vary slightly from different sources) inmates in Dachau died. They were murdered, or died from disease and malnutrition. Following the "Reichskristallnacht" (night of broken glass) in 1938 more than 10,000 Jews were sent to Dachau concentration camp. They were forced to sign over their houses and leave the country. Those who agreed, and it was the majority, were released from the camp within a few weeks. With the begin of WW II more and more prisoners from Poland, Austria, and Soviet republic, as well as Sinti and Roma, were transported to Dachau. The camp was overcrowded and conditions for the inmates became even more terrible.
From 1943 more than 100 subsidiary camps were built, thousands were killed through forced labour and a typhus epidemic. Dachau concentration camp was liberated by American troops on 29th April 1945. At that time the camp was crammed with approximately 32,000 inmates.

"Dachau - the significance of this name will never be erased from German history. It stands for all concentration camps which the Nazis established in their territory."

Entry sign

Entry building

The trench that went around the camp

Gate to the crematorium

Looking down the main road at the camp

Pictures from the 1940's of the main road of the camp

One of the signs in the old crematorium

Inside the Old Crematorium

One of the plagues to the four English women who were killed at the camp

Picture of how the sleeping quarters were for the prisoners

The three levels of bunks in the sleeping quarters

One of the memorial stones

The memorial sculpture

After driving back to Munich we went to explore the city center.

We ventured into Marienplatz , Mary's square which is the heart of Munich where we saw the glockenspiel (clock) and ventured to the Viktualien Market where we saw many types of foods for sale. After walking around we stopped at a Brauhaus for a beer. I even had a half a litre of beer myself.

Marienplatz clock tower

Part of the clock tower

Viktualien Market

One of the stales at Viktualien Market

Some of the vegetables on sale in the market

Paige amazed at her mummy drinking beer

Salzberg

Sunday 1st July

We drove down to Salzburg, Austria the home of Mozart and the Sound of Music. The drive took us about 2 hours and on the way we even got to see part of the alps. Being a Sunday we strolled around the city centre and had a leisurely lunch we can now say we have been to Austria.

On the drive to Salzburg

On the drive to Salzberg

Paige standing in the heart of the heart next to the Mozart statue

Looking up at the city castle

One of the many streets

Beer Steins

Monday 2nd July

We left Munich behind and drove to Nuremberg followed the "Romantic Road" and on the way we stopped at Landsberg am Lech and Dinkelbuels. The road was given its name as many people at taken back by the views along the way.

Landsberg am Lech

We found a nice town with some very old buildings.

Part of the town

Paige playing around

One of the town buildings

The weir

Road through the arch

Dinkelbuels

What can be said about this town, except it was a lovely old town, once again had many old buildings which were surround by a city wall and a 15th century church which was very impressive inside

Part of the city wall

One of the many pretty houses that line the street

The biggest beer mug I have ever seen

The 15th Century Church

Inside the 15th Century Church

One of the gardens near the river

Nuremberg

Tuesday 3rd July

We walked around Nuremberg and then went on the beer cellars tour that took us under the city to see where beer used to be stored. As the tour was only in German we were supplied with audio guides. It was interesting tour but we found it a bit long in time.

St Lorenz Church

Der Schoene Brunnen fountain

One of the many pretty buildings

One of the decorations on the side of the buildings

Paige waiting to tour the beer cellars

Part of the beer cellars

Inside the brewing room

Wednesday 4th July

We travelled to Bamberg and explored the city. Bamberg was a quaint town which once again very picturesque just like the other towns in Germany.

One of the churches at Bamberg

Paige greeting her subjects

Some of the stone work on one of the doors

View from one of the bridges

Paige at the laundromat

The Oldest Sausage Restaurant in the world

After exploring Bamberg we found the most trendiest laundromats we have ever visited to do some much needed laundry. The theme inside was 1970's so it made doing our washing quite fun.

For dinner we decided to try the oldest recorded sausage restaurant in the world, the sausages where very nice followed by some apple strudel.

Thursday 5th July

We walked around the city again and visited the Toy Museum where we found a range of toys that represented the history of toys in Germany.

Another view of the river

Outside the toy museum

Friday 6th July

Our last day in Germany and we decided to travel to the town of Nordlingen where we saw a pretty little town. It seemed to have decorated pigs every where which we found quite fun to spot. We spent a couple of hours exploring the city before heading back to our hotel.

The clock tower Ben and Paige climbed

View of the town from the top of the clock tower

Paige with one of the town's pigs

We have had a wonderful time driving through Germany. We were so glad we had our gps unit with the maps loaded onto it of Germany. The towns we stopped at were all so interesting to visit and as Ben has said the beer was really nice and he didn't have a bad beer at all while we were in Germany.

Our trip to Amsterdam, Netherlands

2012-06-27T22:35:00.000+07:00

After a quick flight from Paris we arrived in Amsterdam, Netherlands.

Saturday 23rd June

With the morning flying we had afternoon to explore and we walked along many of the canals that are around the old area where we are staying. I read that the canals of Amsterdam have been part of the city's landscape since the early 14th century. However most of the current canals were built during the 17th century of Amsterdam's golden age.

The old part of the city no matter where you look its like you are looking at a post card. Its so lovely.

We discovered Skinny Bridge which we walked across and watched some boats travel under.

Skinny Bridge

There's a tale connected with this lovely and most popular bridge, which spans the Amstel River. The story maintains that two women - Magere Brugthe Mager sisters - lived on opposite sides of the Amstel River. It is said that they had this pretty bridge built in order to make it easier to visit one another. Mager is the Dutch word for "skinny".

Others, however, maintain that the nickname of the bridge merely stemmed from the fact that it was so narrow that two pedestrians could not pass each other as they walked across the structure.

While the bridge is still referred to as Magere Brug, it's no longer skinny, as the original span was replaced with a wider bridge in 1871. Pedestrians and bicycles can now cross the Amstel river with ease.

Skinny Bridge

One side of skinny Bridge

Looking down one of the canals

Ben and Paige being silly

One of the many houses that line the streets in the old section of the city

Paige and Ben at one of the cafe

Sunday 24th June

After a very nice breakfast we ventured out in the rain to see some of the sites around town.

