Jangtze river cruise – Three Gorges

Posted on October 1, 2014 by admin

Back in Chengdu I quickly got my ticket for a train to the east – to Chongqing. A city on the longest river of China. The Yangtze river goes from the west of China to Shanghai in the east and its famous for the three Gorges and the three Gorges Dam. From the station to my hostel I took the metro which is quite unusual. Several lines are based on an elevated train system giving you a great view down to the nearby surrounding.

At my arrival I quickly had to figure out that this city is suffering from heavy smog. My hostel was based next to the river around some dock area but I could barely see the other site of it in the smog. Ant not even think about the possibility to see the sun. No, nothing, seriously there was not even the usual round halo of the sun on the sky just this homogeneous grey wall.

To get to the hostel you had to pass through some market/dock area. A steep stair went down the hill, through buildings or between them. The guys were working like ants carrying huge packages up the hill to the storages and stores. It looked like this place is never sleeping.

My aim for this place was to book me onto a boat down the Yangtze river to the three gorges dam. Nothing fancy just something simple and quick. What I got was a third class ticket in a six bed dorm ensuit on the YunChun a old Chinese cruise/ferry boat. Except me everybody was Chinese and older than me. Together with my lovely roommates who were talking loudly to each other, shouting into their phones and littering the river I embarked the boat.

Our journey started in Wanzhou and went downstream to Taipingxizhen at the three gorges dam. After the first night we arrived at the first and most spectacular of the three gorges. The river became at once quite narrow and the rock cliffs were rising high up into the sky.

Just hours later we were stoping at Wushan which is the gate into the second gorge. Lying on one site of the river on a deep slope of the mountain. First the city looked mooring to me till I started to climb the stairway up the hill which finally brought me to a lively centre. Soon I found another stair going even further up. Chinese must love their open air staircases.

Few hours later we left this place and cruised through the canyon. Not nearly as steep as the first one but still making you feel so small. While it became dark we went into the third and last one and finally stopped in a side river for the night.

The next morning we broke up for the last bit of our cruise and approached the three gorges dam. A master piece of modern civil engineering protecting the region below of it from floods and generating power. 14% of all Hydropower in China shall be from the three gorges dam or around 0.84% of the total generated electrical energy. Sounds small but the nameplate capacity of 22.5GW and the total annual power output of 80TWh just give you a glue how much energy China must consume!

The final part of the tour was a visit at the site of the three gorges dam project. To get a view over the massive site you have to climb the visitor hill. From there you can have a look down into the locks and to the dam…

…which is not finished yet. The last piece will be finished somewhen in late 2014 or early 2015. To get the boats quicker from the Shanghai site up to the Chongqing site they build a huge elevator. At the moment hey have to be happy with the slow five stage lock system. Takes about 4 hours to get through that one.

During the boat cruise I recognised couple of times how much wast there was in the river. Wondering where all this trash will end I found the answer at the dam. There was a spot which looked like it is an island. It took me a while till I realised that boats were not wrecked ones on solid ground but working recycling boats getting the trash out of the river.

There might be more spectacular cruises you can do like the Hurtigruten cruise in Norway I did before but its definitely something different to do in China. Giving you a taste of how Chinese people travel, the culture and some great looks at the Nature away form roads and rails.

On the edge of Tibet – Huanglong & Jiouzhaigou

Posted on September 25, 2014 by admin

First time after long time I changed from the rails back on wheels and went for an eight hour bus ride to the north of Chengdu to Songpan. A small town in the reach of the Huanglong national park. Situated in the county of Sichuan on the border to the region of Tibet high up in the mountains. Compared to Chengdu which was humid and smoggy this place is full of fresh air.

Even if it feels huge to me it is a fairly small place in Chinese scales. Although, its also very touristy since many people take a night here before they had out for horse trekking or hiking around the national park.

Off the touristy centre into the hidden roads behind the rebuild old town we found the market place were they slaughter the animals and sale the meat on the market. Where kids play between sculls and skeletons of yaks.

The day after the arrival we headed out to the Huanglong national park which is a ‘short’ two hour car ride away from the place. On the way there the car climbs higher and higher up the mountain. Finally we were eaten by a cloud. The visibility left was just a few meters and didn’t allow the driver to go fast.

The park itself is on a lower altitude on the other site of the mountain. The lower part was out of the cloud which allowed us to see the landscapes which was shaped by the water streams running over the stoney ground. Forming those amazing little ponds wight the turkeys coloured water in it which was inviting for a bath despite the fact that the water was cold.

