Mongolia Trip: Gorkhi-Terelj National Park

Day 11 & 12 - Thursday 18th & Friday 19th August 2016

The end was near!

This was going to be one of the last times I was going to repack my bag; I must admit, I was soon becoming quite proficient at it.

We headed back to Ulanbaataar to drop off one of the tour members before heading to Gorkhi-Terelj National Park, which is located not too far from the city.

Mongolia Trip: Karakorum & Ankle Bones

Day 10 - Wednesday 17th August 2016

The end of our tour was nearing and it was a little bittersweet. On one hand, I was excited at the prospects of not being with the same people 24/7 and heading back to civilisation. Hello Western style toilets, or any toilets. Heck, I would have been excited about proper squat toilets. I was getting sick of peeing anywhere / at squat toilets which were literally two planks of wood and usually a trillion flies. And the smell .. oh boy the smell. On the other hand, I was sad that I would be leaving the beauty of Mongolian countryside and I knew that I would not be returning any time soon.

But first - we got into a situation. Due to the rain, the ground was super super muddy and our van actually got stuck. We all climbed out and started to gather branches etc to help the wheels get traction. The van moved a little however we were still stuck. Eventually we had another tourist group in a 4WD pull us out of the mud. The funniest thing was that my tour group were all muddy and when the tourists in the other car got out, the contrast was hilarious. This Korean girl got out in her white jeans and her super white sneakers, saw the mud and then immediately got back into the car. Who wears white sneakers to visit countryside Mongolia?!?!

Mongolia Trip: Tsenkher Hot Springs

Day 9 - Tuesday 16th August 2016

The pace of the tour gradually slowed down and today was the long awaited 'spa day' at the hot springs! It was also the second opportunity for a shower which was very exciting.


Waking up to this. Incredible.


Sticking my hand and camera out the window!

Mongolia Trip: Lost at Tövkhön Monastery

Day 8 - Monday 15th August 2016

The first half of the tour was quite hectic and it involved many hours in the van. The second half of the tour was considerably slower. Although I had googled the tour back in April, I hadn't looked at the exact details since and wasn't sure what was on the agenda. Therefore each day was a surprise!



We were allowed a sleep in as we were only heading back out at lunch time. First we walked over to the Ulaan Tsutgalan waterfall. Two of my tour members actually jumped into the water which was crazy as it was pretty chilly!

Central Coast Getaway

A few weekends ago, S and I went on a little getaway to the Central Coast. We really didn't go that far up as we stayed at Ettalong. I had been there before briefly and it feels very similar to the Northern Beaches.

Friday night traffic! It took at least 40 mins to travel 2km. It was painful.

Adventures in Sydney: Hornsby Blue Gum Walk

It is finally Spring here in Sydney and I am loving it. Interspersed between the warm days, there are still cool days. I am not a fan of summer and the stifling heat is unbearable. This is also the best time to go on hikes as the days are getting longer and you don't end up a sweaty mess. I have plans to do two day hikes at the Royal National Park in the coming few months so to get back into the swing of things I decided to complete the relatively easy Blue Gum Walk at Hornsby.

At a 6.7km circuit, it isn't the most strenuous hike in my opinion, despite it being rated as a 4 on Wild Walks. There was a bit of uphill but nothing too horrible.

Mongolia Trip: Horse Riding II

Day 7 - Sunday 14th August 2016

The second day of horse riding was simply to head back to the ger camp that we started at. This time I took more photos although it highlighted the immense difficulties of having a manual focus lens. I didn't want to fall off my horse and tried to do a lot of point and shoot photos. It was windy that day which meant that my allergies were at bay!

I will leave this post relatively photo heavy which will be refreshing.

Mongolia Trip: Horse Riding I

Day 6 - Saturday 13th August 2016

Earlier this year, I was on a horse for the very first time in my entire life. I wanted the experience as I knew that I would be horse riding on my trip to Mongolia. I honestly forgot that 2 days of horse riding would be included on my tour which was very exciting. Mongolian horses are a lot smaller than the typical horse. They are said to be half wild since the families let the horses roam freely except when they need a horse to ride. That being said, the family do select the same few horses for the tourists to ride. Mongolians only ride male horses as the female horses are for milking.