I was showered with excitement upon learning that I would be going to Mongolia for a business trip. It would be my first work trip overseas and also my first time visiting the country. Indeed, this great opportunity cannot go without chronicling my entire 5-day journey, both in business and leisure in this beautiful country and of course, inserting a few fun facts along the way.
To me, Mongolia always exudes a sense of mystery, perhaps it is because of their vernacular language and esoteric doctrine. However, to the extent of my knowledge, it is a place that is rich in history and culture. Historically, the most prominent figure is the revered warrior leader- Genghis Khan (also known as Chinggis Khaan in Mongolian), whose relentless and valiant tenacity empowered him to establish the largest land empire in history. While he has had many magnificient achievements, unifying Mongolia was arguably his greatest accomplishment during his tenure, in which this unification became the foundation upon which the Mongol Empire would build.
Fun Fact: While Mongolia has a long line of history, it was not until 1992 that it declared full independence to become a democratic country with multiparty election. Mongolia, which in 1921 had followed the Soviet Union to become only the second communist country in the world, soon staged a democratic revolution of its own.
The Mongolian culture is equally fascinating. To this day, a large portion of the country’s population still adopts the nomad culture and live in gers (pronunced as ghee-errs), a portable felt tent, which plays a significant part of the Mongolian national identity. They are predominantly seen in the outskirts of Mongolia, but many could also be found in the capital city, Ulaanbaatar, where ger districts were established by the government to dedicate to this form of settlement. According to a Mongolian colleague of mine, it takes about 40-50 minutes to set up a ger and requires a minimum of two people to put together the tent. Another distinct culture lies in their cuisine. Mongolian dishes are primarily made based on meat, which is explained by the harsh environment they live in. During winter, the temperature could drop to as low as -45C and hence a lot of energy is required to withstand the extreme temperature.
Stumbled upon a "ger", pictured with Mario, our Mongolia Country Manager
Day 1 (14 August 2017)- Off We Go
The flight experience to Mongolia truly left an indellible mark. While the midnight flight from Singapore to Beijing was smooth sailing, we experienced a 2 hour flight delay during our connecting flight from Beijing to Mongolia. Despite encountering sporadic turbelence, overall the 7 hour flight was smooth and upon landing, I was welcomed with the view of verdant plains and hills. Tired and jetlagged, we arrived on Monday early morning and to our dismay, we discovered that my luggage was nowhere to be found and we had to report the incident to the lost and found department which took us almost an hour to leave the airport.
The weather was around 27 degrees and the sun was very glaring that it was almost blinding. We were greeted by two of our SLS Mongolian colleagues, Mr Zorig and Ms Soyolmaa, who welcomed us with open arms and drove us to our hotel, located just 5 minutes walk away from the SLS Mongolian office. After a hearty lunch at the hotel restaurant and getting to know our colleagues , we visited the branch office.
SLS Singapore and Mongolia Team Group Photo
(from L-R: Mr. Zorig, Mr Bruce Tan, Mr Mario Sorbello, Ms. Soyolmaa, Ms Adeline Pang and me)
Fun Fact: There are both left-hand drive cars and right-hand drive cars on the road. According to my colleague, only left-hand drive cars will be allowed from next year onwards, which is apt because all cars drive on the right side of the road.
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The front view of SLS Bearings Mongolia Office
SLS Bearings Mongolia was established in 2011, located at the heart of Ulaanbaatar. This branch office is the newest addition to the SLS family and is becoming one of the fastest growing offices in SLS, which currently has around 20 staffs.
Due to my luggage delay and the uncertainty of whether I was able to retrieve my bag during the trip, I had to buy some clothing and hoping that the baggage would arrive the next day.
We retired early to our hotel rooms on our first night to prepare for a full day of visiting customers the next day.
Please feel free to leave your thoughts, whether its about your experience (business or personal) in Mongolia, or you have any interesting facts about the country, share them with us in the comments section below :)
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