The weather became more miserable the higher up we climbed and finally it it started to sprinkle. We kept going and on the way to the top we found this little tibetan temple.
Even if the weather was ‘shit’ people kept coming here to see the national park. After mt. Hua Shan we had to recognise again that national parks in China might be designed in a different way than those in the west. More about mass tourism than sustainable tourism.

Next stop was at the national park of Jiuzhaigou just two hours further to the north. This one was much bigger so that you needed to take buses inside of it to get to the far ends. And it was designed for even more people. In Songpan a Chinese couple told us that there on their day of visit might have been up to 20k people. We didn’t believe it till we were there.

The park holds a couple of small tibetan settlements which became part of the ‘attraction’. Quite interesting to me were those mechanised prayer wheels which are powered by water. Engineering everywhere 😉

As Huanglong this place also has crystal clear water which is glowing in turkeys colour. But additionally there is old wood hidden in the depth of the water which makes it kind of mystical. There was almost no wind going so that the surface became almost a perfect mirror reflecting the colourful trees along the bank.

Its weird to say this but in some moment it felt like this place could be in the alps. For sure not when the forest was presenting exotic plants but if looked into the distance … it could be, couldn’t it?

For me those national parks are amazing place to see some of Chinas nature. The only problem with them is that they are over developed and therefore overrun by the Chinese mass. Its sometimes hard to relax if you get pushed around or you have to walk slowly behind someone not used to walk at all. Its also hard to see how they treat the nature, littering around or just to scare off the few animals left.

Lucky us that we got could leave. Since it was raining the days before the local stream was on its limit. At some spots the street got damaged by the river, some small landslides came down the slopes and even some boulders were caught by the safety nets along the streets.

Panda land – Chengdu

Posted on September 20, 2014 by admin

There are not many places you can see those little cuties doing nothing. I am talking of the lazy giant Pandas at the chengdu research base of giant panda breeding. It kind of became the Chinese national animal if we can call it like this.
The aim of the research base is to study the animals and to breed this endangered animal. So they might not die out soon. Beside the research site do also some zoos in China as well as a few zoo around the globe have Pandas. Where all of them are owned by Chinese government which controls the breeding global breeding program of giant pandas.

In the research facility visitors get the chance to watch the lazy life of pandas. The best time to do that is in the morning when the pandas are fed and therefore will be most active. Which sounds more spectacular than it is. Although, it is quite fascinating to see how such a bear can precisely grab a piece of bamboo with its clumsy pawns.

More fun was the catch with the youngsters which were burn a couple of years before. These guys had fun eating the bamboo in every thinkable position. One of them was not interested in eating and just did his morning exercises in the background. Few years before people could watch them fighting for the milk bottles.

The youngest pandas they had at the time were just a couple of months old. They just got fed at the time we were there. But it seems like that even those babies were already lazy like hell. Lying in their playpen all day while being watched by thousands of visitors.

Chengdu is also known for its kitchen. The city is part of the Sichuan region which is a world famous Chinese kitchen. Usually quite spicy and so was the hot pot in the hostel. Hot pots are usually delicious but that one was burn in. Too much chilli was in the soup and sauces.
And once more we had a little adventure on the station. This time the long-distance bus station. We asked for tickets to go to the Jiuzhaigou National Park and were given tickets to a place an hour father away than that. Lucky us we realised that at the station and got our tickets changed. Unfortunately, we had to pay 10% for the cancelation even if it was at least to some part their mistake.

Plank walk and clay dudes – Xi’an

Posted on September 19, 2014 by admin

A while ago a blog caught my attention. Someone mentioned Mt. Hua Shan near Xi’an and a path on timber along a cliff. The plank walk or path to heaven. A must do it. Some people around the hostel including Gary I met in Mongolia at the train station were up for it. With the help of the hostel we got private mini bus and there we went. Entering the visitors centre we got a bit shocked about the fees they were charging. 180 yuan for entrance, 40 for the bus to the bottom of the mountain which was quite a bit to go and for cable car usage each way another 80 yuan. They know how to make money out of tourists!

The views were not the best ones on that day but at least it was not raining. Walking from the north peak to the south peak also meant to climb a lot of stairs. The whole mountain is full of them. Narrow and steep staircases up the peaks and down on the other site. Not giving you much space to take over the slow ones which basically meant the Chinese visitors.

