Tsagaan Sar Day 5

Last night after coming home from my Tsagaan Sar visits to mine and Justin's school teachers' homes I went to our hashaa family's house. It was about 9pm and hashaa mom was piling pound after pound of meat into a large box. She explained to me that her children are going back to UB tomorrow (this morning) and they are starving college students. The meat wasn't wrapped up in anything--just large slices of randam parts of a sheep piled up high. At the top she put a bag of about 100 frozen buuz leftover from Tsagaan Sar. I really watched in awe. I was watching her put her love into that box as well as frozen raw meat. I let her know that my mom would do the same, that our worlds are similar but different at the same time. It was nice to be there for that family moment.

Well, today is day 5 of Tsagaan Sar. Wait, what? Did I tell you that Tsagaan Sar was only 3 days? HAHAHAHA....silly readers and silly me for thinking that. Today I went to school and was welcomed to different teachers' rooms/offices as if they were their homes for Tsagaan Sar. I got to greet them all! I sat with them, ate and drank cup after cup of airag (fermented camel or horse milk) in each room. This holiday has many beautiful traditions. I love how welcoming and hospitable they all are--but the food and drinks alone have scarred me. I have taken and eaten out of respect for 6 days (Don't forget Tsagaan Sar Eve, so really this is day 6) of eating sour dried milk curds, camel, goat, horse and cow milk fat, boiled sour yogurt, fermented milk from all 4 animals in sour, clumpy, stringy, thick, chewy forms with floaties, hair, chunks and froth. I can see why Mongolia is one of the more difficult countries for PCVs to live. Not because of safety because it is VERY safe and friendly here--but for their food and drink. I don't think they know that fresh milk is okay to drink. It has to be set out to sour, then boiled, aired out for days and days before it is noteworthy to them. Wait....did I mention that I am an American who didn't like fresh store bought pasteurized milk in the states? The day of the milk's expiration date was one day too spoiled for me. I have only gagged twice in the passed 6 days and I don't think anyone saw me. But Mongolian food really takes some decades of getting used to. I'm still not convinced that all Mongolians like their own food--just that they feel obligated to like it because it is their culture to and tradition. I don't know, that's just my thought.

So a much needed vacation is in order! In less than 2 weeks Justin and I will be meeting some friends up in UB for a weekend of R&R&F (food). I can't wait to sink into that comfy heavenly bed in the Khongor Guesthouse and just lounge around with friends.

So, for the 5th/6th/or whatever day Happy Tsagaan Sar!

сайхан шинэлээрэй! (sahan shinleray!)

This is Tsagaan Sar as I (Ashlie) know it.

Tsagaan Sar Day 1:

Today (it is now 5pm) we finished our 1st day of Tsagaan Sar. It all began last night. We were invited to our hashaa family's home to help them decorated their 'boow'. It is made with layers of fried bread, then topped with white food, or dairy products such as airal (dried milk curds), oodum (top cream of the milk), and sugar.



Okay, nevermind-- it all REALLY started weeks ago when they made 1,000 buuz, pronounced like 'boadz'(meat filled dumplings)--we blogged about that last month. Then this weekend they boiled the 'fattest' sheep in our ger (our stove is bigger than theirs). There is a lot of preparation that goes on for this 1st day of Tsagaan Sar....



But, now onto today...It should have started at about 6am for us because it is a tradition to watch the sun rise-- to watch the new year begin. However, Justin and I couldn't get ourselves up until 9am. We ironed our dells (Mongolian traditional clothing) and cleaned our home. Then we went to our hashaa family's ger to celebrate the morning with them. The first thing you do when you go to someone else's home for this holiday is to greet the eldest person(s). I was very nervous for this part. There are certain greetings you say and places where you put your hands, etc. Here is a video of Justin greeting our hashaa father and mother, and pics of me doing the same:



Then a snuff bottle is passed around...


After the greetings we had many buuz, salads, and meat. Also many drinks were passed around the room: airag (fermented mare's milk), milk tea, wine, wiskey and vodka. Remember how I told you that each family puts one coin in a random buuz and the person who eats that buuz is lucky? Well, I had the pleasure of biting down into that coin this morning! I thought it was a bone and couldn't decide if I wanted to say something or not...then I realized what it was, that it wasn't a bone at all, but the very coin that would bring me wealth this year. Picture me, a volunteer worker, being wealthy this year. It's hard to believe, but I can't wait!

Then after much eating and talking we all got on the floor and played with shagai (sheep's ankle bones). We played a horse racing game with the ankle bones. It was really fun. I love this family!




Now, because Justin and I were guests in their home (when you visit other people's homes for Tsagaan Sar it is tradition to give them small gifts for visiting), we were given gifts. I received a beautiful jewelry set: ring, earrings and necklace, and Justin received a traditional Mongolian framed golden engraving. These were very nice gifts.

