A long month

This has been the month to celebrate Tsagaan Sar (White or New Moon).  It could rival Christmas at home with cleaning, cooking, shopping and in all ways preparing for the celebration.  It follows the lunar calendar and signifies the end of a hard winter.  Bituun is the day before the New Moon and is spent cleaning the whole home (which is often a Ger) and then everyone eating until past full.  It is thought that if you are hungry when Tsagaan Sar starts, you will be hungry all year!

Cal in his deel and great fur hat,
with his new friend!!

The first day of Tsagaan Sar begins with the men climbing a nearby mountain in time to greet the sun and follow some of their other traditions.  Cal, along with some of the other missionaries, made the climb up Chingelti Mountain and had a fantastic time.  When they left, the computer said it was -35C, feeling like -43C.  He wore his new Deel (a long mongolian coat) and was not cold.  He commented that it certainly did cut down his stride length!!  They joined some others around a fire and got great shots of the sun coming up over the valley.  The smoke from the Gers made a surreal picture.

On their way down they saw a little girl outside her Ger and went to see if they could take a picture.  The rest of her family came out all dressed in their traditional clothes, were happy to have some photos taken and then invited them in for a real Tsagaan Sar meal.  It was a once in a lifetime chance for a camera happy Canadian!!

The man of the house cutting off some pieces of mutton from the whole sheep.
Their Ger was all decorated for the holiday.

That night we were able to go with some of the missionaries on the bus about 45 minutes from UB to visit one of the families in our Branch.  Visiting there, we discovered that it was the family of a girl suffering from Epilepsy who we had been trying to find.  There are no coincidences!!  We really are blessed as missionaries.  We left the Ger and headed to the highway to catch a bus back to UB.  Someone then told us that there were no more buses because they quit early on Tsagaan Sar.  It was about 8:15, dark and -35C.  There we were, 9 of us standing on the edge of the highway.  No taxis were coming until finally one, but the elders turned down his offer for a ride for some of us because he wanted 2000 tugs ($1.50 Cdn) each and they thought that was too much!    After about 25 minutes we noticed a few of the missionaries huddled in a group and praying.  Within 5 minutes here came a "meeker".  That is a 12 passenger little van with a few extra benches.  They have no hesitations to pile in as many people as are willing to try and just charge 1000 tugs.  In we went and had our first ride in a "meeker", 23 of us for a 45 minute ride!!  We felt blessed because it was cold!!

When we got back to our apartment, the whole day seemed to be unreal. It is hard to imagine we are really here in "Outer Mongolia", climbing a mountain at sunrise, visiting in two different Gers, eating "buuz" and other traditional food, finding someone we had been looking for, standing on the highway in the dark almost freezing to death and riding in a meeker!!

The missionaries put on a great talent show for the second day of Tsagaan Sar - it was amazing how much ability there is in this group of missionaries.  At least three of the American Elders are gifted pianists (keep practicing all you grandsons!!).  The Mongolians did several traditional songs and dances, they had a big fan dance and spelled out LDS, and even President Clark gave a rendition of "I tot I taw a Puddy Tat".  One of the funniest was Sister England's ballad of "Sly Sam".  It was funny in English but the funny part was watching  Elder Stranski try to translate it into Mongolian - I think it lost a bit in the translation!!

Some of the mountain climbers a bit better dressed

We had several invitations to go to different homes for the holiday.  One was to visit Sister Ichinkhand, one of the first members in Mongolia.  She is now ninety and each year invites all the Senior couples to her apartment for dinner.  She was one who helped translate the Book of Mormon into Mongolian.  She is the Matriarch of 4 generations of members of the Church.  Her Grandson is the Stake President.  Her friend Puji helped  us to communicate!  At each house we were served mutton, salads (always potato and sometimes others), rice pudding, and of course many "buuz".  They are steamed dumpling things - flour dough with meat inside - mutton or beef usually and some fat and a bit of spice.  Some of the missionaries claimed to have eaten over 150 during the week and several paid the price by being sick!!   Where ever you go there is always a bowl of candy ready to be eaten.

We have had more computer issues, thus the delay in reporting but things are looking up and we bought a new Sony one.  Apple is not very common in Mongolia!! (so not much servicing available!)

Life is good and All is Well

Murun

This weekend we flew to Murun for another Branch Conference.  Murun is about 600km to the northwest of UB.  Once again we were able to see the empty spaces, lots of mountains with a few valleys in between.  It appears that anywhere that there is a bit of flat land they have planted wheat or barley.  It is all pretty remote!