Compared to them we were rushing through the not visible scenery. For a few moments the clouds opened up but most of the time it was misty. After less than three hours we found what we were looking for. The plank walk and it seemed like it became more popular. There was even a queue to do it and for sure you had to pay for it. A police officer ensured that everybody got a harness and safety gear before entering the track.

What we didn’t know was that the path was ending at the other way and everybody was coming back the same way. It basically means you walk in a vertical cliff on a narrow piece of wood and have to climb over each other. Kind of fun but at the same time frightening if you see how unexperienced Chinese with no logical thinking handle the gear. Taking both hooks of the cable instead one by one. Or posing with both hooks in the hand for a selfie.
The walk itself was just a few dozen meters and the end was less spectacular. Just a small temple in a cave. On the way back the cloud opened once more and gave us a quick look down the cliff. A whole trekking path like this would be fun but only if there wouldn’t be as many people as at the Mt. Hua Shan.

Perhaps more popular around Xi’an is the nearby terracotta army. An army build of clay to protect the grave of a former emperor. Quite impressing to see how many warriors they build and put in those tunnels. Most of them were destroyed by the damaged arches and also by thieves. There are still some people busy in putting them back together like a huge jigsaw. But thats it, there is not more except the Chinese tourists which are also kind of an attraction.

Another adventure we had back in Chengdu when we wanted to get our sleeper tickets. Once more we had to figure out that train tickets can be sold very quickly. And so we had to figure out that our favourite train was gone by the time we wanted to book it. The only option was to wait for the nightly maintenance cycle which blocks the booking system and frees locked tickets. The next morning we had to be at the station before 7am. Two tickets we got but not mine since I left my passport home. Worrying about not getting it I hurried back to the hostel were I got it booked online with the help of the staff. Chengdu we are coming …

Traveling with the speed of a bullet

Posted on September 15, 2014 by admin

Next on the list was Xi’an with a stopover in the ancient town of Pingyao. To save some time and to see the region during daytime I decided to take one of the new trains. A bullet train. And those beasts are fast. It felt like flying through the rainy and foggy landscapes. No bumps, no vibrations nor any other distortion. Just smooth like a swiss train. The only loud source was the air conditioner and for sure the Chinese people. They shout into the phones, watch movies without earplugs and kids run around. Nothing unusual!

At the time we arrived I was a bit shocked since the station was not as expected in the centre of Pingyao but somewhere in the middle of a corn field! Pingyao? The ‘new’ bullet trains are not yet on the map and the station were built somewhere out of the centre or in the middle of nowhere. When I entered the bus to the city my 50 yuan bill got refused and I had to find some change. While I was doing that some Chinese guy offered me to pay my ticket. Really? I was quite surprised but accepted it. Later on someone else had five tens and wanted to change with my 50, so much help at once I wouldn’t have expected. It took more than 10 minutes to get to the centre and another 20 minutes to walk to the hostel in the ancient part of the city.

Coming from Beijing which is more modern and touristy this place felt much more relaxed. Offering some historical looking buildings with wooden house fronts and traditional interior.

The city shall also have the best preserved city wall of China. Preserved might be the best word since most of it looked like it was recently reconstructed.

After just one night I was back on the high speed rail to keep traveling with the speed of a bullet. The trains and the stations are really modern but there was one thing which surprised me a bit. The Chinese really must love their squad toilets. The only western style bathroom was the one for handicapped passengers.

Sight seeing in Beijing

Posted on September 12, 2014 by admin

Usually I would wait for the best bit till the end but since I started in Beijing the trip to the Great Wall was my first excursion. My roomy and I got coordinates from a french guests. Shall be a partially broken part of the wall with just a little tourism. And if you keep walking on it you end up at the postcard part of the wall. Perfect.

The way there was fairly easy and just took about 90 minutes one way. And after another 45min hike up the hill through the forrest we arrived at this sign. Thats about China, somehow you are not supposed to be here but on the other hand there were little shops at the beginning of the trek, the trek was marked and even at the end is a guy sealing water! Who cares …

First confusion on the wall was in which direction to go. We got told to the left but a local guy told us to the right which made more sense. Confused as we were we started to climb the first tower. Arriving up there we were welcomed by some local teenagers. Looked like they do this exercise everyday as quickly as they were climbing around. The further we went the more difficult it became. Finally we ended up doing rock climbing which was pretty cool. But at this point we were once more wondering why we didn’t get warned about it!
At the time we reached the repaired part of the wall we realised what happened. These people got on this part of the wall at the end of it. For some reason our taxi driver brought us to another location. Now we were sure that we kept moving towards the touristy wall. To our surprise there were not as many people as we expected. To finish the day with some fun we decided to take the ‘Rodellbahn’ to get back down. We weren’t that lucky with the people in front of us, they went slow. Super slow.

