The most fascinating aspect of Mongolia is its rock paintings, and I had ample opportunity to explore them at Tavanbogd National Park. These paintings, which include the Shiveet Kharkhan rock paintings, date back to more than five thousand years and provide insight into the art of that era. The rock paintings, etched on dark brown rock, depict horses, oxen, tigers, sheep, and camels. They depict hunting scenes, and I also saw a rock painting of a snow leopard.

Rocking

The Shiveet Kharkhan rock paintings are in the Ulgii Province. This beautiful province is surrounded by high-altitude mountains with snow-capped peaks. I covered the entire area on horseback and even managed to take a dip in one of the fast-flowing rivers. Due to the extreme cold, some of the rivers were also frozen, making it easy for me to walk over the riverbed as the water was completely frozen.

These paintings were created and etched on slate rocks by nomadic sheep herders and ancient Mongolian hunters. Most of the region is nomadic, where local sheep herders live in gers. They also keep yaks and live off nature. To generate heat and keep themselves warm, they burn yak dung. They freeze yak milk as curd, and I was served this delicacy when I stayed with one of the nomadic families in Ulgii Province. I stayed in a ger for over four days and got the real feel of the Mongolian nomadic life.

I traveled through the rough, rocky terrain of Bayan-Olgii Province and Olgi City in a Russian van famously known as the Bukhanka, which, when translated from Russian, means “a loaf of bread.” The van indeed resembles a loaf of bread. This van was one of the toughest vehicles I have ever traveled in. It endured deep stress, navigated through rocks and boulders, and climbed steep cliffs and rough mountains with ease.

UAZ-452

I would sit quietly at the back, enjoying the music blaring out of the Bukhanka. It was a rocky ride as the van would reverberate. It felt like getting a natural massage; by the end of the journey, all my body parts had quite a workout. Also known as the UAZ-452, the Bukhanka was first manufactured in 1965 in Ulyanovsk, Russia. It is a four-wheel drive with a five-speed manual transmission, best suited for the rough mountains we had to navigate as we moved further into the wilderness of Mongolia.

This is no pretend truck made to instill a bogus sense of ruggedness — this is a rock-and-stick-simple Russian truck made to travel on bad roads to distant locations with primitive maintenance facilities.

I felt safe in this beast of a vehicle, and we were able to navigate the treacherous terrains of Mongolia with ease, thanks to the Bukhanka UAZ-452.

The Erdene Zuu Monastery is one of the oldest and earliest surviving monasteries in Mongolia. It is situated 2 km to the northeast of Kharkhorin City and is adjacent to the ancient city of Kharkhorin. The monastery was founded by Abtai Khan in 1586. It went through periods of neglect and prosperity until the Stalinist Purges in 1937 put it completely out of business.

Zuu

This monastery provided society with a spiritual outlet and preserved ancient religious art and murals along with idols of Buddhist gods and goddesses. At its peak, it had more than 60 to 100 temples, and over one thousand monks prayed and meditated there. All but three temples were destroyed during the Stalinist Purges, and many of the monks were sent to concentration camps in Siberia, where they died due to ill health or were killed. Artifacts like masks, tsam, and thangkas were saved by soldiers and stored in the houses of locals.

The monastery is enclosed by a walled compound. Spaced evenly along each wall at a distance of 15 meters are 108 stupas. The number 108 is very auspicious for Buddhists and is also the number of beads in a Buddhist prayer mala.

The three temples that were not destroyed during the Stalinist Purge of 1937 are named Zuu of Buddha, Zuun Zuu, and Baruun Zuu. These temples are dedicated to the three life stages of Buddhists: childhood, adolescence, and adulthood.

Baruun Zuu

Inside the courtyard of Baruun Zuu, towards the west, stands a temple built by Abtai Khan and his son. It is dedicated to the adult Buddha. On either side of Sakyamuni are the statues of Sankhya. There is a huge golden wheel at the center, and there are wheel dough cakes called Balin decorated with colored medallions of goat or mutton fat.

Zuu of Buddha

The main central temple is called Zuu of Buddha. The entrance is flanked by the god Ghongoor. The temple also has statues of Noam and Dabba, the sun and moon gods.

Zuun Zuu

The temple to the east is Zuun Zuu, which has a statue depicting the adolescent Buddha. The statue on the right is that of Tsongkhapa, the man who started the Yellow Hat sect of Buddhism. The figure on the left is of Janrising, the Bodhisattva of Compassion.

Along with these temple sites, there are many other interesting things to see in this compound. This includes the gravestones of Abtai Khan and his grandson Tushes Khan. All in all, it will take you an entire day to cover this large and ancient monastery.

Dundgobi is the 21st province of Mongolia. It is approximately 254 km south of Ulaanbaatar, and we moved towards this dry, arid desert land. With my guide Anima by my side, I felt safe and confident that my journey would be pleasant and fruitful. Our mission was to find the White Stupa, also known in the local language as the Tsagaan Suvarga. Dundgobi is the second least populated province of Mongolia. It is also famous for the traditional Mongolian fermented drink called Airag, which is made from fermented horse milk.

From Ulaanbaatar to Dundgobi to The Khongor Sand Dunes

The White Stupa is 60 meters tall with a width of around 400 meters. The area where it is situated is also known as the Mini Grand Canyon and was once a seabed. It was also an ancient dinosaur land where dinosaurs roamed freely during the Jurassic age.

The entire area has a red sandy look. There are two famous caves that lie 7 km east of the Tsagaan Suvarga. The caves are called Khevtee Bosoo Agui and are a major tourist attraction.

Driving ahead, we also ventured into the Khongor Sand Dunes, which were a hotspot for dinosaur fossils and dinosaur eggs. This is also the most important sand mass, covering an area of more than 900 sq km. The wind constantly blows from the north towards the west, and the dunes can reach breathtaking heights between 100 to 300 meters. The Khongor Sand Dunes are more than 180 km long and can reach a width of 27 km. The dunes are very imposing and are also called the Singing Sand Dunes (Duut Mankhan) due to the noise made by the wind when it moves over the sand. The varied colors and texture of the sand dunes are very beautiful indeed. There is also an oasis in the middle of the sand dunes.

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