Kach Solo Travels in 2019: Hello from MONGOLIA - my 130th country! ❤️
I left Kazakhstan the other night and arrived yesterday 5:30am in Ulaanbaatar, the capital of Mongolia! It’s only 3hrs 20 minutes flight but 2 hours time difference so I’m in the same timezone of Manila.. the airlines that I flew in actually just started this direct flight route 2 months ago! 😂
Mongolia is visa-free for Filipinos for 21 days but I was actually interviewed by senior immigration officer so if you guys are planning to visit make sure you have your return flight ticket, copy of your passport and all the details of your tour/ hotel.👌
It was a quick immigration process though and Degii, the tour operator of vaststeppe.com who arranged my 8-day private tour itinerary was waiting for me 😍
It’s too early so they drove me to a local guesthouse so I could take a nap then started my trip at 10am. We drove to Gorkhi-Terelj National Park which is less than 2 hour drive from the capital for my first day of adventure 😍
We’ve seen a lot of Ovoo / Oboo which is a sacred pyramid- shaped collection of stones used as altars or shrines of nomadic Mongols to honor local spirits and Mother Earth so we stopped so my guide could explain it to me then we stopped at the Turtle Rock which is a monumental rock as it’s organically carved by nature. 😍
Then we went on a hike to the Ariyabal Meditation Temple, there’s 106 steps but a steep hike prior to that. They said that the walk itself is a ritual and those who do it are cleansed of their sins! 🙏🏽😍 Didn’t know that before doing it but super worth it after arriving on the top.. if you personally know me then you know I’m not really into hiking but I enjoyed it ❤️
The highlight of this day was our visit to a nomadic family where I went horseback riding to the river and a hike to the mountain rock with their eldest son. We crossed the river with a strong water current and it was an awesome experience with beautiful scenery. When we returned the family was about to milk their cows and they invited me to join them so I was able to milk (slightly) the cow while wearing their traditional clothes! 😋
Ah that’s only my first day.. watch more for the next few days. 😍
P.S. If you’re a new reader and noticed I count countries, I really do it for a reason as I’m aiming to visit every country in the world using my Philippines passport. 🙏