Few days later it was time to see the place I almost got scammed before. Back at the forbidden city [http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Forbidden_City]. What once was the home of two Chinese dynasties now became a major tourist attraction in Beijing. From top of the nearby hill in the north it looks quiet and peaceful but if you once hit the streets between the walls you won’t be alone again. Tourists everywhere, pushing each other around and standing in front of you.

And the security, takes it easy and has a look around. Business as usual. Thought there would be more non Chinese around such a sight but its hard to sight another white person in China. Chinese tourism is big!

After all the crowds in the centre I decided to see another major tourist attraction of Beijing. The summer palace [http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Summer_Palace] which is a bit out of the centre. Since the place spreads around some lakes people have to walk quite a bit for some parts. And since Chinese tend to walk just the minimum they have to was the far site of the lake a calm area.

The bridges over the water channels shall all be different. And after some exemplar it kind of looks like they were trying to optimise some designs. One makes a huge arch which you have to climb to cross the water. Others have small temples on the top. And some are just ‘simple’ designs where people let their kites climb the sky. Some are serious about it!

Near the hostel I stayed was the house of performing art. Kind of a theatre which is only accessible through the underground. On the surface the building is surrounded by a artificial lake which reflects the building amazingly especially during night time.
The thing I missed is the olympic village and the bird nest stadium. There was even the very first Formula-E race around this area just at the day I left Beijing. Nevertheless, Beijing is filled and surrounded by sights which are easy to access by public transportation. However, for a big city it feels like there is not that much to do¨I know, sounds weird but on the paper Beijing looks much bigger than it feels!

First Day in China – Beijing

Posted on September 9, 2014 by admin

After Russia and especially Mongolia the train station in Beijing felt so huge but empty. Coming out of it I found the crowd on the square in front of it. Getting around it I decided to walk instead of taking the subway to my accommodation. On the way there I passed a few sights.

One of them was the Tiananmen square ‘just’ around the corner of the hostel. Every morning and evening they pull the flag up or take it back down which is quite a ceremony. The whole square will be occupied by thousands of Chines.

A roommate and me wanted to visit the forbidden city that afternoon. Unfortunately, we were late. While we were standing in front of the closed entrance and discussing about whats next we got approached by a Chines girl. She offered us to walk a bit and finally to go to a tea house. Not knowing whats happening we followed and went to a nearby place. A coca cola for 30 yuan and tea for 300 yuan. Shall be normal she said. With some common sense we refused the tea and went with coca instead. Finally we also had to pay for 50 yuan service charge. Since we didn’t take any tea she paid for it. Few days later I remembered that the staff pointed out to read something on the white wall. It was about the tea house scam!

On the Train to Beijing

Posted on September 8, 2014 by admin

It was 5:30am when I got up this Sunday morning. Ready to catch my last train of the TransSiberia just to complete it. The hostel offered us a lift to the station at 6:20am supposed to cost each of us a 1000MNT. We were 5 backpackers plus a few staff squeezed into the car. When we wanted to pay the driver the hostel manager just meant ‘NO No its for free’. Once more someone wanted to make some extra pocket money in this country!
Shortly after our arrival at the station the train was showing up as well. According to the information I got from the web page we were supposed to be in a soft sleeper car. Expecting a full train I quickly realised it was a quite empty one compared to others I took before. At last our carriage. Instead of just the two of us in a compartment we ended up with four. Even if many of the compartments were empty. The staff refused to relocate people. Actually we not even got our compartment and the ladies with us neither. One of the – a CEO of a Mongolian company – was pregnant in the 7th month. Not even she and her assistant got relocated at least not for the moment. The two staff member were kind of unfriendly. The lady called up a former manager of the Mongolian railway and handed the phone over to the steward which was listening to but not really changing anything afterwards. Once I went down the floor I recognised what went on inside of the compartment I originally booked. The stewards were drying their laundry! Seriously. I was mentioning it to one of them that I booked one of those seats and the response was a simple ‘NO NOOO’. Lucky us, after a few hours they relocated people and we all got our two person compartments.

To spent some of the left over money I went to the dinning car which was amazing. Wooden craftwork all done in Mongolian style. The food was surprisingly good, better than on Russian restaurant cars but the service was worse. Only having one menu, playing card instead of serving you and to pay I had to get up and go to her. Back in my place paperwork was waiting on being filled out. Two were done easily but the third paper was in Mongolian only. After another ‘No NO’ to my question about an english one I stuck for a moment. Finally, the two ladies from earlier were helping us out and we could help them with an english Chinese form which they got in mandarin only.

