![]() ![]() The VIP ger in the Gobi Oasis Camp was very comfortable and well appointed. June was the perfect time to visit the Gobi which wasn’t hot yet and we had many sites virtually to ourselves including the amazing Flaming Cliffs. I very much enjoyed hiking in the Yol Valley and the extraordinary Hongor Sands. In Ulaanbaatar the Gandan Monastery was a highlight as were the very comprehensive National Museum and the Zanabazar Fine Arts Museum. Terelj National Park was spectacular and I enjoyed visiting the Meditation Temple and the excursion to Jalman Meadows and visiting a local herdsman’s family. It has lovely staff, excellent service, and a beautiful pool. To go through the trip chronologically, I loved staying at the Terelj Hotel. He also brought along books on the flora and fauna for us to look at and arranged for us to see a number of outstanding films, “Eagle Huntress” and “The Story of the Weeping Camel,” which gave us further insight into Mongolia and what we were seeing on our trip. He was well-organized and efficiently arranged visits to nomadic families, camel rides in the Gobi, and horseback riding outside of Karokorum. He speaks perfect idiomatic English (and also guides in Russian and Chinese) and was extremely knowledgeable about Mongolian history and culture and able to answer all our questions effortlessly. I can’t speak highly enough of our superlative guide, Mr. #Red lantern driver#When there was problem, with our driver’s vehicle, a backup driver was summoned to make sure we got back for our flight to Ulaanbaatar. The lake was still partially frozen so the boat service wasn’t operating and we had to drive instead. All the local drivers were excellent and did an outstanding job in difficult terrain, especially the driver who got us to and back from Lake Khovsgol on an extremely muddy road twisting through fields and forests. ![]() All the logistics worked out smoothly including the internal flights which were all on time. ![]() So the trip was epic from start to finish. But despite the rain we managed to see the famous takhi horses in Hustain Park. The Mongolia trip was amazing and we loved every minute of it! We had perfect weather until the last day when there was torrential rain that closed the main road to Ulaanbaatar for miles when we were driving back from Karakorum and forced us to make a major detour around the water. Don’t think the children would do well on the 12-14 hr flights. We would love to take our family if it were so far. We didn’t use the phone, but it was a good backup just in case something happened. The cooking class in Chiang Mai was the best. But I feel we got a good look at Thailand. Each place had its own uniqueness. I didn’t realize how many temples and Buddahs we would see. We had several Thai messages – so cheap on the street! We also really enjoyed the hike in the jungle, the elephants and the raft ride. It was all good. Just wish I had taken pictures of each dish. That would have been a good one to do the first or second night so that we knew what to order the following days. The Blackitch in Chiang Mai was a unique dining experience! I would never choose to eat what we had but enjoyed trying all the different dishes. The street food night in Bangkok was fun to eat at restaurants with local people. The accent was a challenge with Melissa, but she got better as the time went on and I understood her better. Everything went off without any complications. ![]()
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