Next week is Tsagaan Sar, one of the biggest holidays of the year in Mongolia.  It means New or White Moon.  Everyone cleans their house, they buy many presents, and prepare much food.  It is a time to visit all their relatives, starting with the oldest on the first day and then others for the next two days.  The main food  that they make is "buuz", meat filled dumplings.  Most families make 1000, some in our English class said their families were making 3000! The "Butt of a Sheep" is placed on the table for the guests to eat when they visit.  It is steamed and considered a delicacy.  We have been invited to a home on one of the nights of Tsagaan Sar so it should be interesting to see the celebration.

We visited an older sister whose two children had come from UB to help her get ready for Tsagaan Sar.  Her grandkids were helping too.  They had a sheep thawing out in the kitchen, meat is cheaper in the "country side" so they were getting it ready to take back to UB.

They had a good start - on a lot of "Buuz"!

An Expert tutor -
she made them look like little sea-shells

On Saturday we visited a family who were in the midst of making their buuz.  I tried my hand but definitely did not have quite the right touch to get it sealed just right!

Even the kids help

The mother in the home was a seamstress - she works at home because she has a disabled daughter.

She uses a hand cranked sewing machine (I have seen treadle machines but never one that was turned by hand.)  She turns the crank with her right hand while guiding the fabric with her left hand.  She was making several deels, (the long Mongolian coat).  Her work was beautiful!

Last week we had a pleasant surprise when we were teaching our English Class.  Several times a student came to the door and said something about teachers but we couldn't understand their English!!

A fireworks kind of candle!

The kids made their own shirts!

Finally one came in the class and then one of our students explained that it was teacher appreciation day and there was a get-together happening that they wanted us to attend!!  The kids from the "English Training Club" had made lunch and were having a party for the teachers, complete with a cute program.  

We arrived in time for the cake and a couple of 

Musical numbers - one a song that was done in 

perfect English.

The group of teachers and ETC students

Life goes on and is Good, All is Well!!

Khovd

This past weekend we flew to Khovd, about 1300 km. to the west of UB.  From the plane the land looked much like the mountainous regions around Helena, flat places between mountains.  It is pretty sparsely populated with just a few Ger camps close to some of the rivers.

It seems that Khovd has almost as much air pollution as UB.  In the evening the smoke was thick as the people must get their fires going to heat their Ger for the night and cook an evening meal. 

The people are just so kind and friendly and cute!!

These looked just like our elk
and mountain sheep

Copies of stone drawings taken
 from caves in the mountains close by

On our way to the airport we stopped at a little museum.  It had lots of relics from the past, 

old costumes, 

and some areas showing the native animals.  One of the Sister Missionaries really liked to get her picture taken.

Cal spent a while last night with one of the Pre-Missionaries (he does all medicals for their mission applications).  He is 18 years old, finished 2 years of university and is studying to be a computer "Hacker" - he assured us it is a good kind of hacker.  When Cal found that out, he asked him if he knew how to download videos.  They proceeded and maybe it is downloaded but when I looked it was David Artchulata singing Silent night and a bunch of other stuff.  We have a steep learning curve!  If the fireworks are there, good, if not or it is something that shouldn't be, don't look!!

Life is good and all is well (except that I have another cold!)  

Fireworks follow up

The fireworks video was 44 seconds but as you see, all I can get loaded is 2 seconds!  It isn't quite the same!  Someday maybe we will figure it out.


We have been really busy with sick seniors coming and going to the hospital.  We are  blessed to have been able to make so many good contacts in the Medical Community.  It sure makes figuring out these situations easier. Our first contact, Dr. Lodoysamba, was the man Cal met on the plane when we were flying here.  He was obviously Mongolian but asked for an English paper so they struck up a conversation.  He referred us to his son-in-law, Dr. Enkhzorig, a traditional Doctor and former director of External Affairs at Hospital 1.  We have been able to make many more contacts following their advice.

This week we were able to take both of them and their wives out for dinner.  They chose the place and then helped us order so we had some really good Mongolian food and drinks.  They recommended anis juice (a red berry that sounds like it grows like huckleberries -(now I just asked one of our translators
 and when she looked it up in the dictionary it is cranberry!!  the drink was more pulpy than we would expect from cranberry juice)) and seabuck thorn berry juice (orange and sour but great with lots of sugar). They apparently grow on bigger trees with lots of thorns so they harvest them in the winter when it freezes and "rake" them like some of those people pick huckleberries down by Kalispell.)



This is a sample of the N95 masks (are made to filter out the smaller particles from the air) we have been giving to the missionaries to wear, especially at night in the Ger Districts when it is so smoky.  They are supposed to get new ones every two weeks and this is one that a missionary brought in today to trade for the new one beside it.

One of the Districts with their new masks 

These are just four of the great ladies at the Choibalsan Branch last Sunday after Church.

Life is still Good and All is Well.

Live fireworks - maybe!

trying a video.....

