Central Mongolia Tour : Day 3HeartofJess.Blog

In Mongolia, I availed a 4-day tour that let me travelled to the central part of the country. So far, the tour was amazing! After my DIY itinerary in Ulaanbaatar, the next coming days I had in Mongolia were all about the tours. 😇🥰😇

I was lucky and blessed to be accompanied by solo travellers from Japan, Singapore, Taiwan and Germany. Also, my guide and our driver were very accommodating and approachable with all of our needs in the tour. 🥰

Group of five people smiling and posing at an outdoor location with rolling hills and a blue sky in the background, seen from inside a vehicle.

After a glorious night under the shooting stars of Central Mongolia, the next coming days were getting nearer in Ulaanbaatar. Nevertheless, I enjoyed the company I had even I was travelling solo. 🥰

From my previous posts, Day 1 and Day 2 of the tour were magnificent! 😍🤩😍 In this post, I will be sharing the third day of my Central Mongolia tour. 😇🥰😇

We had a good night sleep under the dark sky of Mongolia. 😍🤩😍 We slept with the nomad family with no electricity and no proper bathroom. However, the overnight stay was marvelous! ✨🤩✨ Though we experienced too much smoke on that night in our ger, we were greeted by shooting stars that filled the entire sky. 😍🤩😍

On the next day, we got up early to have breakfast with the nomad family. My morning routine should be actually in the bathroom, but that time around, I was really trying not to pee too much because the bathroom was really messy. 😅

A vast landscape featuring rolling hills, sparse vegetation, and a solitary wooden structure, under a blue sky filled with fluffy white clouds.

For women, it will be really uncomfortable to have a decent bathroom time if you were out of nowhere. 😅 But this was Mongolia! 😍🤩😍 This was something that I can say that not all parts of travelling is nice and beautiful. There will be times it will be ugly but it was blending and respecting culture and way of living. 🙇‍♀️

We then prepared our things and went to the ger. We were greeted by the other group of travellers. We started to eat local food prepared by the nomad family and our guide and driver. We tried the fermented cheese with some bread. Had a nice warm coffee and fresh eggs. It was like a feast! 😋

A table set with various dishes, including bowls of ice cream, slices of bread, and a large bowl of snacks. Several glasses and utensils, including forks and spoons, are arranged around the table, which features a floral tablecloth.

All of us were savoring the last hours of our time with the nomad family. Personally, the experience I had with the nomad family was unforgettable. 😇🥰😇 We were completely off the grid, surrounded by nature and just enjoying the real Mongolia. 😇🥰😇

A panoramic view of rugged mountains under a blue sky with wispy clouds, surrounded by green vegetation and an open area in the foreground.

After we completed our breakfast, we said thanks to the nomad family and started packing our stuffs. Our third day in the tour was about to get started. 🚘

Erdene Khamba Monastery

Erdene Khamba Monastery is a Buddhist temple complex located in the Khogno Tarna Natural Park. It is approximately 280 kilometers west of Ulaanbaatar. It was said that it was built in th 17th century as part of practising Buddhism.

Scenic landscape featuring a white stupa with a golden spire, surrounded by rocky hills and sparse vegetation under a partly cloudy sky.

However, sometime in 1930s, the monastery was destroyed by the Soviet Union. As per our guide, the Soviet Union was not supporting Buddhism by that time. Most of the monastery were destroyed including Erdene Khamba. In one fine day, while Soviet Army were travelling near the monastery, they saw a shiny pointy architecture. It was actually the top of the Buddhist temple of Erdene Khamba covered in gold.

A scenic view of a traditional white building surrounded by lush greenery and rocky mountains, with several people walking towards it.

The Soviet Army came to the Buddhist complex and destroyed the monastery. All of the monks were murdered too. Making that scenario a news around Mongolia that almost stop Buddhism to spread more.

While our guide, Sarah, told us this story, everyone became sad including me. 😰 It was heartbreaking to hear stories about taking lives because of their faith. Nevertheless, the Soviet Union did not successfully occupied Mongolia.

A scenic landscape featuring a hillside of rocky terrain, a small white building with a blue roof, and a wooden structure resembling a beehive in the foreground, along with a large tree to the right.

Today, the monastery has been rebuilt, surrounded by nature and peace. It was also near our ger camp with the nomad family. Thus, in less than 30 minutes, we already reached the Buddhist complex. We really thought that we will hike as Sarah mentioned that we will go to another place behind the rocks where we stayed. 😅

Apparently, the rocks were too far to walk and our car did the magic to transport as in this peaceful place. 😇 We were also welcomed by squirrels. 🐿️🐿️🐿️ It was my first time to see squirrels and they were everywhere! 🐿️🐿️🐿️

Two squirrels on sandy ground with sparse grass.

