Tsagaan Sar Festivities

Hello again readers! It has been (another) crazy and busy week! Let me tell you all about my experience of the Mongolian lunar new year known as Tsagaan Sar (White Moon).

Tsagaan Sar officially began Wednesday, Feb 22 and ran until Feb 25th, but preparations began far in advance. I noticed a busy shopping season a week earlier, and lots of frantic last minute shopping in the days right before the holiday. Everyone was stocking up on gifts and food. Me and Holly also stocked up on food after being tipped off that all the stores and markets would be closed during the holiday. Holly braved the mean streets of UB and went to get us eggs and bread. During the hour she was out someone tried to steal her wallet, and then a drunk guy tried to steal her groceries! With things getting a little crazy outside we planned to hole up in our apartment until the holiday was over, but invitations to Mongolian family's homes ultimately drew us out.

Tuesday I went to my host family's home for Tsagaan Sar eve, known as Bituun, which means "to be full". On this day you spend time with your family and feast on side dishes such as potato salad, khuushuur (deep fried mutton pancakes), and creamy or fermented milk products in preparation for the ungodly amount of mutton dumplings you'll be eating over the next few days. I think the point of this day is to expand your stomach. At Bituun I tried a Mongolian food I had never had before, called aarts. It is a slightly fermented soft cheese curd. It is more well known in its dried form, aaraal. In this case it was served steaming hot in milk tea that was sweetened with sugar and raisins. It was a bit strange at first but I actually really liked it! It was definitely Mongolian comfort food.

The next day we got up early. For Tsagaan Sar you go around to all your relatives' houses in order of age, first visiting grandparents or even great grandparents, great aunts and uncles, then aunts and uncles, then cousins, and even some more distant relatives if you are close or if you have time. We waited at home for the first guests to arrive and then did some visiting of our own. Look at these pictures!

Danzka and Muugii's family's Tsagaan Sar spread. Notice lots of side dishes and the centerpiece, a tower of boov, fried dough, and decorated with aaraal, sugar, tos, and candy.

The family's little centerpiece. Here you can see the black and yellow tos. Tos was also a new food I tried. Essentially, it's a paste of butter, flour, sugar, and raisins. I was a big fan, it was like sweetened pie dough with more butter! The black tos used some sort of rye flour I think. It was also tasty, with a nuttier flavour.

Host dad posing in front of the centerpiece and uuts, the back and sides of a whole sheep that is traditionally served on Tsagaan Sar. The oldest man or woman sits at the head of the table and receives the guests first.

A third, tiny centerpiece was erected at the altar where pictures of ancestors and buddhist iconography are displayed. Oil candles and incense are burned, and milk is offered.

A huge piece of mutton, some orom, or fatty boiled milk skin (yum!) and candy.

A guest greeting the dad in the traditional way. I also took part in this ritual greeting. As I was younger than 90% of the people I was greeting, I held their elbows, and they held my shoulders, we sniffed each other on each cheek (instead of kissing) and said "amar baina uu", which sort of means "happiness be with you".

Then the men would exchange snuff bottles, as Danzka is demonstrating. You don't actually take any snuff, you just sniff the top of the bottle, nod your approval, and hand it back. I also got to receive snuff bottles and hand them back, and I went to a family where the woman of the house also had a petite snuff bottle of her own.

Host bro and sis Danzka and Muugii! aka Danzaa and Munkho... aka Danzanravjaa and Munkhjargal... Mongolian nicknames are confusing! But almost no one goes by their given name. Everyone personalizes their name a little in their nickname.

Of course a blog post involving my host family wouldn't be complete without an update on Bambi. She's getting biiiiig and filling out a lot! She's very happy with the host family which is all for the best, since she seems to not have gotten over the bath I gave her, and tries to give me a good nip everytime I walk by.... Perhaps she doesn't remember all the food I fed her either! Ah well, I've completed my puppy community service in any case.

It's warmer now! Like 10 degrees during the day!

Oh no! It has begun. I am lagging behind in my blogging. I will be posting again soon about all the exciting New Year’s festivities, but for now here’s an update about life in Mongolia.

