That being said, I don't think the realization of the Mongolia trip has really hit me until now, and I don't think it will fully hit me until the night before we leave (when we're packing). The reason it kind of hit tonight, is because we took our two extra suitcases to church tonight and spent time afterward loading them (and everyone else's) up with clothes, toys, candies, toiletries, etc for the children in the orphanages we'll be visiting and for the missionaries and their kids. Seeing the outpouring of kindness and generosity from the people at church just really made the trip "real" for me. It's a small church, and it was amazing to see how much stuff had been collected. They are truly wonderful people there.
So, we have to be at the airport around 6am on Saturday. We won't be in Ulaanbaatar (the capital of Mongolia) until almost midnight their time... but with the time change, I think the total trip time is about 23 hours (about 17 actually in the air). It's kinda crazy that we leave on Saturday the 1st and since we cross the International Dateline, we technically arrive on Saturday the 2nd... time changes totally blow my mind. As in, I am incapable of figuring out the details on my own - I require someone else to do the math, and then I just trust that they know what they're doing. :)
So yeah, the trip is just kinda hitting me in the face all of a sudden, thus my feeling the need to say something about it. I'm sure I'll say more before I leave, and tons when I get back (along with pictures). So prepare to hear much more about Mongolia!
Goodnight blog friends. I'm going to attempt to fall asleep soon so that Tim and I can wake up early tomorrow... we are attempting to get back in a "wake up, drink tea together, read the news from our phones, get ready" kind of routine. I think the lack of it is making me feel like a slug.
And just to tide you over until I get back with my pictures, here are a few I found...
1) First things first... Where is Mongolia?
2) Traditional Mongolian housing - a Yert (I think we might get to stay in one for a night)
3) Mongolian Landscape... not sure if the part of the country we're going to looks like this, but it sure is beautiful!
4) The Gobi Desert - I cannot believe we are actually going here (and staying several nights!). Wow. Just WOW.
5 comments:
most of mongolia looks like flat hard packed rocky earth. my dad was there in 2007. are you traveling west over the pacific? you have no idea how hard nearly a full 24 hours is on your body! flying back and forth to saudi was exhausting after 24 hours of solid traveling. hope you enjoy the experience! have a safe flight.
yes, we're flying out of seattle and into china, then a short flight to mongolia - i know the traveling is going to be rough!! i'm really excited though - i think it's going to be an amazing trip :)
You will have an amazing time! I can not wait to hear all about it and see the pictures. Be safe, and have fun!
I already sent you an email, but P.S......I hope you get to ride a camel.
haha - well i haven't heard anything about riding a camel unfortunately... but if i get to, you'll be the first to know ;) although a horse is probably more likely - random statistic i came across one day: the horse to human ratio there is 16:1 (dang!)
Post a Comment