Friday, October 14, 2011

Inner Mongolia - more on Gegentala Grassland

After our nice lunch we explored the resort. Unfortunately we were so full we just couldn't go to the tea house called 'Milk Tea Bag'. But then I wasn't very keen on drinking the famous yak milk tea, not so much because of the yak part but rather because I don't drink milk anymore. But it is said that yak milk is quite sweet and unique in taste, so it would have been a nice experience at least for C.


Instead we had a look at more yurts,


Mongolian she-cars,


and at thousands of grass hoppers that populated the grassland and incessantly chirped their singsong


The area of the resort was quite nicely decorated, for example with these carved poles.




As soon as we finished our little tour, it was time for a horse ride to a small 'aobao', a sacred shrine built of stones with a pole in the middle. It is quite difficult to see with all the colourful cloth strips attached to it.



We also took a ride in a buggy-style vehicle


and soon our guide appeared and brought us to a show of Mongolian sports like wrestling


acrobatic horseback riding



and a look at other traditional means of transport


By then the accompanying Shangri-la chef had prepared an opulent dinner. Just imagine, we were travelling with a followership of four (!) people! I felt like royalty, really weird.
The chef prepared several vegetarian courses for us, but my most favourite dish was a simple millet congee served with veggie jiaozi (dumplings). Delicious!

With a bonfire, more performances, and eventually people starting to dance and sing, another long day drew to a close.




No comments:

Post a Comment