At 11AM a border guard walks across the parking lot carrying passports and some forms, looking official with a stern look on his face. All of the teams perk up, and eyes follow the official’s every move; each wondering who will get the ticket to freedom. The official doesn’t say a word, scans the license […]
We are traveling in Mongolia with a map that is 5 years old. This normally wouldn’t be that big of a deal, but in a country where roads are only dirt and they change every season as new tracks are made, this IS a big deal. Every day we start off confident of our direction. […]
I had been looking forward to the Mongolia portion of the trip not only because it was the most adventurous and uncertain, but because I expected it to be the most social. Prior to this, rally teams were spread out all over Europe and Central Asia and about 75% of them would funnel through this […]
They say patience is a virtue. I’ve learned to develop my patience through traveling, but the border crossings on the Mongol Rally kick it up to a whole new level of patience that is required. For our last border crossing, “Wait” is the word of the day…and night. This was it, our last border crossing […]
The odds are stacked against us. I asked one of the founders a series of questions about our odds of making it to Ulanbatar and Rob, one of the Mongol Rally Founders, provided the following historical information: “We’re expecting about 350 teams will start the Mongol Rally this year, and, if the last two years […]
While in Jordan I saw all of the main tourist sites, but I also had an opportunity to get off the beaten path with my local host family. I had the opportunity to see a place few foreigners have seen; In fact, I am willing to bet that no foreigner besides expats have been there […]
Yup – that’s right…this is crass…I’m telling all of you it’s my birthday and I want presents…lots and lots of presents. I’m totally serious about this. It’s my birthday this week – February 12th – and I will be 41 years old. Since 2006, I haven’t had a big birthday party …which is a bit […]
Speeding along the dirt tire tracks past camels and goats, the bus randomly stops in the middle of the desert to let a family off where there is no sign of life. The bus lurches up and down as if it were a roller coaster ride, yet there are no screams of excitement among the […]
Who doesn’t love Mongolian BBQ? I loved those restaurants in the US cities and suburbs where you pile your plate high of uncooked veggies, meat, and noodles, douse it in a variety of sauces, and then hand it to a guy to stir fry on a big stove. This was one of the reasons I […]
It was a dream of mine to travel to Mongolia. However, I didn’t want to do it like everyone else did it; I wasn’t looking for the standard tour. As I looked at the Ger to Ger handbook, I realized I had found my answer. As I paged through the manual, I became a bit […]