Crossing the border took some time but was without any effort. They not even asked for a paper I was supposed to keep till I leave Mongolia. And getting into China was a thing of seconds. NO problems, no questions, no checkup of the backpack. Later on the train got pulled into a maintenance hall where our carriages including us got jacked. After just about 60 to 90 minutes the wheels were fitted to the Chinese gauge and the train was ready. Finally we could get some sleep.
To our surprise we got some vouchers for a free breakfast and lunch on the Chinese restaurant carriage. 6:30 the breakfast was waiting. Luckily the two eggs were still warm since the restaurant wagon was freezing cold. Beside the eggs some toast with jam was offered and a tea. Lunch time was just two hours later consisting of a bowl of rice with some meat and vegetables, it was actually quite ok. The ride till Beijing offered some great views to the mountains. Unfortunately we passed out after lunch and missed parts of the great wall. After 28h my longest trans siberian train journey was over and with it I also was at the end of the Trans Siberian.

Getting A Train Ticket in UlaanBaatar

Posted on September 6, 2014 by admin

So far it was always kind of easy to get a ticket at the station for the next part of the TransSiberian. Not in Ulaanbaatar. First time I went to the international ticket office they told me ‘no ticket’. One week later I could have got some. Later on I found out on the Russian webpage that the sunday train still had space. Not able to book online I went back to the station the day after. Where I got told that I shall come back ‘tomorrow at 3pm’. ‘maniana maniana’ like South America.
For the transit Train from Moscow to Beijing you shall only get tickets the afternoon before departure after the train left Ulan-Ude the last big Russian stop. So I was back at the office on Saturday at 3pm. And at once it was 4pm and office ‘109’ around the corner. Anyway if you asked that girl she sent you back to the counters. We played this game a few times till we sat down and waited till 4pm. Once more I stood up went to the girl at the counter and was sent to ‘109’. Booom… big shock. In front of the office were about 20 people waiting. Lucky us that the girl sent all of us back to the counters so back in front of the line.
Forget nice queues no it doesn’t exist in Mongolia and for sure not in this situation. People were rushing the desk and instead of a line everybody was facing the accountant. Putting his/hers arm through the gap in the window to presents his/hers passport. First all the people which registered got a voucher for a ticket and next all the rest. First she ignored my passport together with another. She picked some local once instead. Had a look at it and refused one, two and more. And there we went, back in the game. Lucky us we got a little paper with seat numbers but the price increased. The day before we got told it shall be 130k MNT and now it shall be 217k MNT.
Three of us were running for an ATM which we finally found nearby. By the time we were back in the office most of the people were gone. They ran out of tickets we were told. Even two backpackers didn’t get one. Bit afraid of our tickets could have been gone since we left the place.
We started to queue again. A Chilean guy in front of us payed 217k MNT but we only got asked for 184.5k to our surprise. A short negotiation with the girl didn’t change anything. Happy but tired from all the stress we left the station and were looking forward for the morning after to catch the train.

Crossing the wilderness with a UAZ-452

Posted on September 5, 2014 by admin

Finally, we got picked up by our driver and its UAZ-452. An older Mongolian guy and its a bit younger soviet mini bus. Not sure how we get with this old school looking vehicle we were excited about the spacious interior. space for nine passengers but we were only the three of us. Wait … no first mission was to drop the horseman’s family in another town. The car got filled up. The ride through Olchon valley was bumpy but awesome. Nothing you could have called a road in the western world. Following random car tracks, crossing streams and move around rocks on the ground this car seemed to manage all the situations.
After the drop of our guests we headed off to the ancient capital of Mongolia – Karakorum.
This mission was about getting money to pay the car, gasoline as well as some food and no time for sight seeing. But we figured out that all the ATM’s where without of power, run out of money or just didn’t work with our cards. With the cash we had in our pockets we could pay for a meal and the petrol till Tsetserleg which we had to cross again.