Bernadette and Page dressed for the rain

The back of the Flower Market

We travelled by tram to the Flower Market. The row of small stalls had many different flowers and a huge range of flower bulbs, too many to count. We also discovered the local cheese in one of the Cheese stores. There were amazing amounts of choice of cheese. I enjoyed tasting the many of the samples, the weirdest one I thought was the smoked cheese, it was just like eating bacon.

The Flower Market

Many of the different flowers

Clogs and flower bulbs

A range of cheese on display

Ben checking out some of the cheese samples

Paige and the Cheese lady

While we walked around the city we discovered the Torture Museum and thought this may be interesting to see. The exhibition showed reality as it existed less than two centuries ago. It was really interesting to see what and how torture was used back in history. Pictures were shown throughout the display which gives an idea what the actual uses of the torture items and tries to give the visitor a sense of what it was like in medieval times

Ben at the front of the Torture Museum

The Inquisition Chair

The Iron Maiden

The Rack

The Royal Palace

We visited the Begijnhof which is a court yard in the city center. The court yard was very quite that was surrounded by houses and it was such a peaceful place in the heart of Amsterdam.

The Begijnhof

In about 1150, a group of women came together to live in a religious community, primarily to look after the sick. These were, in effect, the first ‘Beguines’ although the name was not yet used.

The women were not nuns and nor did they live in the seclusion of a convent. They had no founders nor did they make lifelong vows. They did have to be unmarried, to make a vow of chastity and to promise obedience to the parish priest, but since they were not expected to make a vow of poverty, they were free to dispose of their own possessions.

Enterance to the Begijnhof court yard

The Begijnhof court yard

Some of the houses in the court yard

Inside of the chapel in the Begijnhof

One of the stain glass window

Candles in the chapel

One of the statues in the court yard

Some of the many leaning houses

One of the many leaning houses

After doing a lot of walking around Amsterdam we had this this Why Do Buildings in Amsterdam Lean?

After doing some reaseach our question was finally answered.

The buildings in Amsterdam are built leaning forward on purpose. Even though it might look strange to our modern eyes, designing a building that leans forward, this way to build was a solution to another problem. The problem with these old buildings is that the stairways are always very narrow and steep. These stairways are impossible to use while trying to get furniture or any other big object to your house. These stairways are a consequence of the very narrow construction used in Holland at the time. That meant you had to pull your furniture up through your window. If you take a look at most old houses in Amsterdam you will see a hook placed on top their roofs. This is used to hang a wheel and use it with a rope to pull things up. While pulling big object up a building, it helps avoiding hitting the building with these objects if the building tilts forward. So that’s what they did. The rest of the buildings you see leaning to the side or on each other are probably a result of being there for 300 years and being built on a dry canal and under sea level which make the ground less stabile.

Monday 25th June

We were up early so we could visit the Anne Frank House and try to miss standing in the large line that we found yesterday when we went to vist in the afternoon.

One arrival to the house there was a small line that had formed but it wasnt too long so we didnt have to long of a wait.

The visit was quite an emotional one as I had read "Anne Frank's Diary" when I was younger and to be standing in the house brought the story to life. All the rooms were empty but on the walls there were pictures and you were able to get a feel for life in the house. I dont know how the family succeed for two whole years in hiding. The sad thing was evently the eight people in the house were found and Anne Frank didnt survive the war. It was quite sad.

The outside of Anne Frank's house

Pictures on the wall of Anne Frank in the first room of the house

The book case hiding the entry to the secret stairs

Anne Frank's room

The bathroom area in Anne Frank's house

Anne Frank's House

The former hiding place of the Frank family is one of the most popular attractions in Amsterdam. Many declare it to be one of the most touching places they've ever visited. Others describe it as "eerily realistic".

The Frank's hiding place was the secret annex of the Opekta office building, where Otto Frank was employed since arriving in Amsterdam. Preparation of the space began in early 1942 with the clearing of the attic and two floors. The building continued to appear vacant even after its eight residents moved in.

Our next stop was to the Van Gogh Museum. It was very interesting to see some of the art works up close and to see the brush strokes and the clours that Van Cogh had used was something you can not get a feel for in the reprinted images. Many of the images are well know but we got to see other less well know paintings that have not be reprinted.

The Van Gogh Museum building

The outside of the Van Gogh Museum

The Van Gogh Museum

The museum owns 200 of the 864 surviving paintings by this magnificent artist, best known for his unique style and famous works like Starry Night and Sunflowers. In addition to the paintings, the collection includes 437 drawings and 31 prints by the artist.

The permanent collection at the Van Gogh Museums also includes about 800 letters penned by the artist himself; some written to fellow artists like Paul Gauguin but many written to his brother, Theo, to whom Vincent often turned for guidance and support. The letters provide solid information and good insight into the life and works of this genius.

After leaving the museum we visited the Water Loop Lein flea Market.

Cds for sale

Shoes for sale

Ben finding camo for sale

Water Loop Lein Flea Market

The square itself has been created in 1880, on the place of the two canals, Leprozengracht and Houtgracht. Since 1893, a Jewish market has been created there, the biggest and the most important Jewish market in Amsterdam. This has been ended in 1941, with the persecution of Jews by the Nazi Germany. After the World War II, the Waterlooplein market was reborn, first as a general bazaar, then in the 60s and 70s of the XXth century, as a trading place connected with the youth culture. Amsterdam has been a magnet for the hippies from all over Europe and the Magic Center of the alternative Provo’s culture. Between 1977-1984, the market had to move, as on the Waterloo square, the huge white building of the town hall and the opera has been built. After construction has been completed, returned to its present location behind the Town hall (Dutch: het Stadhuis) the Waterlooplein market regained its importance.

Tuesday 26th June

We travelled to the Zaan region by train today. At Zaanse Schans we found Dutch traditional crafts are still in daily practice in a number of working windmills. We were able to see time-honoured skills as making wooden shoes, cheese and wooden planks in the wind Mills and the setting was just picturesque. It was nice to have the sun shining after two days of rain.