That was house one. Now we were off to another family member's home (Day one of Tsagaan Sar is reserved for family). There were so many people in this little ger that it was a little awkward at first, but after a while we felt the love. We were served drink after drink and food after food... We stayed for about an hour and a half before we were onto the 3rd and last ger.


Much of the same repeated itself. We were served many, many drinks and buuz. We sat and talked for a while...mostly smiled. I liked being able to see all these different people and take a peak of their rich culture. At one point I really felt like a fly on the wall, just watching in amazment at these nice people taking these weird foreigners into their homes and treating them like family...then I realized someone was talking to me and felt lost and confused.


This day has made me realize (again) what a beautiful culture this is. It is so different from the one I know, but this holiday is a great holiday and a great chance for me to realize what a different place I am in right now. Sometimes I get caught up in school and not exposing myself too much to Mongolian traditional life that I forget I'm half way around the world from what I know. This holiday (re) opened my eyes.

Now, two more days to go...

Making Buuz

Last week Justin and I were invited to our neighbor's house to help them make buuz (pronounced: boadz). They had several other people over helping them make their buuz for Tsagaan Sar. Each family makes about 1,000-2,000 of these meat filled pot stickers for this holiday. One tradition is to put a coin in one of the buuz and whoever eats that buuz is supposed to have good luck for the new year. During Tsagaan Sar you go to one house/ger to the next and visit family, friends and co-workers. This holiday lasts for 3 days. Day one is reserved for family members, day 2 is for visiting co-workers and day three is open for anyone to visit (friends). I hear we'll be averaging about 8 houses a day and that we'll stay at each home for about 45 mins-1 hr. The tradition is the same in each home: say your traditional Tsagaan Sar greeting, eat buuz, drink milk tea, drink fermented horse or camel milk (airag), and drink vodka, then you're on to the next ger to do the exact same thing all day long. I am pretty nervous. This holiday probably has the most traditions out of all the Mongolian holidays and I am nervous I will forget to do something or say something that I am supposed to say.

Here are a couple videos of me and Justin at our neighbor's house making Buuz:





Well today was a beautiful day, despite it being in the -20's. Mongolia is a very beautiful country. I love the stillness of winter. The cool, crisp air is really refreshing at times...mostly when the wind isn't blowing. It is just beautiful. I cannot wait for the summer, though! I love the green, green hills and open space with such wide blue cloudless skies. It's amazing. I can't even begin to discribe the stars, you just wouldn't understand unless you've seen it for yourself. I am from Texas and the stars at night are big and bright deep in the heart of Texas...but Texas has NOTHING on Mongolian stars.

How do they do it?

I have found myself to be a little busier this semester than last semester. It is a good thing. The only bad side to it is that I now have to schedule in time for me to bake because some nights it's hard to muster up the energy to bake something once I've come home to a 20 degree ger, cleaned out the stove, got a nice fire going, cleaning the mess off the floor (from dung dust, coal dust, ash, soot, etc.). Yes, I know I need to bake to eat food and food equals energy--but when you're hungry you will eat anything...Man I miss my crock-potting days. Heck, I miss my microwaving days.

Justin and I used to have a microwave here in our ger. But during one visit from his school Director a couple months ago she asked why we had two ovens. We told her that one was a microwave and she said 'yes, why do you have two ovens?'...so days later a school worker showed up at our ger and took our microwave away because we didn't need 'two ovens'. Maybe she thought she was clearing out unnecessary items from our small ger to give us more space, or maybe she thought we were spoiled? I don't know. But I do know this: We do not have a microwave.

Now onto our stove. This stove never really was ours. It's our neighbors' that we've been 'borrowing'. It's been in our ger for about 90% of the time we've been here. However, there are days when they come and ask to use it...then the next day we ask for it back. Well, this week we have been without our stove. It has proven to be rather difficult. I don't know how other PCVs do it! How can you eat without a stove or a microwave?! Justin and I were able to survive like this the first two weeks we lived in Mandalgovi, but I can't even remember how we survived that long. (I do remember we made a pretty awesome pizza in our skillet, believe it or not-- I was really impressed with that). Anyway, I know it is possible, but it is not ideal. How can we survive without my yummy rolls, cinnamon rolls, biscuits, cookies, baked chicken? Well, more importantly-- WHAT WILL I DO WITH ALL MY TIME? Baking was really my escape.

Tsagaan Sar is coming up. It IS the biggest holiday in Mongolia by far. This is their celebration for the lunar New Year and I know our neighbors will be wanting their oven for preparation (they really plan ahead. Tsagaan Sar is Feb 3rd this year and people are starting to make Buuz on January 20. They make thousands of buuz. I'm not even kidding you...each family makes about 2,000 buuz).
Here are some buuz:


So to buy an oven, or not to buy an oven? 250,000 tgs is a lot of money. This is the debate right now in the Newberry Ger.