Our First Week in Mongolia

On our way! We left San Francisco at 3 pm on the 17th of July with lots of carry-ons and 9-50 lb bags!
We arrived in UB on the 19th of July after a miraculous night's sleep in the hotel in Beijing provided for us by an angel in disguise (see previous blog). We were so excited to see the green mountains below as we flew into UB. It has been raining a lot in Mongolia in June and July! Much more than normal!! A glimpse of the land becoming fertile again like the garden of Eden!!!

Some of our host family members and our ger in the background. These three family members are college students and have been speaking some English and helping with some Mongolian words.
The inside of our ger. The butterfly curtain is a must...people walk in and out of our ger without much notice. We love to have visitors! For a kitchen (to the left) we have a small table, hot water boiler, hotplate, water bucket and dispenser, and some dishes. The kids sleep on a couple pads on the floor to the right of our futon couch. We also have a small desk for studying the Word and our new language. The kids say they want to stay in the ger forever...Their opinions might change when the weather gets colder...it may even snow as early as September!

Averi and Eli's first Mongolian friends their age. These little girls may be related to our host family. Averi and the oldest girl were hand-in-hand within minutes of meeting each other and were swinging around in circles and laughing hysterically. No need for language...just lots of heart and pretty smiles!