Paige on the bridge to Zaanse Schans

Inside the Chalk Mill

Inside the Saw Mill

Inside the Cheese Making Shop

One of the Wind Mills

Paige standing on the river bank

Clogs inside the Clog Making shop

The start of a pair of clogs

Paige trying on a pair of clogs

Paige and Bernadette trying on the over sized clogs

Paige and Ben in a clog

Outside one of the homes

One of the garden areas at Zaanse Schans

Paige, Bernadette and Ben

In the evening we walked through the red light district of Amsterdam. Most of the area now is very touristy its not until you walk down the small alleys you see the shop windows and shop doors where the ladies sit waiting for business. This area simply oozes charm and one cannot help but admire the old buildings that lean at odd-angles, and the tree-enshrouded canals.

One thing that has struck me about Amsterdam is the openess of the people in the city, the cafes that sell cannabis to over 18 year olds and the different items you can buy in the local shops.

A alley way in the Red Light District

Three doors in the Red Light District

Wednesday 27th June

Our last day in Amsterdam seen us vist The Hortus Botanicus Amsterdam which is one of the oldest botanic gardens in the world. There were more than 4,000 plant species growing in the garden and greenhouses. The Hortus is located in the Plantage district on the edge of the center of Amsterdam. Behind the 300-year-old gates there we found a greenhouse with butterflies and cacti, the monumental Palmhouse and the impressive Three-Climate greenhouse. Paige enjoyed finding all the plants on the map.

The enterance gates

One part of the gardens

Inside the palm display

One of the butterflies

Paige in the gardens

We then headed to the Museum Van Loon, a private residence built in 1672 by the architect Adriaen Dortsman. The first resident was painter Ferdinand Bol, a pupil of Rembrandt. The interior of the house has remained largely intact during the last centuries and you can still see some of the splendor of the Golden Age of houses in Amsterdam.

In the house we found in the rooms, a large collection of paintings, fine furniture, precious silvery and porcelain from different centuries on display. Behind the house is a beautiful garden, the garden is laid out in formal style, and is bordered on the far side by the classical façade of the coach house. It is said this this original unity of canal house, garden and coach house is nowhere else to be seen in the city.

Front door to the Van Loon Museum

Dinning Room

Main Bed Room

The kitchen

The back garden

Our stay in Amsterdam we found the city very pretty and easy to walk around. The people where very friendly and we were amazed at how many people rode bikes to get around. There was no lack of things to see and now matter how many times you visited the same part of the city there was always something that caught your ear and hear yourself saying "Isnt that pretty". The city has a layed back attuide to life and people dont seem to judge each other here.

Wedding Cake Tops

Our trip to Paris, France

2012-06-23T03:14:00.000+07:00

After no problems with our flights from Ulaanbaatar, we arrived in Paris after two long flights.

Sunday 17th June

We discovered the Metro, which is the train system that runs all over Paris. We decided to give it a shot, we found it quite easy to use as the train lines were colour coded, the only confusing part was which exit to use to reach the right street. Our first stop was to cross the oldest bridge in Paris called Pont Neuf which crosses Seine River and then we headed to Cathédrale Notre-Dame.

Notre Dame Cathedral (full name: Cathédrale Notre-Dame de Paris, "Our Lady of Paris") is a beautiful cathedral on the the Île de la Cité in Paris. Begun in 1163 and mostly completed by 1250, Notre Dame is an important example of French Gothic architecture, sculpture and stained glass.

The cathedral was amazing and beautifully built. We were lucky to hear the singing for the Sunday service which was lovely in this setting.

We jumped on the Metro again and then went to see the Arc D Triomphe Etoile which is located in the middle of a round about so after taking a while to find the right underpass we were able to stand under the arch.

One of the many signs in Paris

Notre-Dame

Inside Notre-Dame

Service in progress at Notre-Dame

Another view of Notre-Dame

Ben and Paige looking at the map

Arc D Triomphe Etoile

The arch was commissioned by Napoleon as a tribute to the French army. The original architect was Chalgrin; after his death, the work was continued by Joust (or Goust) from 1811-14 until it stopped after the defeat of Napoleon. In 1833 work was begun again. The name of Blouet, who had the honor of completing the monument, is engraved on it. The inscription (translated) reads: "This monument which was begun in 1806 to honour the great army, was left unfinished for many years, was continued in 1823 with a new purpose, and was completed in 1836 in the reign of King Louis-Philippe I who dedicated it to the glory of France's armed forces. G. A. Blouet, architect" (Dillange 7). Completed under the new king Louis-Philippe and his minister of the interior, Adolphe Thiers, the arch was a way of illustrating the new government's efforts at national unity and reconciliation.

Arc D Triomphe Etoile

Bernadette, Ben & Paige at the Arc D Triomphe Etoile

Under the Arc D Triomphe Etoile

One side of the Arc D Triomphe Etoile

Monday 18th June

Ben and Paige in our hotel room

We have been happy with the location we had picked for the hotel. The hotel we stayed in was the Holiday Inn Paris Opera Grands Boulevards. The Metro was just out side and there were many cafes and eating places so everything was at hand for us.

We started out our day picking up our Paris pass and headed to see the Pont Alexandre III bridge. After walking the bridge we headed to the Army Museum where Napoleon's Tomb is located. The Army museum was really interesting and had many displays of armour that stretched back to the 16th century.

Pont Alexandre III bridge

Section on the Pont Alexandre III bridge

The Army Museum

Inside the court yard of the Army Museum

A display at the army museum

Outside Napoleon's Tomb

Inside Napoleon's Tomb

The ceiling inside Napoleon's Tomb

George Washington's statue

We then jumped on the "Hop on Hop Off bus" and toured the city. While on the bus we saw the full view of the Eiffel Tower. Paige was very excited to finally see the tower in full view as was Bernadette.

Ben and Paige on the Hop On Hop Off bus

The Eiffel Tower

The Luxor Obslisk

Arcade near the hotel

One of the shops in the arcade

Another shop in the arcade

Paige and Bernadette with their berets on

Tuesday 19th June

We had an early start as we wanted to make sure we arrived in line early to go to the top of the Eiffel tower. When we arrived it was a little confusing about where to get your tickets but after chatting with some very nice American people we found out that the line that was forming was to buy your tickets. As we waited the line become constable longer and by 9am the line was around 200 meters long. Once the entry was opened we passed the ticket both then made our way to the lift which was Double Decker. We were able to go up to the second level then had to catch another lift to the summit of the tower. The view was breath taking.

