Darkhan

There's a big storm blowing in to Darkhan, but I'm safe and dry back at my hotel after a walk around town. I could see it coming in the northwestern sky and cut my explorations short because of it. From here it's beautiful but I wouldn't really care to be out in it.

My morning task was figuring out how to get to the Dragon Center, the name of the bus station from whence buses heading north and west out of UB leave. I wasn't able to find anything online, so as I walked to get coffee this morning, I took pictures of each of the bus stop lists and then tried to find any matches on Google maps. It took a while but finally I figured out that I should catch Bus 1. In case you're wondering, yes I asked, but no one seemed to know, or they couldn't understand what I was saying, more likely.

I had read that the cash fare is 500 tugrik, so when I got on, I had that in hand. But this particular bus, at least, does not accept cash, only U-cards- an electronic form of payment. At first the driver just said no, and I asked again, how much. He jerked his head back to indicate that I should just get on, and ride for free. He was gruff, but that was kind of him.

After riding what seemed like way too long, I went up to the front and asked "Dragon Center?" and miraculously he recognized it and indicated with his hand that it was still quite far ahead. Relieved for the moment, I went back to my perch on the front wheel well. I was wearing my money belt plus I had my passport and some money in zippered pockets, and of course, my bags. I felt a little conspicuous!

The Dragon Center is a typical busy regional bus depot in a country where buses are used by many. Easy peazy, I was on the bus to Darkhan. It had purple curtains and purple valances with little purple pom-poms, far more ornate than Greyhound would be.

I watched the scenery go by, dozed, and listened to music on my ipod. Once when I woke, I was just in time to see dozens of beehives beside the road, next to a ger, but not in time to get my camera out. I'm hoping to see some hives tomorrow on the road to the monastery. There was a TV show playing on the screen up front, but being in Mongolian, it was just background noise to me. Over the music in my earbuds I could hear the voices of my neighbors waxing and waning, and it was a pleasant thing. I felt as content as a cat sitting in the sun on the window ledge, which is pretty close to describing my posture in my seat.

Until, of course, we got close to Darkhan, and then the usual nerves about landing in a new place took over. I tried to tell myself it was no big deal, and in fact I know it's not, but I never fail to fret about it anyway.

Darkhan was established in 1961 to relieve migration to UB, with the idea that it would become an industrial center. At first as I walked around, I got the impression of a dilapidated semi-ghost town with crumbling Soviet style cement apartment blocks. There are many of those, it's true, but as the children came out to play after school, if I looked at the place as it is rather than in comparison to someplace else, I could see beauty and life everywhere. There are, of course, newer buildings as well, but blocks and blocks of peeling paint, stained concrete, rusting balconies, and overgrown 'yards.' I'm told that this is a big agricultural center now, and I did see for the first time some cultivation and machine powered work as we approached this city.