The monastery itself was located on the top of the rocky mountain. I tried to go up but I decided to wait for my tour mates and guide near the Buddhist temple below. I was not really fond of hiking. 😅 For me, sitting in a place with peaceful vibe, feeling the cold wind and just hearing the sound of nature was enough. 🍃🌬️⛰️

A rocky hillside with scattered greenery and shrubs, under a slightly cloudy sky.

It was our last day in the province of Mongolia. So, might as well enjoy the place on my own without hiking up was way better for me. 🥰 And who will not enjoy this moment as I was surrounded by my new friends. 🐿️

Two prairie dogs standing in the grass near a large rock formation.

For some minutes, my tour mates returned and we hit the road again. 🚘 One last hours in the countryside and we will see the city of Ulaanbaatar again. Familiar sights of steppes surrounded us while on the road. 😍

A large bowl of broth with pieces of meat and floating dumplings, accompanied by a white mug of beverage on a table.

We stopped by a local restaurant to have our lunch. This time around, I ordered Banshtai Shul. It is a hearty meat broth soup filled with small, boiled dumplings. 😋 It was perfect for that cold morning. 🥰

Guesthouse check-in at Ulaanbaatar

After our lunch, we hit the road again to return to Ulaanbaatar. 🚘 For about more than 2 hours, we reached the city again. However, we needed to stopped by at a hospital to let one of our tourmates be vaccinated. He was bitten last night by a dog of the nomad family. 😥🐕‍🦺

One of our tourmates, a dentist, gave him first-aid medicine. However, to be sure, we brought him to a hospital in Ulaanbaatar. We passed by two hospitals as the first one was not accepting foreigners. Luckily, the second hospital accomodated him and he was vaccinated with anti-rabies shot. We stayed in the car while our guide, driver and tourmate were inside the hospital.

In just few minutes, we reached the tour company’s guesthouse in Ulaanbaatar. A night in the guesthouse was also part of the tour I availed including the meals.

Front view of a multi-story residential building with a green entrance door and a yellow bench in the foreground.

Before we entered the guesthouse, we said goodbyes to our lovely driver and our guide, Sarah. They will be accommodating other tour groups and we will have another guide and driver. 😇

Group selfie of five people outdoors standing in a street, smiling and posing with peace signs. Luggage is visible in the foreground, and buildings are in the background under a cloudy sky.

If in case you will visit Mongolia, I definitely recommend the tour company which Sarah and our driver were part of. 👍👍 Both of them worked as a team and very approachable with all of our needs. 🥰🥰

Sarah let us to settled in our guesthouse. The guesthouse helper gave us short instructions of their house rules. Women and men rooms were separated. There was a common restroom and living/ dining area.

The guesthouse was too cozy. Since I was the only girl left, I had the entire female room. 🥰 We just had one concern, the heater was not working. 😥

Free-time in Ulaanbaatar

The afternoon was our free time in the tour. I rested for some minutes inside the guesthouse. Before dinner, I decided to go outside to buy souvenirs in a big grocery store, almost across the street of our guesthouse. I had a good time inside the grocery store. It was like I was a local too. 🥰

Exterior view of a shopping area with the 'NOMIN SUPERMARKET' and 'EVERY DAY' signage, along with 'HULEGU FITNESS CLUB'. Multiple parked cars are visible in the foreground.

The wind outside started to freeze. 🥶🥶🥶 After the souvenir shopping, I returned to the guesthouse. I just re-arranged my stuffs including all the souvenirs I bought so I will be ready for the next day. 👍

An assortment of snacks and products including various packages of candy, pretzels, coffee, and granola bars arranged on a wooden floor.

Before 7PM, our dinner was served. 😋 Our guesthouse helper prepared it for us. The dinner was still part of the package I availed together with the accommodation and tours.

A plate containing fried chicken pieces, a portion of white rice, and golden round-shaped pastries, on a floral patterned tablecloth.

From six travellers in the group tour including me, we were down to three tourmates. As others availed a 3-day tour only. We found ourselves singing F4 songs! 😂🥰 I told one of my tourmates, the Taiwanese dentist, that I love F4! 🥰🥰🥰 We found songs in YouTube and sung it all through! 🥰🥰🥰

A living room scene featuring a television displaying karaoke lyrics, with two people seated on a couch, one smiling and waving, while the other appears happy and engaged.

After a short karaoke session, we rested for a night in the guesthouse. 😴

It was a short but relaxing day for me. 🥰 Follow my next blog to read about my last day in the tour. 💜