The Eiffel Tower was built for the World Exhibition in 1889, held in celebration of the French Revolution in 1789.

The structure took more than two years to complete. Each one of the about 12,000 iron pieces were designed separately to give them exactly the shape needed.

The construction was only meant to last for the duration of the Exposition, but it still stands today.

Looking up from the bottom of the Eiffel Tower

Ben and Paige on the lift to the top of the Eiffel Tower

View from the top of the Eiffel Tower

The view from the top of the Eiffel Tower

Ben, Bernadette and Paige at the top of the Eiffel Tower

Observation area at the top of the Eiffel Tower

The height of the Eiffel Tower

Looking down the lift of the Eiffel Tower

Bernadette, Paige and Ben at the Eiffel Tower

We then headed to Sacre-Coeur, which was at the top of a hill. The Basilica was very pretty inside as well as outside. There were many people sitting on the steps outside watching the tourists coming and going.

Sacre-Coeur

Construction of the Basilica started in 1876 with Abadie as the lead architect. When Paul Abadie died in 1884, he was succeeded by Lucien Magne, who added an 83 meter (272 ft) tall clock tower. The Savoyarde clock installed here is one of the world's largest.

Due to its location on the Montmartre hill, the basilica towers over the city; its highest point is even higher than the top of the Eiffel Tower. Thanks to this prominent location the Sacré-Coeur Basilica is one of the most noticeable landmarks in Paris.

Paige at the bottom of the stairs to the Sacre-Coeur

View from the Sacre-Coeur

Lady making crepes

Paige eating her crepe

Wednesday 20th June

Today we headed to visit the Louvre Museum which we arrived early before the lines were too long and having the Paris pass we were in the shorter line and could walk in to the different sections with the one pass.The Louvre was huge and our first stop was to see the Mona Lisa. We had to walk through a number of rooms to reach the painting which I think everyone was there to see. The Louvre was amazing with the most impressive display of artifacts and paintings. It was worth the time to visit.

The Louvre Museum or simply the Louvre, is one of the world's largest museums, the most visited art museum in the world and a historic monument. A central landmark of Paris, France, it is located on the right bank of the Sein in the 1st arrondissement.The museum opened on 10 August 1793.

Outside the entrance to the Louvre

One of the many halls in the Louvre

Bernadette in front of the Mona Lisa

One of the many paintings on show at the Louvre

The Venus De Milo

Mesopotamia Display

We then headed for a boat trip down the Sein River. It was a lovely afternoon, the sun was shining and it was interesting to see parts of Paris from the river view. Many people lined the banks and were eating lunch or just soaking up the sunshine.

A long the banks of the Sein River

View from the boat on the Sein River

Paige on the boat on the Sein River

Thursday 21st June

Today we made our way to the Catacombs. On arrival was had to stand in the line for about an hour due to the amount of other tourist who had already arrived. The Catacombs ran for 2km under the city and we found them to be really interesting. There were large amounts of human bones that lined many of the walls. We were surprised at how many bones there were.

The Catacombs of Paris (the “municipal Ossuary”) had been created at the end of the 18th century. The cemetery of Innocent (close to Saint-Eustace, in the district of the "Halles") had been used during nearly ten centuries and had become the origin of infection for all the inhabitants of the district. After multiple complaints, the Council of State, by decision of November 9, 1785, pronounced the removal and the evacuation of the cemetery of the Innocent ones.

Old Quarries were selected to deposit Parisian bones; Paris indeed had just created the General Inspection of the Quarries charged of the consolidation of the public highways undermined by the Quarries. The Quarries “of Tombe-Issoire” were the object of work including masonry and consolidations of galleries, and by the digging of a flanked staircase.

The removal of the bones began after the blessing of the place on April 7, 1786 and was continued until 1788, always at night and according to a ceremonial made up of a procession of priests who sang the burial service along the way borrowed by the tip carts charged with bones and covered with a black veil. Thereafter, this place was used, until 1814, to collect the bones of all the cemeteries of Paris. From the first day of their creation, the Catacombs caused curiosity. In 1787, Lord of d' Artois, who will become Charles 10, went down there, in company of ladies from the Court. The following year, one mentions the visit of Madam de Polignac and Madam de Guiche. In 1814, François 1st, emperor of Austria, residing as a winner in Paris visited them. In 1860, Napoleon III went down there with his son.

The Catacombs of Paris reopened on June 14, 2005 after several months of closing for work. Lighting was revised, the arches were consolidated and the walls of re-installed bones.

Street entrance to the Catacombs

Bernadette in the Catacombs

Some carvings in the Catacombs

Bones and skulls lining an area in the Catacomes

Another walled lined with skulls and bones

One of the Metro Stations in Paris

After Indian food for dinner we headed out to see the Eiffel Tower at night. To our surprise there were a large amount of people out which was due to the Euro Soccur game being shown on a big screen in the park.

Eiffel Tower at night

Friday 22nd June

Our last day in Paris we decided to visit the location of the Moulin Rouge as we decide not to see one of the shows, it was nice to see the building of this land mark in Paris.

We then headed to the Rodin Museum which had some lovely gardens in the grounds of the museum and we even got to see some interesting pieces of art.

Outside the Moulin Rouge

The Moulin Rouge is best known as the spiritual birthplace of the modern form of the can -can dance. Originally introduced as a seductive dance by the courtesans who operated from the site, the can-can dance revue evolved into a form of entertainment of its own and led to the introduction of cabarets across Europe.

Rodin Museum

Rodin's Sculpture The Thinker

Gardens at the Rodin Museum

Rodin's Sculpture La Cathedrale

Vincent Van Gogh's The Harvesters

In the afternoon we decided to visit The Musee Grevin Wax Museum which was filled with cheesy wax figures and many we didn't know who they were meant to be but we had fun anyway.

