Friday, December 2, 2011

In Ulaanbaatar!

We spent a large portion of our time in UB searching for and purchasing supplies for constructing the greenhouse.  This time was broken up with some professional meetings and casual cultural encounters. 

We knew that glass bottles were plentiful and available for the project, however, we needed many other components for construction.  From the foundation to the roof, we had much to research and collect. This included such basic items as hammers, saws, fasteners, and other building materials. Initially, we needed to determine what supplies were actually available in UB.  In the United States, with a construction project such as ours, we would merely go to Lowe's or Home Depot to procure all that we needed.  Our driver and translator subsequently toured us through some exciting (and sketchy) spots to find and purchase what we could. 

Below is an image showing one of the "markets" in UB.  The market consisted of a series of vendors, each with a display counter showcasing their wares.  Often, many vendors in a market would sell the same item, so we could shop around to final a specific price or model that suited our needs.  In the picture below, some of our team members are examining a hand-held grinder.  We did end up purchasing the grinder along with some grinding discs to cut metal and glass. 


On one of our shopping excursions we visited a metal yard and a lumber yard.   The lumber yard experience was dramatic with enormous piles of sawdust.  Some of the workers walked around the yard barefoot, a little scary to see that around a 2 foot diameter saw blade! The lumber was plentiful and in good condition, but due to the transportation logistics, we decided to purchase lumber at a town closer to the Hasu Shivert work site. We did purchase some metal rods to use as part of the cement foundation (cement was available at the work site). Below are team members displaying a pick-axe and crow-bar that we purchased.


Below is a food vendor outside one of the indoor markets.  I was tempted to try it but was advised not to do so!  The food might have been tasty, but the digestive repercussions could have been disasterous for the remainder of my trip.


Here is a dramatic statue of a seated Ghengis Khan in front of the parliamentary building in Sükhbaatar Square.  This is the main square in Ulaanbaatar and an awesome expanse of space with government buildings lining its edges.



The square comes alive at night and is reminiscent of other big cities with screaming neon and street lights.

Below is a picture of our group with the nation's parliament building in the background.

The following morning, I went for a morning walk with my friend Greg and found a vegan restaurant.  That was a quite a surprise.  With the Mongolian fare emphasizing meat and dairy, I never thought I'd find this type of cuisine. With my wife being vegan, perhaps this is incentive to have her join me on a return trip!


This day was filled with meetings, shopping, and an evening party-like gathering.  Initially, we met with the Director of the Mongolian Academy of Sciences. Sitting at the head of the table in the photo below, he introduced us to 2 students (sitting to the left of him) who would be joining us on-site to construct the greenhouse. 
   


We also had the priviledge of meeting with a government affiliated group doing economic development analysis. We learned about ongoing efforts to gather information about small business development in Mongolia.
A memorable photo with David Martin and Ken Dabkowski of M-CAM in front of the entrance to the Mongolian Academy of Sciences.  David and Ken enabled this trip to happen and facilitated our connecting with the Mongolian people in the many ways that we did. 


Below is another outdoor market where we shopped for additional supplies to build the greenhouse.

We concluded the day with a dinner and party with local dignitaries including a member of Pariliament!

A bottle of Mongolian champagne!

Group picture! A wonderful evening filled with fun and celebration to honor the cultural exchange and collaboration for our ongoing projects including the construction of the greenhouse.