Between the wild, desolate grasslands
of the Mongolian steppe and the
vast, rugged expanse of the Khentii
mountains, lies Ulaanbaatar. This
vibrant city is a throbbing pulse in a
surrounding wilderness. It’s a cold,
colourful place where Mohican-wearing
punks mingle with Buddhist monks
and suited professionals share the
streets with visiting nomads.
STUFFED STATUE
Under communism, most of Mongolia’s Buddhist buildings were
destroyed, but Ulaanbaatar’s Gandan Khiid monastery somehow
managed to survive. Migjid Janraisig Süm is inside – a massive
statue originally built for Bogd Khan (Mongolia’s
last king) when he was sick. It contains 27
tonnes (29.7 US tons) of medicinal herbs,
334 scriptures, 2 million bundles of
mantras and an entire yurt complete
with furniture. Bogd Khan also had
a winter palace, which is now a
museum. It boasts a pair of golden
boots, a robe made from 80 foxe
s and a yurt lined with the skins of
150 snow leopards.
THE WARRIOR KHAN
There’s no escaping Genghis Khan in Ulaanbaatar. The empire-building
warlord conquered half the known world in the 13th century. He
claimed almost 31 million sq km (12 million sq mi) of territory, more
than any other leader in history. Khan caused the deaths of up to
40 million people in the process, but to Mongolians, he is a national
hero. The warrior was born close to the capital and probably
buried nearby, too. He brought the Silk Road
under control and modernised the
country – the city commemorates
him in return with Genghis
Khan Square.
TWIST AND SHAKE
Traditional dancing takes place in Ulaanbaatar’s theatres. Men
perform fast and fancy leg-kicks and somersault-style stunts, while
super-flexible women fold themselves into truly eye-watering
shapes. The dances are accompanied by traditional Mongolian
throat singing and music played on strange and wonderful local
instruments. The morin khuur
is one of the most important. It looks
like a viola, but has a scroll shaped like a horse’s head.
FUN AND GAMES
The three so-called ‘manly games’ of Mongolia –
archery, horse racing and wrestling – are celebrated
at the huge Naadam festival every July. Nowadays
women compete in archery and girls can participate
in horse racing, too. Children start wrestling from
as young as four, but many boys in the city prefer
to take up more modern pursuits. Boxing and judo
exploded in popularity after bringing Mongolia
its first ever Olympic gold medals in 2008. Boxing,
once banned under communism, is one of the
country’s fastest-growing sports.
LIFE IN THE
FREEZER
Ulaanbaatar is officially
the world’s coldest
capital, with an average
January temperature of
-33°C (-27.5°F). Kids wear
lots of woolly layers, and
everyone sips warming
suutei tsai
, salty milk
tea. Despite the chill,
many people in this
fast-growing city still live
in traditional Mongolian
felt yurts called gers
.