All is Well

2013 - It is a NEW YEAR

"New Year" is the big holiday for the season.  To enjoy the atmosphere, 5 couples of the Senior Missionaries walked (about a mile) to Suhkbaatar Square for the midnight fireworks.  It was spectacular.  It was also quite chilly,  -30C with a bit of wind.  After we walked, waited a little while for midnight and then watched for at least 15 minutes, enjoyed the ambiance for a few more and walked back home, we were COLD.  But it was worth it!

This weekend we are in Choibalsan, about 750 km east of UB.  We flew in a plane like the Time Air propellor kind with two seats on one side and one on the other.  It was -38C when we got loaded onto the plane but then we were unloaded while they got another one.  It was probably just too cold. They definitely don't de-ice but it is pretty dry so I guess they do not need to!

This part of the country is much like Southern Alberta with big open skies and fields.  The road to the Airport was drifted over in lots of places so the old Russian Van we were in just followed some tracks out through the field by the road.







The Branch of the Church here is very active.  The first night we were able to see two young people baptized.  We came for their annual Branch Conference since Cal is a counsellor in the Mission Presidency.  On Saturday afternoon we went out with one of the new Sister Missionaries to visit some people they had met.  We invited them to our meetings on Sunday and people from three of our visits came.  They were all very friendly and happy to see us.  All were from the "Ger" district and it would be hard for most out there to realize their circumstances.

Many Grandparents are the
caregivers for their Grandchildren

The first "Virtual Sacrament Meeting" in Mongolia was held on Sunday and we were able to participate from Choibalsan because President Clark was here.  There are several small groups of  members scattered in different parts of Mongolia - lots in mining areas - so they will be joined together by phone or SKYPE for one meeting.  It is coordinated from UB with the different groups meeting in their own areas.  It was a test run and seemed to go well. Hopefully it will be able to continue.

When we were in Salt Lake City for General Conference before we went to the MTC, we happened to meet some Missionaries from Mongolia serving on Temple Square.  We took pictures with them and said we would try to find their parents when we got here.

Yesterday Cal used one of the pictures in his presentation about the new youth programs for the Church because we had been told on of the girls was from Choibalsan.  Her mother was so excited to see her and immediately invited us to come for FHE tonight.

Sister Bat - Ulzii from Choibalsan
second from right

Her parents and little brother

 It was so special to go their home and join the group of friends who regularly meet together for Family Home Evening.  These are wonderful, special people.













 The other couple with us have just moved to Choibalsan to be Branch Support here for 5 months.  The Groesbecks  last 5 months were spent in the northern part of Mongolia, Muron.  In each area they are the only English speaking missionaries - they are a fantastic pair and will be dearly loved by the people here.



Life is still good and All is Well.

Christmas in Mongolia

This has been a different but special Christmas for us.  We miss everyone at home and all the traditional gatherings, food and other events.  Here Christmas for the general population does not happen.  This is a Buddhist country so schools and stores are open, and life goes on just as an ordinary day.  The big celebration is New Years Day.  They even have trees and lights and gift giving (our English class students told us that most gifts are "sweets" and when guests come over, they put money on the tree).

The Elders were so polite
they even let the Sisters dish up first

We emptied most of the furniture out of our little living room, hauled two tables from the Church and had two districts - 14 missionaries and 3 Senior Couples over for "Christmas Dinner".








  It wasn't Turkey and stuffing but we had three kinds of crockpot chicken, rice, corn, green salad and even red jello that I found in our cupboard.
 It was cozy but fun to have a big group - made us feel like home.  It was also great to be able to have someone else's kids over since we couldn't have our own!

Elder Stewart asked our sign language Elder to say the Blessing.  How touching to have him sign while his companion translated into Mongolian and one of the sisters translated into English!

Some of them had to go early because they had to teach their English Classes and others had a meeting but we had long enough to eat, sing and play a game of "pass around the present".

Cal was excited to give each of them a little bag with oranges, banana and candy when they left. We wash all the fruit and vegetables we buy in bleach water and then rinse in clean water.  Elder Stewart is good at this job - here are some of his oranges!!

 We are so grateful to be able to be here with such wonderful young (and old) people who are happily serving our Heavenly Father.  Even though the general population here do not recognize Him, we were able to collectively remember our Savior Jesus Christ on this day we celebrate His birth.

Sharing a message from the Book of Mormon
with the occupant of an ice house!!

One of the Department Stores close by had a beautiful display of Ice Sculptures.  In this country there is little fear of them melting before Spring!!







During the last few days Cal has gotten pictures of lots of the missionaries over there.  He has been able to e-mail some of those pictures to many of the American parents as a special Christmas surprise - they have appreciated them.  Most of the Mongolian Missionary's parents do not have e-mail.

Life is Good and All is Well!