Horses, camels, cows/yaks, goats and sheep
By Charlie We spent Sunday on the loose around the outlaying temples of Angkor Wat. The guide book says that this massive complex requires at least three days, so that’s what we’re doing. I hope that we’ll post more about Angkor Wat in coming days or weeks, but here’s a taste of what we saw […]
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By Charlie Greetings from the sweltering tourist ghetto of Siem Reap, Cambodia. Everybody who visits the amazing Angkor Wat must spend the night here. It is, perhaps, the opposite of the fabulous Luang Prabang, Laos. Yesterday, against the urgings of my soul, we departed Luang Prabang. Three hours later, we were negotiating the heat and […]
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By Charlie This is one of those sublime vacations when we have forgotten what day of the week it is. The only thing we know is that yesterday was wonderful and today seems, perhaps, just slightly better. It is recess at the primary school across the street. There is a cool breeze blowing. We got […]
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By Charlie The kids in the school across the street are shouting a lovely song. The three guys in this internet café / travel agency / money changing place have done absolutely nothing since I arrived here two hours ago. The motorbikes sputter along the main drag of Luang Prabang. An afternoon breeze and beautiful […]
Continue Readingby Rachel Charlie and I arrived here on Sunday after an unexpected weekend in Beijing, courtesy of Air China. Fortunately, Team Beijing was there with open arms, as was Team Korea and part of Team Shanghai, so we had a great time. We ate our usual favorite foods, shopped, strolled through parks and caught a […]
Continue ReadingWe are off on a road trip to the Gobi today to get out of the city, visit a radio station and reconnoiter for future trips. We’ll be back in Ulaanbaatar for a few hours on Wednesday and then we are off again, back to the warmer climes of Southeast Asia. We’ll be visiting Chang […]
Continue ReadingBy Charlie Arvinbuyan called me yesterday. I was embarrassed to admit that I was not in the office. He clearly wanted to talk. Arvinbuyan is MIAT’s chief Airbus captain. He is among the most gentle and kind men that I have met in Mongolia. In a country where corrupt money and power command respect, Arvinbuyan […]
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By Charlie Okay. We’re fine. Don’t worry too much about us. And thanks for all the notes of support that you’ve sent over the past two days. Yes, we did have a bad stretch last week, but things have really improved. For example, today I picked up the tickets that will finally deliver us from […]
Continue Readingby Rachel This afternoon Byamba’s father came to negotiate about the furniture. Our new landlord, Sambuunyam, owns the apartment, but makes no claim on the furniture, so we are back to Byamba for that one. Charlie was prepared for battle and wearing his pajamas. He was the bad cop. I was the quiet cop. Byamba’s […]
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By Charlie I rolled out of bed and realized that the computer was not charging. When the lights would not switch on, I realized the obvious: No electricity! Weekend breakfast at our house requires three burners on the electric stove, plus the electric water boiler. Not to be outdone by a typical Mongolian interruption in […]
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