A few days after the buuz-making extravaganza my new roommate Holly moved in! Holly is one of the Fulbright English teaching assistants (ETAs) and has been in Mongolia since last August. She had been living with a Mongolian host family but things were getting stressful and so she was looking for a new place to live. Right about this time I was looking for someone to move in and split the rent. Perfect! The next day we braved the cold and visited the giant outdoor Narantuul market for some additional home goods including some interesting mugs, more plates, an outlet, hangers, and a trashcan. We hadn’t thought about the approaching New Year, and the market was mobbed with people shopping for gifts. It was like Christmas Eve shopping or something. We have to go again tomorrow to get a desk and a table because the market will be closed for a few weeks after Tsagaan Sar. Apparently this is because everyone spends all their money preparing for Tsagaan Sar and there is no point in opening the market until at least a few weeks afterwards.

As we are approaching the 7th nine of winter, the temperature is definitely warming up. It's still cold at night, but during the height of day it gets up to about 10F. The snot in my nose doesn't even freeze! It's so warm you hardly need a hat! Lulled into a false sense of warmth, it's easy to wander around outside for half an hour until you realize that 10F is actually still really cold and you have lost feeling in your toes.

But for keeping warm I'm in luck, since my friend Hannah taught me how to knit! We then spent a day traipsing around UB trying to find yarn, which turns out to be extremely uncommon. For a country full of wool-bearing livestock, this seems odd. We think there must be a place that has it, and hopefully we’ll find it soon!

So that's just a little of what I've been getting up to, I'm also still keeping up with the language learning and networking. I will add more pictures soon and the next post will be about Tsagaan Sar, which is coming up next week!

Bayartai!

Making buuz for Tsagaan Sar

This saturday I got the chance to make buuz, or mutton dumplings, with my former host family in preparation for Tsagaan Sar. Tsagaan Sar, which means "white moon", is the Mongolian new year. Last time I was in Mongolia as a student I arrived after Tsagaan Sar was over, so I'm glad to be able to experience it this time. There are many fascinating customs and rituals associated with Tsagaan Sar. The first day (Feb 21) is called bituun, which means "full". On this day, dressed in your fancy deels (traditional Mongolian coat) you visit your relatives, beginning with the eldest relatives and working your way through your entire extended family. At each home you greet your family members in a certain way based on which of you is older. Then you stuff yourself with buuz and your family members give you a small gift, and you carry on to the next house. I can't help but think... Thanksgiving meets halloween??

For this occasion the women make thousands of dumplings. See the photos!

First the mutton and goat meat was chopped into tiny cubes. Then a salty broth with onions, garlic, pepper, steak sauce, and ginger powder was made. I tasted it at one point and thought it was offensively salty, but everyone else seemed to agree that more salt was needed!

Once the broth is the perfect balance of salty and flavorful they ladle it over the meat and mix it up with their hands.

Next a simple flour and water dough was rolled and cut out to make the dumpling wrappers. We had to find the perfect sized object to make the wrappers. Muugii (my host sister) and Eej (host mother) dashed around the house finding cups, pulling lids off cosmetics jars, and cutting apart soda bottles until the perfect size was found. We had two people rolling and stamping, and 3-5 people at any one time filling and pinching the dumplings.

At least 10 of us crammed into the kitchen! Here you can see the whole operation. The women are Danzka's sister, cousins, aunt, and girlfriend, plus me.

Eventually I got the hang of it. The Mongolians were even impressed! I managed to score an invite to Danzka's aunt's place for Tsagaan Sar due to my "cute" buuz-making abilities.

Overall it took about 4 hours. We made over 1000 buuz. I probably made about 150. Every hour or so we would replenish our strength with sugary drinks, or in this case, freshly steamed buuz!

Bambi is happy as a clam in her new home! She is filling out and eats constantly I'm told. She may turn out to be a big dog after all! Danzka is taking her to the vet next week to get her her shots. She was on a leash to prevent her getting into the kitchen while the buuz were being made.

So that's all I've got for now! Saikhan amraarai! (peace! lit- have a good rest!)

Keeping busy, having a good time in Mongolia!

