I'm not sure what I'm going to do with my weekend instead. Every other weekend that I'll be here, I'm sure that I'll be busy with various fun activities (trips to the countryside, day outings to Turelij, day-long Mongolian wrestling competitions, etc.)... but for this first weekend, I think it's going to be a little tame. I should be thankful to have one last quiet weekend- the number of invitations I'll be getting soon will be overwhelming... that's just the way Mongolia is.
In the meantime, I thought you'd all be interested in hearing about some skills I've developed (and will be developing) since returning to UB:
1. learning how to walk. Considering the sheets of ice that cover the sidewalks, this will be no small feat. Mongolians intentionally slide along the ice as they go, taking several steps, sliding, a few more steps, sliding again (a skill they surely developed shortly after learning to walk, when they were much closer to the ground)... this method of movement wouldn't be so notable, except that Mongolian women do this in high-heeled boots, intentionally sliding on the ice as they go (picture those kids' shoes with the wheel on the back; the women do this on ice, in heels). The sidewalks around UB are, consequently, smoother than any other ice I've encountered, though they are sliced/cut up from all those spiky black boots.
I'm not going to master the sliding-on-ice-in-heels (or any other shoe) part, but I would like to be able to walk around with a little more confidence.
2. surviving the strong handshake from any Mongolian man. So far, I was 'injured' twice after a few of my younger male students shook (squeezed) my hand. I remembered what the word "throb" truly means; the pain lasted for about 30 minutes to 1 hour... and then I felt even worse because I realized that I can now identify a little more strongly with Cindy McCain...
3. learning how to cross the street... more on that later
There was more I thought I wanted to say, but to be honest, I realized yesterday that there isn't that much to adjust to. Sure, I don't speak Mongolian, people's concept of time is erratically similar or different to my own (it's the inconsistency that's the confusing part), and I definitely have to be more pushy when I go through a line at a store (check any stereotypes of 'passive Asian' at the door)... but this really is a different experience from last time.
When I was here a year ago, I was always inspecting the cultural differences between Mongolia and the U.S. I felt I was in such a different world; it was foreign- exotic, even. But this time, I don't know if there's much to adapt to. I want to learn more about the country and the people, but in the way I would feel comfortable spending 2 months in Atlanta or LA, I feel the same way about UB. Life is life. People are people.
But it's easier because people here are so hospitable. When I think about it, I think I'd be lonely if I were to spend the same amount of time in some random American city. Sure, I'd find my way around and entertain myself, but as I think about it, Mongolians are, without question, some of the warmest, friendliest people on Earth.
Off to Nayra's Coffee Shop for some reading (this is, mind you, a vacation from My Life), and then, perhaps, on to having a beer at the Irish bar across the street from the circus.
P.S. The pictures I took today remind me that I am in a pretty different world. After class today I ate some of the horse meat that Toshiba brought to the office (it's in the plastic bag in the picture above) and then sipped 'Chingis Khan' vodka...
After that, Ena showed me an old photo of her grandfather, who was a famous and revered wrestler (think of Japan's sumo wrestling culture - in the same way, wrestlers are national treasures here).
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