The Musee Grevin at the end of the 19th Century, Arthur Meyer, a journalist and founder of the famous daily newspaper Le Gaulois, conceived the idea of showing his contemporaries 3D representations of the front-page celebrities in his newspaper. At a time when the press did not use photography he thought of creating a place where the public could at last “put a face” on the people in the news. To achieve this original project, he called on Alfred Grévin, who was a cartoonist, sculptor, and designer of theatrical costumes, and who became so involved that in the end, the project bore his name. When the Grévin opened its doors to the public on 5th June 1882, it was an immediate success! In 1883, Gabriel Thomas, a distinguished investor who had previously backed the companies running the Eiffel Tower and the Théâtre des Champs Elysées, gave the Grévin a business-like economic structure to enable rapid expansion. He also enriched the site with new decors which are today its very precious heritage, such as the Grévin Theatre, which is listed on the inventory of Historical Monuments, or the Hall of Mirrors (Palais des Mirages) that had been part of the 1900 "Exposition Universelle".

Paige with the leaders of the world

Who are the real Laurel and Hardy?

Our own Mona Lisa, Paige

Paige and Jackie Chan

Over all Paris was an interesting place to visit. We visited many well known land markets, found the metro easy to use and didn't discover any traditional French food. A couple of things that did stand out were the large amounts of graffiti around the city and the number of homeless men we saw each day in our travels. There were so many museums that are in this city that six days we couldn't get to see them all but the ones we did see were just wonderful and feel very cultured now having visited them. We had a great stay in Paris and glad we came, another tick on our list of places to see in the world.

Friends Baby Shower

2012-06-13T13:30:00.000+07:00

What better way to celebrate the arrival of a baby then to have a baby shower.

My friend Patrica is about to pop and many of the OT spouses got together to have some fun before Patricia goes back to the USA to give birth. The afternoon was filled with games, yummy food and laughter. I think it was a great afternoon to get together.

A group of the OT spouses

Bernadette & Patricia

The task was to create a nappy out of toilet paper

The end products of the ladies creations

Joy, Holly and Sue

Guess what is in the nappy

Kharkhorin The Old Captial Of Mongolia

2012-06-04T17:50:00.002+07:00

We decided to travel up to the old captial city of Mongolia which is named "Kharkhorin". The Ancient capital of Mongol Empire established by Genghis Khan in 1220.

Kharkhorin is about a four hour road trip out of UB. The road there was nothing to write home about, in stages the road was fairly good but in others the pot holes were something that you had to look out for.

The scenery changed quite a lot, from rocky out crops to flat grassy plains and in one part there were even sand dunes.

Along the way we stopped off to take a look at a collection of stupas

Four hours in the car was getting a bit much for Paige so stopping for a break made Paige very happy.

A long the road side popped up, what you would call was the Mongolia Road Houses which we didn't stop at as there was no need for us to do.

Once we hit the turn off for Kharkhorn we didn't have long to travel.

We stayed at "Dream Land" Ger Camp. The ger we stayed in even had a heater and not a traditional heated fire which you usually find in the middle of the ger. We had planned to camp by the river but to our surprise there were no trees in the area along the river so we went to plan B and stayed in a ger camp instead.

In the township there wasn't a lot to see so exploring the town took all of half an hour. We visited Erdene Zuu Monastery
Erdene Zuu (translated: "hunderd treasures") was founded in 1586, as the first Buddhist monastery in Mongolia. At its most glorious days it housed more than 1000 monks. It was destroyed by the Manchu together with Kharkhorin, and only rebuilt early in the 19th century. The second wave of destruction came with the "cleanings" around 1930.

The monastery could resume in its role as a religious center again after democracy had finally been established in Mongolia.
The area is surrounded by a big wall with 108 stupas. Three temples inside have survived socialism. Other then temples not much else is inside the walls.

Around town we found what looked like the town square.

We then ventured up to the look out.

From the look out you could see the ger camp we stayed in with all the trees.

We decided to have dinner down near the river where we built a small fire and toasted marshmallows. We even got a visit from a couple of local dogs who were very friendly. We nick named one "Rex".

It was really nice to get out of town even if it was for only one night. We met up with a couple of friends who had been staying in the town for a couple of days. I cant say I was overly impressed by Kharkhorin at all, it reminded me of the Ger district back in UB.

Womens And Childrens Day In Mongolia

2012-06-01T16:18:00.000+07:00

Every year in Mongolia there is a public holiday for the Women's and Children's Day.

Paige and l spent the morning at the Verbist Care Center where the children put on a performance for the guests. During the day children usually receive small gifts to celebrate. It was wonderful to see all the children dressed in their best clothes and doing a well practised performance. Having visited the center on many occasions before I have come to get to know the children quite well and it was wonderful to see how hard they have worked towards their performaces, I was very proud of them all.

Philippinenes Palawan Holiday

2012-04-08T12:06:00.000+07:00

For our break away from cold Mongolia we decided to head to the tropics and somewhere we hadnt been before.

In April we visited the Philippines, Palawan in fact. We arrived in Manila for a stop over before we were to catch our plane to Lagen Island.

We stayed at the Peninsula hotel and found it amazing. The staff were so friendly, the breakfast was really nice and even had freshly squeezed oj.

We spent the morning shopping in some of the centres which where only five minutes walked from the hotel. In the afternoon we met up with a friend of Ben's, Philip who Ben knows from a camo forum.

Philip wanted to give us a tour of the city and then took us to Green Hills Market where we had lunch and a looked around.

It was really good of Philip to drive us around on a driving tour of Manila where we saw the different parts of the city.

Door people at the hotel

It was Easter time at the hotel

Breakfast

Green Hills Market

Some of the items on for sale at Green Hills Market

Philip, Paige, Ben and Bernadette at lunch

Paige ready for her island adventure

Flying out of Manila

Paige on the small plane

Jeepnee a form of transport in the Philippines

Ben and Paige on the small boat out to Lagen Island

April 2nd - with short flight and then a forty minute boat ride we arrived at El Nindo Resort, Lagen Island.

We were greeted by the staff singing and a cool drink. We then had a small introduction to the island resort. The resort is very environmentally friendly and it was good to know the steps they have in place to protect the wonderful environment.