Saturday I went to meet Hannah, the newest Fulbright who just arrived. I met her and her friend Jon, who she met at the guesthouse, and we went off to a Mongolian cafe for their first taste of suutei tsai. I told them about basic things to look out for in UB, namely pickpockets, drunk men, and muggings. Literally seconds after enlightening them about the crime and safety issues in UB, I got attacked by a drunk man! This on the main street, in the middle of day, walking with friends, surrounded by locals.... it was totally bizarre... the man ran at me like he was going to tackle me.  I pushed him away, set my feet squarely, raised my fists defensively, shoved him in the chest and then pushed past him to rejoin Hannah and Jon. It all happened so fast that I didn't have time to analyze the situation at all.

I was a little shaken, but tried to remain calm for Hannah and Jon, since this was literally their first experience in UB! Yikes! Of all days!

We had our suutei tsai, got phones and sim cards, and I showed them my apartment. We planned to go to the Zaisan memorial the next morning.

Sunday, joined by Philip, one of the English teaching Fulbrights, we got up early and headed out into the brisk morning (-20F is just brisk at this point!). We took the bus to the base of the mountain and climbed up the steps and had a wonderful view all to ourselves. After about 15 minutes we were too chilly and went back to the center of town and got hot drinks at a cafe. Then I got a text from a fellow Fulbrighter. Could I watch a puppy for a few days while we tried to find it a home? Since it was going to be a few days until my roommate moved in, I said sure! So we all went to my apartment to await the arrival of the puppy.

They brought the pup over and she was sooooo cuuuute! Right away we put her in the bathtub and gave her her first bath ever, which she was NOT impressed with. Then we dried her off and fed her some puppy food and warm milk, which she liked a lot. Everyone liked playing with her and petting her but no one could keep her. I kept her overnight and played with her and fed her lots of food and she quickly transformed into a happy, vigorous puppy. After asking around I called my Mongolian brother Danzka to see if he knew anyone who wanted a puppy. (It's harder to find homes for female dogs in Mongolia because spaying and neutering is not widespread, and the female will be the one with all the puppies). Surprisingly, but very fortunately, Danzka was planning to get a puppy very soon! He came over with his uncle and friend and they looked her over, patted her, cuddled her, chose to name her Bambi, and then took her back to their place! Yay!

With a roommate moving in soon though, I won't be taking in any more puppies. I found out that one of the English teaching Fulbrights, Holly, who was looking for a cheap place in a central location. She will be moving in in the next week or so.

Next, I will be writing about making buuz at my Mongolian family's house on Saturday. Tsagaan sar, the Mongolian new year festival, is approaching and each family makes hundreds if not thousands of mutton dumplings.

Puppy sitch

UPDATE:

Puppy found a good home with my former host brother Danzka and his extended family. He named it Bambi. I would have named her "Chewy" or "Poopy" myself, but I think Bambi is a good name for the little sweetie pie!

Dear friends in Mongolia,

I'm fostering a puppy for a few days while we try to find her a good home. If you can take her or if you know anyone who can please contact me as soon as possible!

Info on the pup: looks to be about 8-10 weeks old. Based on the size of her paws I think she'll get to be a medium-sized dog, probably 35-45 pounds, fine for an apartment. She eats dry dog food and also likes warm milk. She's playful and energetic but also will settle down and sleep if you leave her alone. She has just discovered the wonders of having her tummy rubbed and will throw herself down on your feet and wait expectantly. Very cute little puppy! She seems smart, she's learned "come" and "down" already. I would keep her if I could but I have a roommate moving into my small-ish apartment this week plus my landlady doesn't allow pets.

Please ask around! Otherwise my only option is to give her back to the people who found her and they will probably put her back outside.

I've attached a picture to help melt your hearts! :)

3 week update

Sain uu naiz nar! (hey there friends!)

This post is an update about my day to day life in UB right now :)

Things here are mash sain (very good). As you can see, I've been brushing up on my Mongolian. By posting notes in popular western-style cafes I found some language partners to practice with. I spend about an hour a day with one of them at a time, first teaching/speaking English and then learning/speaking Mongolian. Right now I'm working with Amra and Khongor who each have their own styles. With Amra I learn a lot of cultural nuances from the language and he works on his pronunciation of English and on expanding his vocabulary. With Khongor I am learning the grammar particularly well because she used to teach Mongolian, and I am reading different books and articles with her to help improve her listening, pronunciation, and comprehension. So far this seems like a great way to learn more Mongolian. I wouldn't recommend it for a total beginner but it's working out well for me. Plus it's free and I get to meet Mongolians and exchange some culture. very cool!