The drive to Tsetserleg was smooth most of the street was paved and in ‘ok’ condition. Happy to be back in a bigger place we rushed the ATM and from there straight into the next supermarket. Getting some real food we were missing so badly. Bread, jam and tea for breakfast. Noodles, sauces and vegetables for lunch and dinner. As well as some sweets for sure. Back in the car our driver brought us to a GIR camp. Got my own deluxe gir including a bathroom with out running water. However, there was a common shower with hot water. Yap, hot water after one week. It can be so nice;)
Slept like a baby that night. No smelly fire or cheese, nor weird noises from a yak or a whole family around you, just me. After the breakfast we headed out. ‘Quick’ stop at the gas station to get more fuel and to pay the bill. Needing some phone calls to clear things up we finally agreed how to pay. Fixed car price and gas on the go. Now our car journey had its official start.

First destination was the Terkhiin Tsagaan Lake and the nearby volcano. On the way there we enjoyed the marvellousness views from the car. Lunch break was next to a canyon coming from the lake area. Just right on the edge of it, great but windy. On the menu was pasta with some canned food and for the driver some smelly Mongolian soup.

Later in the afternoon we reached our last stop before going to a camp site. The volcano, in the middle of nowhere surrounded by all the boulders and rocks it was once spiting out which finally formed this amazing landscape just next to the lake. The short hike to the top was a welcoming exercise to the long sitting sessions in the car. Back down we headed to the lakeside to find a gir camp. Not really happy about the choice of our driver we were accepting his choice. A camp which looked like it was never used this season. Broken windows, broken infrastructure and empty tents.
Anyway, the location was great just next to the water site.

From now on the daily schedule looked like this: getting up, make breakfast and being ready around 9am. Enjoy some amazing landscapes, make lunch and get astonished again from the nature before arriving at the next camp.
On the third day this routine got interrupted when at once a metal noise was coming from underneath the car. Quickly we discovered the broken dumper hanging down. The fix was simple, take the whole thing off and keep going without it. Later in the afternoon we were shocked again by the vehicle and its consumption in the mountains. From ‘eco-friendly’ 18l/100km the consumption went up to unbelievable 40l/100km.
On the way to the camp site we refused to stay at the first one the driver wanted to go. It looked to abandoned. The next place was a guesthouse and looked much nicer. Also new on this site was the price negotiation for the gir. After I was mentioning that 20’000 MNT is too much for a bed I got told that this shall be for the whole gir. A game changer for the future, now we know.

The next day we were driving up to the north to stay at the Mongolian ocean – lake Khövsgöl Nuur. But before going shopping again in Murun and get some more gasoline. When we arrived at the lake site we recognised the numerous camp sites. Many of them were already partially taken down and ready for winter. And exactly to such one we went, grrrrr. All the infrastructure was already closed so we were looking to the one next to it. Offer: Hot shower, western style toilets and Sauna as well as ping pong. Just the first price was high. We managed to get the 120k down to 30k for a two bed tent.
Unfortunately, the offered horse ridding was not satisfying and so we went back to the neighbours. The morning after we had to figure out that this gir stayed quite warm during night and we decided to stay longer. My trip company left the camp by horse and I went for a walk.

Later in the afternoon I got a visitor in the tent. A little marmot came along for a visit and to check our food. It came back for a couple of times to see if he could get something. After three nights on the site we started to head back to UB. A two day ride was in front of us. Getting another time gasoline in Murun and some more supplies for the way back we started a long day in the car. The ride started great. A smooth ride on a paved road at least for the first hour before our driver took a off-road track. Although, we returned to normal street since somebody wanted to use the paved road, at least it was marked like this. And soon we had to realise that the map of 2012 was inaccurate. The road was not finished and we ended up on a longer journey.
At lunch we discovered that the suspension of one front wheel was broken. From now on the driver had to be carefully and manoeuvre the car slowly through the nature. At some point he temporarily fixed the problem with a piece of wire. At 9pm we finally reached our night camp site. Somewhere near the unfinished road but in the middle of nowhere.

Our departure got delayed on last time. The driver was fixing the suspension. This time with a rubber band which he wrapped around it. Thats how a Mongolian fix looks. The good thing on that day was that we soon ended up on a paved street which stayed like this till UB. The not so good fact was that we still had to go quite a bit and that the polish couple got nervous since they had a train that night.
On the way we passed huge corn fields and the mining city Erdenet which holds one of the biggest open pit cooper mines. We also passed a couple of accidents which reminded me on the condition of our spring blade. Finally we reached UB safely at least till that point. Just 1.5km before the hostel something else on the car started to make a weird noise. Broken again … this time it was the differential of the back axis. Murphy must love us .. since it was almost 7pm there was not much time left to get the train. Luckily the driver wasn’t faced the first time with this problem we could finish our road trip just after 7pm. Just in time.

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