The Eagle Has Landed

OK, so we finally made it to Mongolia. It is cold. It has earned its reputation. When you first hit the air (-22 when we came in at 7 am Dec 1), it feels like you've jumped into a swimming pool that is a lot colder than you expected. And it keeps feeling like this. Don't breath through your nose. With each breath you can feel all moisture inside freeze. Jessica said it feels like breathing in icicles. So there is that.

We've had very little internet access since we've been here, and our phone bill was apparently unpaid upon arrival, so our contact with the outside world has been non-existent. We've just found this little internet cafe near our house, so I assume we'll be posting from here. We'll get some pictures up as soon as we can. Suffice it to say that Ulaanbaatar is not a bastion of cleanliness and beauty. It does have its rugged charm though. Part of that Charm is that even the locals think it is something of a hell hole. I am excited to see the pristine countryside, for which everyone opines throughout the harsh winter.

Our apartment is interesting. I'll get into that more a bit later. Someone has spraypainted the following message on the side of the building:

Life is a death, death is a ...

I really wish they could have completed the puzzle. He probably just got to cold standing there pondering it and headed for one of the bar/car repair shops nearby.