We were invited by one of the members to go to a garden way outside of town to help weed the turnips and potatoes. The member gathers and uses the weeds we pull to feed his animals during the winter. We went out in the car and the drive was beautiful. The little valley where we were weeding reminded me of home in Idaho--the same small, green rolling hills (minus the beautiful mountains in the background, of course!)
The garden was about the size of two football fields and the potatoes had recently been weeded so we weeded the turnips. It really wasn't a bad project because the ground is sandy and the weeds came up pretty easily. And it was a beautiful day, a little cool in the morning, but warmed up later in the day.
The garden provides the livelihood for a young sister in the branch, her 60-year-old father and a 10-year-old brother. Her mother passed away about 6 years back, I think.
This little man is so cute. He is so proud of his garden and the work they have put into it. He has a soaker irrigation system with water he pumps from the river with his generator. They have been very successful with their gardening and he reads lots of books to learn more how to do it. He wants to build a greenhouse and fence in the property by the river.
They really have a great little system going here. This man is not a member of the church, but says he would be if he could just give up his cigarettes. He is so funny and really enjoys us Americans. It was also their ger that where we built the fence earlier. They are a great family. The 10-year-old attached to Alan and they went fishing with a plastic bag to catch tiny fish that were later eaten alive by several
Mongolian women. They said the fish were good for the throat and stomach. I wasn't so sure, and so didn't take one when offered. And my stomach and throat are fine! They also sprayed the weeds so they were really pretty much under control and just needed to be pulled!
After we finished weeding we had a great meal called Horhog. It consists of sheep on the bone, potatoes, carrots, cabbage and hot rocks! And it is all cooked over a cow-dung fueled stove! It is similar to a milk can dinner that Abbey's dad makes, but I think he probably uses a different source of fuel! Anyway, it was really tasty--a bit greasy, but still very good. The hot rocks help cook the food from inside the can and then are handed out to people to toss from hand to hand. They say it helps the circulation in the hands. Anyway, here is what we ate!
We obviously enjoyed in very much! There was also quite a stack of bones at the end to take home to feed the dog! Everyone in Mongolia talks about how wonderful this meal is, and Puge has been wanting to do this since she got here! Well, we did it today and it was well worth the effort and the cost!
They spread out a blanket in the shade of the little building they work from, and we had a picnic! They also made a macaroni salad. And they also make the most delicious potato salad here! I'm not sure what is different about it--but it is delicious!
The father is quite the gardener and also quite the poet. He had written this book of poems that he wanted to show me. He was also teaching me Mongolian words from it and I would try to teach him English. He really is a cute little guy and we had a very enjoyable day at his garden. And on top of all that, we gathered two large plastic bags of weeds for winter feed for the animals!
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