To Mongolia…The land of Chinggis Khaan

My Mongolian Airlines flight from Beijing to Ulaanbaatar

Beijing airport...India has a lot of catching up to do

Before writing this section of my travel I debated long and hard if I should do it considering that my blog is principally pertaining to Africa. After some consideration I decided to do it since it happens during my African sojourn and is sort of related to it.

10 hours at airport...one of
the officials perhaps felt
bad for me and got me
this sandwich

Chinggis Khaan or Changez Khan...which every you prefer



One of Chinggis's generals

 When I first came to Liberia, my intention was to travel and explore only Africa; but after two and a half years here I felt as though I really needed a fresh perspective. Africa, though culturally diverse and very interesting sort of grew weary on me. I can’t quite explain what it was but it was akin to spending 4 consecutive months in Liberia. Not sure if anyone who reads this will understand the four month feeling but perhaps my fellow expats in Liberia can relate to it.

Main entrance to the Gandan monastary

It was a clear indication that it was time I traveled outside of Africa for once. I debated flying off to some place in South America (Ecuador or Bolivia) but then I have been in South and Central America before. The one place I have not been is Asia…well if I don’t consider India where I was born and brought up. Jordan was a very good destination but I was more inclined towards East Asia.

Feeding the pigeons seems like a tradition

Philippines, Laos, Cambodia, Burma all seemed worthy destinations but there was one country that has always seemed special. I guess it’s the re-occurrence of the National Geography bug but I remember reading an extensive article about a man named Chinggis Khaan and the region that he came from. The article had a detailed depiction of his brutal conquests and military organization and I have to admit that the fascination with Chinggis Khaan started probably then.

However, that was not the first time I had heard that name. In one Hindi movie released a couple decades ago called “Hum”, I distinctly remember Amitabh Bachchan, (one of Bollywood’s biggest if not the biggest actors) referring to Changez Khan when he is reprimanding his brothers stupidity in picking up a bar fight. As a kid, I had wondered who this Changez Khan was.

The 26.5 meters tall Janraisig (Buddha of
compassion) statues

Entrance to the Gandan complex

Going back even further, I faintly remember (since it could be as far back as 5th or 6th grade) references in my history text books about the fearsome Mongols who rode on their horses and pillaged parts of North India. The way they were described in the books, it seemed, as though they were unbeatable and more importantly absolutely ruthless. As I read more about the Mongols I am amazed to discover that the Mughal who ruled India between 1526 to 1761 were direct descendents of Chinggis Khaan through Babur, who was the founder of the Mughal empire and one who still holds a notorious place among most Indians.

Its just now I am able to connect the dots between my history books, the National Geographic article and India, though history gets very convoluted as it moves from the Mongolian steppes to the fertile lands of India.

I will save my personal thoughts about Chinggis Khaan (in the Mongolian pronunciation, the K is silent) for my last blog about Mongolia. Returning back to current affairs, I had to have a visa before I entered Mongolia and if you know me, it’s always the most eventful part of my journey. There is just one diplomatic representation of Mongolia on the African Continent in Egypt and it was not where l was flying from. Rather I was flying through Accra-Addis Ababa-Beijing to get to Ulaanbaatar and the most logical option for getting the visa was in Beijing.

Spinning the wheels

Decoration on the roof of Gungaachoiling Datsan

Tashchoimphel Datsan...built in 1756

I went to the Chinese Embassy here in Monrovia to get a transit visa for a couple days so I could apply for the Mongolian visa in Beijing. I was however turned back (politely) by the officers at the Chinese Embassy who said that only Liberian nationals can apply for a visa at the consulate in Monrovia. Questioned where I could get it, I was told that I have to go my country of nationality to get the visa…I have seen some ridiculous visa rules and procedures but this one takes the cake.

A Buddhist monk

Granddaughter and Grandmother playing

Anxiously, I contacted the Mongolian official tourism office to see if I could get a visa at the airport on arrival but they were pessimistic. They suggested I rather contact someone in Ulaanbaatar (UB) to apply for a visa on my behalf at the Immigration center.


Since I had already booked a night at a guest house in UB I asked them to see if they could help me. Following is the exact response I got.

hello Peenak ,
I have asked from the Immigration office about that they said impossible. it is impossible to get a visa at the airport.

I'm sorry.
Tsegii

Not too encouraging I say :)

In parallel, I had been researching on the web and a couple sites suggested that there was a possibility of getting a visa on arrival if I arrive from a country that does not have a Mongolian diplomatic representation. Though this applied to my case I was not able to independently verify it.

A fruitseller...fruits are outrageously expensive in UB

A woman selling pine nuts

In hindsight it was perhaps really careless but I decided to take my chances. The first few challenges were to get till UB on the various flights since all airlines carefully check visas as they are liable for hefty fines for bringing a passenger onboard without a visa. Everytime I checked my baggage or boarded a flight I had the feeling that I would be stopped but everytime I was able to convince the airline crew that I could get a visa on arrival. I wondered if I could ride my luck all the way.

There are several trams running around central Ulaanbaatar

After more than two days and a layover in Beijing I made it to UB and it was time to face the immigration officer. I was not surprised when I was told that I don’t have a visa and was referred to the main officer on duty. A few questions and a few answers later I was told by him that I can’t get the visa and I will be sent back to Beijing. The next flight to Beijing was 12 hours later so I was confined to a small section of the immigration office to wait it out.

Sukhbaatar Square with the statue of Suckbaatar

Commercial building at Sukhbaatar square

Sitting there with all the time in the world, I contemplated my next steps. Should I take a flight from Beijing to Delhi and get the visa there and come back or should I just go home to India and spend time with family. Was it going to be economical? Was it really feasible? There were all sorts of permutations going on in my head when the main officer came back and suggested the idea that my guesthouse take responsibility for me for all my days in Mongolia so I promptly called the guesthouse and they offered to help.

A Mongol kid

As grateful as I am to the guesthouse receptionist for offering to help I think it was a bad idea to send their driver to the immigration office. I don’t know what the miscommunication was but he was not able to convince them that I should get the visa. I was relegated back to the bench with the officer now telling me that it was impossible. I think the Indian passport did not help as I remember at one point him mentioning that Indians lie a lot and can quickly disappear once in the country…hmmm
It was about six hours since the plane had landed and I was back to square one, no visa and the most likely scenario being sent back in another seven hours. A couple more hours later I get called in by a lady who asked me how much cash I had with me. When they heard what I had plus my debit and credit card they said I might have a chance.

A guard at the Choijin Lama monastary

It was another three hours before a young chap walked in with a translator. He was a tour operator and offered to sign a document indicating that he would take responsibility for me and after much negotiation we reached an agreement that I would pay him a flat fee and deposit my driver license until I was to leave the country.

Over 50 hours of travel and uncertainty finally ended as I exited the airport with my arms aloft.

One of the Choijin Lama monastary buildings

A good nights rest and the next day I got myself booked on a tour to the Gobi Desert and then explored Ulaanbaatar and it’s monasteries (Gandan and Choijin Lama). The Gandan monastary was as impressive as it was large. It is currently housing 10 dastan or institutes and about 900 monks. The 10 dastans each have a seperate building within the monastary complex. Ulaanbaatar seemed a really nice city with bustling crowds, trams, high rise buildings, several restaurants and bars and very fashionably dressed folks. It seemed a world away from Monrovia.