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MongoLiaison
MONGOLIA
A land of fluid green hills spotted with wild horses and shadowed by the puffy cumulous clouds lounging in the big, blue sky like pale tourists tubing down a lazy river. Is that Mongolia?
Home of an expired empire, more Khans walking the street than after a prison-break, and a feeling that you might be challenged to a wrestling match or boulder-throwing contest at any moment. Is that Mongolia?
A place where mutton and mare's milk is a common meal, where the Russian West meets the Oriental East, and the dust of an old communist state is still being swept up. Is that Mongolia?
I am completely, utterly unsure. That is what draws me to it. And that is one reason why I am going there.
Yes, I am going to Mongolia, along with a group of English teachers in Japan. We are volunteering to build houses for Habitat for Humanity (HFH) from April 29-May 10. If you want to learn more about HFH, click here. If you are interested in donating to this cause, check out the comments section at the end of this post. It is time to smell some sawdust and have black dirt lining my fingernails.
Approximately 2.8 million people live in Mongolia, and about a third of those live in the capital city of Ulaan Baatar. 28 million livestock call Mongolia home....meaning there are 10 times as many farm animals as humans--I hope they don't get any hints from George Orwell. Mongolia has one of the lowest poplulation densities in the world, with about 1.5 persons per square kilometer. Compare that with Bangladesh which has nearly 1000 people per square kilometer!
Anyway, I look forward to a good trip and I will be sure to post about it when I come back.
posted by Izzy @ 11:02 AM
3 Comments:
In preparation for the trip, I need to raise funds to help finance the construction of the house. Each volunteer needs to raise money to donate to the housing projects in Mongolia. To do this, I am selling "bricks." Each brick is 1000 yen (~$10) and will go toward construction costs. You should know that each brick-buyer will get their name on a plaque to be given to the family living in the house, and you will receive a thank you with a picture of the completed house. Pretty cool, huh?
If you are interested in donating, please send checks to my parents at:
Isaac Arnquist
c/o Irv & Marcia Arnquist
3286 Woodhaven Lane SW
Kensington, MN 56343
This will help alleviate losses in exchange rates from dollars to yen and the cost in sending money abroad.
Thank you so much for any help! I am very excited to get some hands-on work in a strange and mysterious country! If you have questions, email me at isaac.arnquist@gmail.com
Mongol for life,
Isaac
As I understand it, Mongolians are not small, so you will probably not tower over them as you have become accustomed to doing in Japan. That will be interesting. Record your reactions to that change.. in your inimitable fashion! Stay safe and build up a storm! We love you.
I miss your posts. Hope you are having a great time.
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