After settling in we decided to venture out and did some snorkeling and then had drinks by the pool.

It wasn't to long before we were having a buffet dinner where we sat under the stars and enjoyed one of the locals singing and play his guitar.

Arriving at the Lagen Island

The rooms

Inside our room

View from our room

Bernadette's first pina colada

Paige happy in the pool

Paige underwater

Pool area

One of the many sunsets we experienced while on the island

The guitar player at dinner

One of the chefs on the island

Dinner by the pool Bernadette, Paige and Ben

April 3 - After having a really nice breakfast we headed out on a morning tour to see some caves and visit Snake Island. Snake island is a sand bar which is in the shape of a snake hence the name. We climbed to the top of the rock hill to take in the amazing view of the island. We then didn't some swimming before we knew it Paige had been stung by a box jelly fish. After doing first aid she had a mark on her leg but she soldiered on.

After lunch and Paige recovering from being stung Ben and Paige took a surf canoe and explored part of the island and did some snorkeling while I spent time by the pool. Ben and Paige made a coconut hat out of a palm leaf and watched the sun go down. Dinner was by the pool again and we watched some traditional dancing.

Paige and Bernadette on the boat

Side view of the cave

View from the dock on the island

Snake Island

The jellyfish sting

The boat hand pulls one of the two jellyfish from the area

Paige jumping off the boat

April 4th - Woke up and had another yummy breakfast and headed out to do some scuba diving while Paige did some snorkeling. The water was amazing, so clear. We saw many different species of fish and at times it felt we where diving in a fish tank. Our dive lasted around 40 minutes then Paige and Ben did jumping off the boat.

We headed back to the resort where we had some lunch. After lunch Paige did the padi bubble makers course where she got to do scuba diving with the dive master. It was great to see her having this amazing experience. Ben and Paige headed out on the sea canoes while I caught up on some quite time. Paige and Ben also decided to go on the nature walk around the island.

Pool view at night

Ben making a coconut hat

Paige with Ben's finished coconut hat making

April 5th - It was an early start. We jumped on a boat and headed over to Mini Loc Island which is a thirty minute boat ride from Lagen Lsland where we where staying. We had breakfast on arrival to Mini Loc Island then we went to see the jackfish get fed. Paige and I snorkeled and watched the fish jumping for the food the jackfish where huge at least one meter long and around thirty cm wide. After the feeding we hopped on another boat and head to do some more diving. We ended up at south Entalula where we did a wall dive. We went down about 21 meters and the area was amazing with all types of fish. I felt a little sick and ended up finishing the dive a little early. We returned to Lagen Island and spent the afternoon relaxing. Paige and I decided to have a massage while Ben took to the walking track over the island.

April 6th - Our last day on the island and we decided to have a sleep in and see what today brought with no plans.

It was sad to leave such a great location and one the way back on the boat off the island we didn't know if we would make our flight on time due to the boat having mechanical difficulties. I was very happy that the captain was able to fix the problem and we made it to our flight.

Lagen Island was well worth the travel the Island was amazing and couldn't really complain about anything, I think I would have liked fresh orange juice for breakfast but the Island was amazing.

Paige doing bubble making

Paige with the dive instructor

Verbist Care Centre Visit

2012-03-06T09:00:00.000+07:00

On Saturday the 3rd of March some of the members of the OT Expat Family Social Group visited the Verbist Care Centre here in Ulaanbaatar. In total there were 47 children, who we spent time with. The activities we did were outside play with the two donated soccor balls, bead making, painting, colouring in, balloon play and for the older girls painting nails. What can I say all activities where a hit but having such a large number of children of all different ages was a little hecktic but well worth it. The children were so welcoming and many of them wanted to give us their art work. I was suprised the balloon play was one of the favioute activities and only taking 10 balloons it broke my heart when some poped and I couldnt replace it. As most of us can not speak Mongolian the children who could speak some English tried very hard to chat and the younger children where happy to grab our hands and pull us to where they wanted us to go. It was wonderful to see our own children interacting and making new friends. Our next visit will be on Saturday 14th April and our group hopes to make regular monthly visits.

To find out more about the center visit http://www.verbistcarecenter.com/

The Lawson, Gerber, Mitchell and Playford Family visiting the Verbist Care Centre

One of the girls starting the beading

Paul Gerber and Bob Lawson enjoying balloon play with two children

One of the boys enjoying colouring stars

Bev Lawson helping with bead making

One of the centres girls with Donna Gerber

Girls enjoying bead making

One of the centres girls enjoying balloon play

Donna and Matthieu the director of VCC

Bernadette Playford and one of the centres girls

The centres boys giving Paul Gerber a run for his money

Bob Lawson playing basket ball

One of the centres children bead making

Cassie Mitchell and her new found friend

Sarah Gerber with balloon play

Megan Gerber painting nails

Bev Lawson helping with beading

Ben Playford's ears were a big hit with two of the centres girls

Ancient City Xian & The Terracotta Warriors

2012-02-26T16:18:00.000+07:00

In February we took a short break to head over to China to see the Terracotta Warriors in Xian. We booked a three day private tour with China Culture Center.

We travelled with our Australian friends Tracy and David. After flying to Beijing we caught a train over night to Xian. Not my idea but everyone else thought it would be fun. Me? Well I thought if you have been on one train then you have been on them all.

Finding the train station was an adventure in its self. The Beijing West Railway station was huge and very busy but wanting to make sure we arrived in plenty of time meant we had a lot of waiting to do. We decided to sit and have some soup and explore the local shops. We couldn't get over some of the names for the alcoholic drinks and decided to purchase some to consume on our journey. Another thing that surprised use was you could buy "Duck in a bag", which was roasted duck and it was sold everywhere. Our little song we made up was,

"Duck in a bag, duck in a bag all I want is duck in a bag" .

The train was interesting as we had to share the four bed compartment with an extra person as we couldn't book the whole compartment to ourselves so we had a very quiet Chinese man sharing with us, I was happy that it was for only one night. Tracy and David had to share with a young girl and a cadaverous Chinese man we nicked name "Uncle Ho".

