Most Inspirational Moment
This was driving into the edge of the Gobi desert and finding that our drivers local village were having a horse race for 2 year old horses over 15KM the jockeys were all young boys and girls under the age of 10. Some of them were riding bare backed and a girl riding like this was second in the race. We then spent 2 nights in a remote Ger camp near to the village. We were the only Westerners present for the 2 days we were there. magic. Seeing a Cinereous vulture at close hand and watching it take off was like seeing a feathered Vulcan bomber on a bomb run. They are enormous (wing span up to 2.95M)
Thoughts on Group Leader
Our group leader was a very likeable lady and immensely charming. However as it has been a year since she last led a trip and had not been able to practice her English language conversational skills it was difficult to understand her pronunciation of some words. This also meant that many questions posed to her went unanswered or were met with a smile and a blank look
Advice for Potential Travellers
Take a small thermarest, or similar, padded seat with you. A few small balloons to entertain the many (very, very many) small children you will encounter along the way. This helps to break the ice with their parents etc. and can lead to some very cute photographs. if you are interested in bird life, particularly Raptors take a small pair of binoculars as there is a lot to be seen.
Suggestions
This is a great trip. The country is far greener than I expected. The mode of travel is what I expected from the other reviews (ie; cramped and bumpy) but the drivers we had were magnificent and got us to places I never thought possible. The Ger camps are comfortable (except the last one in Terelj national park) and the food is mostly good with more vegetables and salads than I expected. The people are lovely and anxious to help. They are also well organised and things work and happen pretty much on time. Things are changing in Mongolia and it is rapidly becoming more modern with extensive building work going on in the capital. Things there are changing rapidly, go now before it becomes too spoilt.