As promised, I'll let you in on the interesting things I've found in the supermarkets in UB. I'll post later about Mongolian cuisine, but here's a list of stuff you probably don't see in your regular grocery store:

instant salty milk tea, suutei tsai
Kazakh style horsemeat sausages
canned horse-stew
powdered mare's milk
fermented mare's milk
dried soured milk curds, aaraal (sweetened and plain)
whole smoked fish
compote (lightly boiled fruit preserved in jars)
a frozen cow carcass in a shopping cart
2-3 full aisles devoted to candy and cookies
seabuckthorn juice
wine made in Mongolia
aarts-flavored icecream (aarts is what aaraal is made out of)

and the most incredible thing I've seen.... vacuum-sealed boiled sheep's head- I thought I'd seen it all but there you go.

I'm not a big fan of most Mongolian milk products but I really like suutei tsai. The instant version is pretty good but I prefer the homemade variety. It's warming, rehydrating, slightly caffeinated, and the fat in the milk gives you some calories. A perfect drink after walking outside in the bitter, blustery cold.
Also there are some tasty Korean products I've come to like including kimchi, salted seaweed flakes, and jars of a sort of marmalade that you mix in hot water to make a sweet and fruity tea. Right now I'm working my way through the lemon and aloe varieties. Aloe reminds me of the flavor of white grape juice but less tart.

That's all for now!

Registration procedures in Mongolia: a taste of post-Soviet bureaucracy

I've been writing this as I've gone through the process of registering in Mongolia as a resource for others coming to Mongolia. I hope this helps and good luck!

There are 2 registrations you need in order to live in Mongolia as an American: the "I'm going to be in Mongolia over 90 days" stamp from immigration, and the residence permit.

For registration with immigration my host institution, the Mongolian State University of Agriculture (MSUA), took my passport and a small photo and got a blue stamp in my passport. THIS MUST BE DONE WITHIN 7 BUSINESS DAYS OF ARRIVAL. Or you may face fines.

Second, I needed the residence permit. For this I needed khoroo (district) registration. This proves that you live at the address you say you live at. This must be done within 7 business days of moving into a permanent place, I think. My landlady speaks English and was able to do this for me. She required my passport, a small photo, and 5,000Tugrugs. I'm not sure if it actually costs anything but I was happy to give her the tugrugs to make things 10x easier. Then I brought my passport, a third small photo, and the paper with my khoroo registration on it back to my host institution. Me and my helper Uyanga went to the immigration office which is far away, out near the airport. I had a photo taken, fingerprints taken, and had to pay about 50,000Tugrugs. I was told to come back in a week to pick up my passport and residence permit. You must get the residence permit within 21 days of arrival. It used to be 30 days but now it's 21 days. Not all sources have updated their information, but you could still face a hefty fine (about $300) if you don't get your residence permit in the 21 days allowed, regardless of which source you were relying on.

As for small photos, there are many places in the city center where you can get them done quickly and cheaply. I was in a kiosk for about 10 minutes and paid 1,500T for 6 3x4cm photos. It was really easy. Look for the signs saying "turgen zurag" (fast photo). Some places will even have a sign that says "foto" in Cyrillic. Note though, that the photo you provide to get your residence permit will not be the photo on the ID they issue you. Instead they will use the terrible photo they took of you when you were cold, tired, and grumpy-looking when you arrived. Alas.

Also make sure you have copies of your passport and visa to keep with you while your passport is being handled.

One final note: When I received my Mongolian student visa in the US it said the validity was 3 months from when it was issued and the duration was "0". Of course this freaked me out but it's been fine. Either this is some code the Mongolian embassy uses, or, more likely, it's completely wrong but since no one person fully understands the Mongolian visa process you won't get in trouble for it. Everyone assumes that someone else knew what they were doing when they issued my visa, so they just shrug and stamp it. So far so good!