There is some romance about living on the opposite side of the world. The air has a different aura, nature is more spectacular, and animals are captivating to observe. I've lived in Texas before, and I've seen plenty of farm animals. So why does it feel so new and strange here? I don't know. There is a lot of space here. I like going to the top of a hill, breathing in the brisk wind, and watching time creep by slowly.
One of the things on my checklist during my stay here was to spend the night in a Ger. My host family happened to put one up because someone else was going to be living there, and it was empty for a couple weeks.
I expressed my interest in this opportunity because I don't know whether I'll live in a Ger or not later on. I was amazed at how much one can hear through those walls. I felt like someone with the superpowers of invisibility and super-hearing. The next night, I got to experience a moonrise. It was really bright and happened to be aligned with the ceiling window of the Ger and my bed. The next evening was not so pleasant: rain + leaks = little sleep.
This was not on my checklist, but was equally amazing – one of the days before we left our training site, we got permission to sleep outdoors. We made our own fire, broke out some glow sticks, and got into our Peace Corps issued sleeping bags. The stars are very brilliant at night and there were tons of shooting stars too. The downside of sleeping outside was the mosquitoes. I didn't get bitten that many times, but that high pitched buzzing noise in my ear was irritating. Even though Mongolia is not an easy place to live and it is lacking some amenities (like plumbing and paved roads), there are other things that can be experienced here that defy reality, as if one were living in a dream.
Last photo is courtesy of one of my fellow-PCV's: LN
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