After a restless night we arrived in Xian and found our tour guide "Steve" easily enough waiting for us at the exit.

We headed to the Mecure Hotel to freshen up and breakfast before we started our sightseeing.

Our first stop was a tour of the Xian City Wall. This wall is the most complete city wall that has survived in China to date.

It would of been nice to ride bikes around the city wall if the weather had been hotter and time permitted. Unfortunately this was not to be.

We then travelled out of the city and stopped off for lunch at a local restaurant were we had a range of dishes which were all very nice.

After lunch we ventured to explored the Terracotta Warrior Site.

On arrival we had to go through the main gate then travel by electric buggy to the site where we got to see the many different buildings and finally see the Terracotta Warriors. The main building was impressive and seeing all the soldiers was breath taking. It’s hard to imagine a farmer had discovered this site many years ago by just digging up the area for farming.

The complex was bigger than what I expected and it was really great to have our tour guild Steve telling us about the site. After spending a number of hours exploring and viewing the Terracotta Warriors we drove back to the hotel and ventured out for dinner which wasn't that yummy.

The next day, 24th April was Paige's birthday and at breakfast we had cake and sang happy birthday, Steve had surprised Paige with a cake.

After breakfast it was another day filled with history. Our first stop was at the Shaanxi Provincial Museum, then onto the Small Wild goose Pagoda which is a temple said to have been built to house and protect Buddhist Scriptures collected in India by a Chinese monk.

For lunch we visited a local restaurant where we ate some yummy dumplings. It was amazing how many shapes the dumplings were made into.

After lunch we headed to visit the Great Mosque and walk through the Muslim Market. This two locations were sadly very uninspiring.

The rest of the afternoon we spent at the lesser known Terracotta Army of Hanyangling which is nicked named "Nude Figures of Warriors". These are located in the village of Zhanijianan. The Nude warriors were much smaller than the Terracotta Warriors and they were originally clothed which now has rotted away hence the name.

After exploring the inside of centre we headed back to the car and onto the airport for our flight back to Beijing.

We stayed overnight in Beijing and explored the unusual night food market. The market was lined with…… all I can say was bugs and creepy crawlies and I couldn’t understand why anyone would eat the “food” items. We did try some fruit kebabs which were very nice.

The trip was well worth doing especially sharing the experience with friends. I am so happy that we finally got to see the terracotta Warriors.

Beijing West Railway Station

Road way near railway station

Man making noodles for soups

Bernadette and Paige enjoying some noodle soup

Food snacks for sale

Waiting area at train station

Room on train

Paige on her train bed

Tracy and Bernadette on the train

Ben about to sample some of the local drink

Whats in a name for a product

Train arrival at the station

Xian

Paige and Ben walking to the car in Xian

Paige at the Xian City Wall

Part of the Xian City Wall

Along the Xian City Wall

David, Tracy, Bernadette, Paige and Ben on the Xian City Wall

Part of one of the buildings at the Xian City Wall

Lunch stop

Our lunch

Travelling to the building housing the Terracotta Warriors

The out side of the building of the Terracotta Warriors

The Terracotta Warriors

Ben, Bernadette, Paige, David and Tracy

Paige's birthday cake

Steve the tour guide and Paige

Bernadette Ben and Paige in hotel

Tracy and Paige

Paige and Bernadette striking large bell

Lady painting inside of glass balls

One of the dumplings

In the market

Inside the display

Still to be unearthed

Nude Warriors

Display

Paige eating a fruit kebab

Food stalls in the night market

Different bugs for eating

A local having his snack

Circus Mongolia Khadgaa

2012-01-12T08:51:00.000+07:00

Paige and I were lucky enough to visit the performers from the Circus Mongolia Khadgaa back stage while they were about to perform at a show here in UB. Our friend Undra who we have know since last time we where in Mongolia arranged for us to visit. Undra's husband is in the circus group so it was such a thrill to meet all the people from the circus.

The Circus Mongolia was founded and initially named "Clown Studio" by the initiative of Khadgaa in 1997. Since 1980, Khadgaa has started to learn circus arts and has taught in the State Circus Mongolia. Khadgga established the Circus Mongolia by gathering the talented circus artists so he could promote the Mongolian circus arts through out the world. The shows incorporates the customs of Mongolia with a combination of national music, national costumes, dancing and acting all rolled into the one performances.

I have seen many shows around the world and this performance was just mind blowing, these circus performers are amazing in what to do. It was something I will never forget made even more special in meeting these people back stage.

Undra and Paige

A little girl we met and Paige

The men warming up

Bernadette and Paige with the performers

Paige with one of the performers

Who said men dont wear makeup

Snow Skiing Lession

2012-01-12T06:55:00.000+07:00

Last week we decided to visit the ski fields not far from UB. After tobogganing for a while we decided that we would have a ski lesson. Having learnt many years ago I decided to tag a long with Ben and Paige for a refresher.

Paige did really well only falling a couple of times and the same with Ben being their first lesson. By the end of the day they where skiing one of the runs. My biggest problem I found was getting off the ski lift. We all had a fun day out and enjoyed the hot chocolates at the end. I think we will come back again.

Paige ready for her lesson

To get from the bottom to the top of learners section

Paige having her lesson

Ben trying to keep warm

Ben, Paige & Bernadette

Trip to Prague, Czech Republic

2012-01-05T16:40:00.000+07:00

Over the Christmas period we took a trip to Prague. We were hoping for a white Christmas but it wasnt meant to be.

Our time in Prague was wonderful exploring a new city we hadn't been to before, eating some different food and taking in all the history on offer.

We arrived in Prague on the 21st of December with a trouble free couple of flights from UB and Moscow.

We decided to stay in the old part of Prague which was in the main square. The hotel was called the Grand Hotel Praha which was right across from the clock tower. The staff were very nice and the hotel its self was a collection of building joined together which meant climbing a number of stairs to get to our room.

We arrived in early afternoon so that evening we explored the square where the Christmas markets where being held, between the hords of tourists and the locals the atmosphere was quite festive. Many foods where for sale and I must say very yummy. There was a very large Christmas tree and at night was lit up and very pretty looking.

