Mongolia Trip

This morning after breakfast and a shower, we sat in a circle to reflect on our challenges, what we are grateful for, etc. Once that was over, we played some James Bond. It was really fun. I won a lot. That may have been why. After lunch, which had fries, we went to ride camels!!! I’m so excited. Once we got there they saddled up three camels to ride. Camels look so weird. Their like chickens but mammals. You sit in between their two humps and don’t fall. It was really fun and funny to watch others. Camels also always look like their smiling with a lot of saliva that is yellow. Them standing up and sitting down is a very weird feeling because you tip forward then straighten out then tip back then straighten out. You’re kinda like a ping pong ball between their humps. It was really cool though. Their fur is also short and smooth. The one I rode was white. After the camels we went for an early dinner. It was at a nice hotel but it wasn’t very good food, but it had WiFi so I was able to d

Last night started out rough but I ended up sleeping great. I was so happy for the bed and nice mattress. Once we had breakfast which wasn’t very good, I took a quick super cold shower. I was told there would be hot water. That is false. The water was icy. Anyway after the unfortunate falsely advertised shower we started our drive to Wish Mountain. The ride was bumpy but kinda like a roller coaster with going up and down the sand dunes. It was fun. When we arrived I looked up and saw my worst enemy. Stairs. They have found me again. Why every temple or sacred thing must be on a mountain is beyond me. The flat ground is pretty too. Anyway we climbed the stairs to the first stop where we wrote down our wishes and burned them. I can’t say my wishes or they can’t come true but they were good wishes. We first tried burning them with matches but we used so many of them since they kept going out so we just used a lighter instead. Second part of the climb was to a mountain shrine which we walk

This morning after breakfast we went to a big tank on the hill. The view overlooked the city. It is a very small city, more like a town. We all took some pictures, but then saw the playground nearby. We all went because you never outgrow playgrounds. It was more like a workout playground. It was fun though. I went down a tiny slide and climbed the weird climbing thing. Fun times. We also decided to take a fancy picture on a big fountain rock. Luckily the water wasn’t actually on so we could climb on it for the picture. After we got off though the water turned on. We were all like “dang that was close” but then saw the water mechanic person there. He waited till we got off to turn it on. He’s nice. If it was me I would’ve turned on the water when they were on the rock and said it was a timed turn on. After some of that we went back to the tank to get a lecture about the town and the tanks and statue. The big tank was from when Mongolia and Japan were fighting. The statue was of a hero

We woke up early to get off the train and went straight to the hotel. Not all the rooms were ready so we all hung out in one room till breakfast. After breakfast we went on a long walk. We just walked straight till we hit the middle of nowhere and turned back. A bit of an exaggeration but we were in a very deserted area. Mostly because we’re in a desert. I’m not a fan of deserts with the heat and the flatness and nothingness. I prefer the mountains with grass, trees and streams. But this is still a cool experience. After the walk we all relaxed till lunch. I even got in a short power nap. During lunch we watched the Lorax. Last time I watched it was in 6th grade in Ms Nickerson’s class. Ahh the good old days. Anyway after lunch we... relaxed more. I like that we had time to relax before going to the museums. I’m not the biggest fan of museums unfortunately. First museum: Danzanravjaa museum is a museum starring... Danzanravjaa! It is filled with things that belonged to him and unfort

Today is the day we leave for the night train. I’m excited for another first experience. Breakfast was pretty dead. We were all tired and lazy. After breakfast we all went to the mall to get some souvenirs and toiletries. Once we got there we all went to the 6th floor for some souvenir shopping. I got a nice present for Peggy. Unfortunately all the stuff I also wanted to buy was too expensive so I’m hoping Gobi is better. Later we went to the grocery store in the mall and I found... Caprisuns! I was so excited. I bought a whole pack. Yummy juice. For lunch a few of us went to a cafe and got some paninis and Italian ice. The ice was okay but also mostly ice. The panini was good cause it had pesto. Pesto is da bomb. But the ham was no bueno. After lunch we finally went back to the hotel to pack and chill. We watched a lot of Netflix and downloaded stuff. We were all out in the hall for hours till we finally went down for dinner. For a special treat we got actual good ice cream. I also to

Today we left right after breakfast for Ulaanbaatar. The bus ride was long and bumpy and a we were all sick at some level. Either from the bumpiness or previous stuff. I actually felt better after taking some medicine. But others were unfortunately throwing up. Sarah, John Paul and I again binge watched avatar. Also took some naps. Once we arrived some of us ran to the nearby grocery store to grab some snacks. They had Doritos! Which I obviously bought. After the store, Sarah, John Paul and I started binging avatar again. Dinner was pizza and jamming to the Shrek soundtrack. It was Kevin’s goodbye party. He has to leave early for drum line practice/camp. We all told funny stories about Kevin and it was really sad. He leaves tomorrow morning very early so tonight is goodbye. I’m not very good at goodbyes but it’s okay. I try anyway. After dinner we binged some more avatar in the hall. And downloaded all the Netflix we needed. Soon we went to bed, in a real bed!!! John Paul an