Ulan Bator again

Although I don't think so, I must have some sort of an odd fascination with this city. It is the third 'walking in cities' post to visit the place. The second video was blocked by the creator, but you can still see the first, where two young ladies narrate the route of their daily walk to school, at Walking in Ulan Bator. 

This video is filmed in the winter after a light dusting of snow. It starts out in a residential area, passes by some small businesses, what appears to be school, and also has a couple of temples with Tibetan style Buddhist prayer wheels.

The mix of Crylic and English signs again interested me. Also, the lack of color struck me. Most people were dressed in black winter coats, and even the cars were either white, silver or black. It seemed rather unnecessarily somber. 

  

Walking in Ulan Bator II

This is our second visit to Ulan Bator for a walk. The first, Walking in Ulan Bator, featured two young girls showing us their route from home to school. It was in winter, and much of the walk was through a neighborhood of Soviet style apartment buildings. It was a bit dingy.

This walk is through more of an upscale downtown area, and it is in the summer so there is no snow, ice and slush. Much more prosperous and pleasant looking and much of the architecture is quite nice. However, unlike most Asian cities there are no street vendors. I suppose the weather precludes that for most of the year, so the habit just never formed. 

I did find the number of English language signs surprising -- they even labeled their police cars in English. I was expecting more Cyrillic lettering.   

 

Walking in Ulan Bator

Time to go walking again. Considering the 'shit-hole- kerfuffle I almost used a Haitian location, but making some sort of a statement would not be in keeping with the reason I post these videos. I post them because they show a slice of a neighborhood. That neighborhood may be exotic to us, but to the people living there it is a familiar corner of their universe. It is a place they know like the back of their hand.

Above is a couple of young girls in Ulan Bator, Mongolia, taking us on a tour of their daily walk from their home to a school. It is full of shortcuts, advice and silliness. Enjoy.