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SI in MONGOLIA - GERMAN SOROPTIMIST VISIT

Gwendolen Webster, SI Aachen, writes
"Eight members of the German Union plus three Soroptimisters (including my husband), are all still reeling from the overwhelming welcome from SI Ulaan-Baator. When we arrived at the airport the members were waiting to greet us with a red rose for each of us - not the easiest thing to obtain in Mongolia. And there was Bolor too, beaming at us all, looking so healthy and happy, and at that moment everyone was close to tears.

"I can't start to describe our visit - I think it was the most memorable holiday I have ever had, thanks entirely to the untiring efforts of the Ulaan-Baator club, most especially Bolor's mother Duba. Bolor's fabulous uncle Disda accompanied us everywhere, watched over us all like a guardian angel and despite all the logistical difficulties never lost his infectious smile and his indestructible sense of humour. Zanaa, past president, was with us as often as possible despite a tight work schedule, and Naran was our hostess-with-the-mostest and couldn't have done more to make us feel at home. We were really sad to say goodbye to her, and indeed to everyone we encountered in this amazing and stunningly beautiful country.

"We heard from Naran and Duba about the extraordinary success of the Soroptisheep project - which by the way, is still continuing. The sheep, from specially chosen breeds, have now produced lots of healthy lambs, some of which will go to other nomads in need, so there is a snowball effect - a self-reproducing project! Duba and Naran have direct contact with the nomads concerned, visit regularly, and were able to report to us on how their living standards have visibly improved from year to year as a result of our efforts.

The above photo is of the ceremony in the hospital in Ulaan-Baator. The 8 members of SI Germany handed over two Infusomats to the children's oncology ward. The room was crowded with reporters from national radio, TV and the press and the event received enormous publicity.
On the left is Annemarie Czieslik, known to everyone as the member from SI Lubeck who answered a plea from the Chatline and saved Bolor's life by bringing her back to Germany for treatment, in the middle is Chimgee, the dedicated Director of the Children's Hospital and a member of SI Ulaan-Baator, on the right is Zanaa, founder president of SI Ulaan-Baator and responsible for the extraordinary success of one of the most isolated clubs in SI.

"The highlights of our visit were trips to the ancient capital of Karakorum and a five-day excursion into the Gobi desert. On an official level, we visited two hospitals and brought with us two Infusomats to aid in the treatment of children with leukemia (like Bolor). My husband has found a badly-needed portable x-ray machine for the hospital in Ulaan-Baator and we are at present arranging transport, and we are also collecting medicaments which we hope Bolor will be able to take back with her when she comes over for a check-up in August."

Gwendolen writes further
" This is part II, and more of a personal account, just as a reminder that Mongolia is not a country for the faint-hearted!

Our group on the first evening - totally jetlagged but delighted to be in Mongolia.

"Our flight was with Air Mongolia from Frankfurt via Moscow. I'd never heard of Air Mongolia and was slightly apprehensive, but the flight and the service were top-class in every way. Mongolia is a stunningly beautiful country, though the sanitary facilities leave much to be desired and (as on our excursion to the Gobi) are often completely non-existent.

"The trip to the Gobi was arduous to the extreme; as there are few roads (as we know them) in Mongolia, and none at all in the direction of the Gobi, the moment we left the capital it was off-road all the way. We were in four jeeps, the only vehicles that can cope with the rough conditions, and were bumped about for 12 hours or more a day. It also poured with rain part of the time, as July is at the height of the rainy season in Mongolia.

This photo is of a main road through the Gobi. The truck with sheepskins was stuck in the mud, but to push it out was a task that exceeded even the powers of SI.

"In spite of having a guide we got completely lost more than once; if you break down (as we did) and have lost the rest of the convoy (as we did) you are really stranded, as you may not see another vehicle for a day or so. (If you do, they have probably broken down too.)

"We took a cook with us as there is nowhere to eat on the way - in fact there is nothing, absolutely nothing, for hundreds of miles, except the occasional camels, horses, nomads' tents and, unnervingly, a large number of vultures. Nothing dampened our spirits, however, especially as one of the jeeps had a good supply of Mongolia vodka along with the food.

Signs of any sort are non-existent in the Gobi, so this object was extremely mystifying, especially as there was no shower or bar in sight, to the dismay of Hansotto and Franz. We suspected it might simply indicate the pipe at the back.

"We slept in 'gers' - felt tents on a wooden frame. These were often soaked through with the rain and full of gigantic (but friendly) grasshopppers and you have the choice of sleeping in a damp bed or lighting up a stove in the middle which is full of camel dung as fuel. My husband and I chose the former...

Stopping the night in the Gobi desert, with our ger (nomad tent) and the Mid-Gobi restaurant (left). We had a terrible job finding this place and we had no idea where they got their food from, as there was absolutely nothing for miles in every direction and the one rough track leading to it was completely under water. The sanitary facilities were sparse to say the least and the tents full of giant grasshhoppers, but we gave the Mid-Gobi restaurant five stars for friendliness.

The men in our lives - the intrepid males who accompanied us on our trip through the Gobi. First left, third left and far right, Hansotto, Franz and Richard, our Soroptimisters: fourth from left Bolor's uncle Disda, who along with Bolor's mother Duba acted as our guardian angels for the whole of our visit. The others are our drivers, who all deserved medals for their incredible stamina and cheerfulness, despite the often appalling conditions along our route. Otgon (second from left) regaled us with Mongolian songs and taught us the Mongolia word ONTZ! which means great, fantastic. Everything was Ontz as far as Otgon was concerned. In real life he is the deputy mayor of a large Mongolian town.

"Along with the Mongolians and members of SI Ulaan-Baator who accompanied us, we were a really mixed lot of Soroptimists from all over Germany, with three Soroptimisters including my husband. We did all the authentic things - drank airag (fermented, mildly alcoholic mare's milk, has a drastic effect on your insides) ate hundreds of booz (mutton dumplings, ditto), cheered the wrestlers at the national festival and rode camels. We also rode horses, after a fashion: the nomads told us cheerily they'd find some tame elderly specimens especially for tourists and we watched in dismay as they galloped off and rounded up a herd of wild, snorting, bucking animals that they had to chase for ages with a lassoo. They took ten minutes to saddle and proved immune against all our commands. To make it all the worse, some four-year old tot appeared from nowhere, hopped on a large unsaddled steed and galloped casually off towards the horizon. Mongolians are an exceptionally polite people, however, and nobody even grinned at our pathetic efforts.

"I learned enough of the language to be able to converse for a minute or two, even if they didn't especially want to hear me count to ten in Mongolian. Anyway, it all convinced me that if there is one developing country worth supporting in this world, it's Mongolia - particularly as it has so many high-powered women who enjoy total equality and are really trying to put the country on its feet again. Mongolia was kept in virtual slavery in the 20th century; its magnificent culture was largely destroyed, hundreds and hundreds of Buddhist monasteries razed to the ground, the monks murdered, the cultural heritage (books, works of art, etc) burned, its history rewritten or simply eradicated. (The Mongolian empire was once the largest in the world, stretching from Korea to Poland, but all mention of its founder Ghengis Khan was forbidden till the country became independent a decade ago).

"Since 1990 Mongolia has been trying to find an identity that has been denied to it for as long as anyone can remember, and it is an uphill task all the way. The country faces enormous problems, but the Mongolians are a proud and highly gifted people and I left with the impression that the best thing we can do is to help the Mongolians to help themselves. They have made a magnificent start and deserve our support.

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