One Thing We Learned About Nomadic People in Mongolia
The most important thing when traveling in Mongolia is to be flexible and open. Get out of the city, meet the nomadic people in Mongolia, and you can’t fail to have a rich and rewarding travel experience.
A nomadic man riding into the steppe
When We Met Nomadic People in Mongolia
It was 10 pm. We were somewhere in the middle of the Mongolian steppe, miles from anywhere. A man was shouting in the dark right outside our two-person tent. An animal was snorting menacingly. We were alone, very alone. We had driven alone along a dirt track for hours and pitched our tent on a hillside overlooking a vast plain. Not a house, a man, an animal, or a vehicle in sight. Not even the ubiquitous ger, the omnipresent Mongolian nomad tents usually scattered across the landscape here. There was nothing. We were alone.
Our campsite out on the Mongolian steppe
Camping in Mongolia
Crawling out from the brightly lit tent into the enveloping blackness of the Mongolian night, it took a few seconds for my eyes to adjust. A man in a long overcoat, a pony, and a very long stick appeared silhouetted against the starry vastness. Where did he come from? What does he want from us? He was still shouting. And then he was taking the brightly painted wooden saddle off the pony, setting it down next to our tent, laying down his very long stick. The shouting had turned to hand gestures, and we supplied him urgently with water and food as requested. His deadpan response was a challenge to interpret, but at least he wasn’t robbing us. He also wasn’t leaving.
Nomadic People in Mongolia: Learning About Nomadic Hospitality
He didn’t leave until the following morning. Very determined to join us in our two-person tent in the middle of nowhere, after a long and repetitive hand gesture conversation, our new nomad friend got his way and climbed in beside us. Packed in like sardines, the earthy aroma of a herdsman on a long journey permeated the overcrowded little tent. With his wooden saddle as a pillow and overcoat as a blanket, he snored soundly all night.
Sunrise in Mongolia from our campsite
Nomadic cultures often have a tradition of hospitality to strangers, taking people in and feeding the weary traveller. I guess that’s why our nomad friend didn’t hesitate to slide straight into our two-person tent with us. Although it was a culture shock for us, it couldn’t have seemed more natural for him.
We’d learnt through experience how hospitality works in Mongolia. In such a bleak and unpopulated landscape, this sort of hospitality could be the difference between life and death. And a way to build bonds across the vast distances of the steppe. Having learnt this valuable lesson, we didn’t hesitate the following night when we were invited into the closest ger for tea and dried goat’s curd. We had dealt with the unexpected, and now it was our turn to play the surprise guests. We had earned it, after all.
Most nomadic people in Mongolia are friendly and hospitable
Nomadic People in Mongolia: Practicalities of Traveling in Mongolia
We travelled through Mongolia as part of the Mongol Rally, and so had our own car. This gave us flexibility but meant that we kept to the main ‘roads’, as we were traveling in a Renault Clio, not the usual 4×4 you would want for Mongolia. We entered Mongolia from Russia at the western border crossing of Tashanta-Tsagaannuur. Be aware that the border post is not open on Sundays. The journey to Ulaanbaatar took us five days. The road quality varied from perfect new asphalt to multiple ribbons of dirt track converging and diverging at random. This made navigation pretty tricky, but we used maps.me, a free offline maps app, to keep us roughly on the right track. If you’re self-driving, I would recommend at least one jerry can of petrol and two spare tires; we used both of ours.
Camping in Mongolia is never crowded when nomadic people in Mongolia
In Mongolia, you can camp anywhere on the steppe, and we had some stunning campsites all to ourselves. Usually, there were some gers in the distance, but things never get too crowded in Mongolia. Most days, we would pass through a small town where we could pick up some basic supplies (including a warm blanket because the nights get very cold) and petrol. But is a great way to get off the beaten path and potentially meet nomadic people in Mongolia.