The time difference of six hours between Prague and UB sure played a big part on our trip, we seemed to be in bed quite early and the fact that in Prague it got dark around 5pm didnt help.

Our hotel room

Our bathroom

Horse and carriage

Day two after a wonderful breakfast we made an early start and we explored the city. Firstly we walked over the Charles bridge which at 8.30am was quite empty. There were many monuments on the bridge and the first one dates back to 1657. The view on either side was what you would find on post cards.

We then visited the Prague Castle where we joined the line to pay respects to the recently departed ex president who was the first post communism president. We found many things closed due to the death of this president so our day was spend wondering taking in the views and exploring the streets.
The weather was quite mild nothing compared to Mongolia so it was a nice change.

A picture post card moment

Ben and Paige on Charles Bridge

Prague Castle

People light candles for the ex presidents passing

Day three was spent walking around the town again and doing a spot of shopping. Seeing it was my birthday after shopping we stopped off for coffee and cake to mark my 41 years. Instead of having on big birthday cake I chose three slices of different pieces of cake and got to sample all three first. I must say every bite was very yummy.

Crowds gather on the hour to view the clock tower

A bride and groom near outside the clock tower

One thing on Paige's list was to ride in a horse and carraige so after many hours of nagging from Paige we went for a ride. It was nice sit back and enjoy the ride viewing a number of buildings we hadnt seen before.

Paige enjoying the carriage ride

Ben and Bernadette on carriage ride

Town square at night in old part of town

Ham cooking over hot cols

Traditional donuts

Day four was Christmas Day were we started off the morning opening presents and having a long breakfast at the hotel. Due to the past couple of days most tourist places where closed so Christmas Day we were able to book a tour out of the city centre and into the country side of Prague to a place called Kutna Hora.

Our tour consisted of visiting The Sedlec Ossuary (Church of Bones) which was built in the 1400's, Church of St Barbara - Gothic church which is an Unesco world heritage site. St Barbara is the patron saint of miners (amoung others) and which was highly appropriate for a town whose wealth was based entirely upon its silver mines. The Italian Court where they used to make all the money from silver and walking part of Kutna Hora township.

The Sedlec Ossuary

Inside the Sedlec Ossuary

Inside the SedlecOssuary

Church of St Barbara

Picture of St Barbara

Day five was our last day in Prague so we spent it wondering around and found there was an increase in the tourist numbers. We visited the Powder tower which had a display of amour the views of the city was worth climbing the stairs.

Inside of the Powder Tower

First level of the Powder Tower

Paige and Bernadette climbing down the stairs in the Powder Tower

Prague was a lovely city which had a lot of history to take in. We enjoyed our visit and the season of Christmas sure did make the city centre look pretty with all the decorations. Ben did like the beer which was very cheap to buy. I think the food I would rate as hardy and the people friendly.

An enjoyable time had by all.

New and old trams on the street of Prague

Paige In The School Production

2011-12-20T16:30:00.000+07:00

As a part of Paige's afternoon activities she decided that she wanted to take part in the school production of Alice in Wonderland. For weeks before hand she would attend practise after school and at home as she learnt all the songs, not to mention me as well while Paige sang along.

Paige's part was to play one of the flowers in the garden and with her two whole minutes on stage I think she played her part very well.

The production was very well done and to have a large amount of children on stage must have taken some very good creative skills on the part of the teachers.

I think next year Paige would like to do the school production it will all depend what the production will be.

Paige is in the back ground with the yellow flowers on her head

Paige on stage near the microphone

Paige with a couple of her friends from the production

The Zaisan Memorial

2011-12-20T14:35:00.000+07:00

Looking up at the Zaisan Memorial

Ben and Paige on the stairs

We decided to visit the Zaisan Memorial which isn't very far from where we live. When we where here last time the area of Zaisan didn't have many building around but now the are has become very built up.

The Zaisan Memorial (Mongolian: Зайсан) is a memorial south of the Mongolian capital of Ulaanbaatar that honours Soviet soldiers killed in World War II. Located on a hill south of the city, the memorial features a circular memorial painting that depicts scenes of friendship between the peoples of the USSR and Mongolia. The mural depicts scenes such as Soviet support for Mongolia's independence declaration in 1921, the defeat of the Japanese Kwantung Army by the Soviets at Khalhkin Gol on the Mongolian border in 1939, victory over Nazi Germany and peacetime achievements such as Soviet space flights.

When you walk up the large number of stairs you are rewarded with a panoramic view of the entire city of Ulaanbaatar in the valley below, as well as the Tuul River flowing past the city.

In 2003, a tank memorial, which previously had been located on a crossroads between Zaisan and the city centre, was moved to the foot of the hill. It features a Soviet tank from a brigade paid for by the Mongolian people. The tank memorial includes a map showing the route the brigade took from Moscow in 1943 to its participation in the fall of Berlin in 1945.

Zaisan is a popular meeting point for school outings and graduation festivities and now many of the expats like to live here as many of the new apartments that have gone up are a lot bigger in size then the inner city apartments.

Many people think the air is cleaner in this area but I believe it isn't as it all depends which way the wind is blowing on any day.

View from the top

Bernadette & Paige at the top of the memorial

Paige in the middle of the memorial

Parade Of Nations At ISU

2011-11-21T19:31:00.001+07:00

The world art work by the children

Last week saw ISU, the school Paige attends have their International Week.

One of the activities was the "Parade of Nations". Where each child takes part in the school parade in their country section. There are currently children from thirty three countries that attend ISU so the children and teachers all took part wearing national costumes and countries not having a national costume the children wore what they thought would be considered clothing from their country.

As each country's name was called the children and teachers from that country entered up onto the stage and part of the national anthems where played. Australia was the first country to be called and Paige held one of the Australian flags.

It was great to see all the children and teachers taking part and the idea behind this activity is to give the children a sense of pride in one's own nationality and culture and promote the children to engage in curiosity in other cultures.

Some of Paige's work

Paige and Benjamin, class friends

Children from the different world groups

Teacher and child from the Netherlands

One of the teachers from New Zealand

The children from Australia up on stage

The children from Mongolia