AUG 24, 15 .. DEUCES AND JACKS ..

My title and sub-title pretty much say it all ..

But what do they mean? Over any period of time I accumulate a lot of very random photos. These photos will not be enough for a complete post.  As you will see in this post .. some of them are simply one photo. What-To-Do with all of them? I simply put them into a post such as this post and find each of them a home-of-their-very-own.

Here we go .. Who knows what’s coming ..

Does The Shadow even know? In the fictional stories of The Shadow .. Kent Allard WAS THE SHADOW  and Kent Allard used several aliases to hide his identity. The most famous of which was .. Lamont Cranston .. OR SO SAYETH WIKIPEDIA ..

Here we go loop-de-loop .. Here we go loop-de-li ..

I am fascinated with the Mongolian Alphabet.  My eldest son is named Robb. When I saw the below sign I could not help but take a photo of it. It does sort of ‘spell out’ his name Robb.

It does NOT ‘sound-out’ as Robb because the small r is NOT an R sound at all. I believe that this small r is more of a G sound. The name ‘caught-my-eye’ for sure.

Do you see it?  roBb .. “Dad .. Dad .. Dad .. That is really too big of a stretch.” / SIGNED YOUR SON / Robb ..

Now how about today’s new Mongolian Alphabet discovery.

I could have that as a sub-title .. taa-daa ..

Today’s New Mongolian Alphabet Discovery ..

Will you look below at what I discovered. They seem to have two letter Y’s .. The one on the left below is slanted. The one on the right is vertical.

You don’t believe me? Look below for yourself .. That sure looks like two letter Y’s to yours truly .. one slanted and one vertical.

Below are the two slanted  letter Y’s with the little hook at their bottoms .. notice my fascinating Mongolian letter B between the Ys ..

Speaking of my eldest son Robb .. Can you dig the below rig Rockin’ Robb Robbie? This very nice young man patiently waited for me to fumble around and get out my camera to shoot the below photo ..

The above photo is what I mean when I say I have single photos that I do not know where to place in a post.

When I moved into my apartment here in Ulaanbaatar I found that I had a small family of pet animals .. Can you see them on the table below under the lamp ..

Here is a nice close-up photo of them ..

The five of them have been constantly petitioning me .. “Please Dad .. Will you please move us around just a little bit Dad? We are so tired of being stuck here on the table under the lamp and never moving Dad!”

“OK .. OK you guys .. THAT I sure can do for you!”

Can you all see the Kangaroo’s baby Joey in her marsupial pouch?  I am not sure what your little pink-and-white buddy is Mrs. Kangaroo. You do have rabbit ears but you also have four pronounced legs to walk around with and not bunny-legs and you have sheep-like-fur not rabbit fur.

Mr. Sheep and Teddy ..

How many times have you seen the below lake outside my building door and en route to Peace Avenue where I walk several or more times-a-day.

“Yes little lakes you do have a very interesting look-to-you as reflecting ponds.”

Little lakes you also can be quite a challenge to automobiles and to pedestrians.

The below scene I thought that I would-never-see!

Look at the larger lake site .. temporarily dry ..

This truly is difficult to believe ..

Below are reasons that the automobiles go very slowly when the lake is present ..

Amazing .. I almost miss the lakes .. ALMOST BUT NOT QUITE ..

Here is my local supermarket. I do 85% of my food shopping here.

You all think-that-you-know what the below shopping baskets are.  Well that-much you do know. They ARE shopping baskets.

Here is what you DO NOT know. You do NOT carry them on your arm. They are little carts with wheels that you tow along behind you as you shop.

Yes .. they travel along on the floor behind you as you shop for popcorn and Schweppes +C and bread ..

A view from the side .. Yes they WILL push as well ..

Different Huh?

Below are several photos of Mongolian Gers. Ulaanbaatar is in the background of the first two photos. It really is quite-a-city believe me.

‘Urban’ Gers you would have to call them now wouldn’t you? Notice they are on wheeled-platforms.

What ARE you doing in downtown Ulaanbaatar anyway ..

Several ‘rural’ Gers. Below is the Ger Camp where I stayed my first night in Mongolia.

There are many Gers in the below photo. Do you see them off to the right in the distance.

I have been here in Ulaanbaatar for almost six weeks and look what I discovered today. Well I should say look what I SAW today. I have walked past this Ger more than once during my travels in downtown Ulaanbaatar.

Right smack-dab in the middle of downtown .. The GER SHOP ..

Evidently the prominent or high-ranking Mongolians had their Gers on these wheeled-platforms so they did not have to disassemble their Ger when they moved with the cattle herd or the army.

The wooden wheels are quite large ..

What is inside of The GER SHOP ..

A little bit of this .. And a little bit of that ..

What exactly have I done to deserve my neighbor Amaraa.

Several weeks ago Amaraa brought me the below PHENOMENAL dinner.

Just look what Amaraa brought to me last night ..

I mean .. Amaraa .. What can I say ..

I will say this: Amaraa you certainly are a very good chef and cook .. It was delicious let-me-tell-you!

As a small token of my appreciation for all of the help they have been to me .. Yesterday I treated Deegi (DAYghee) and Saina and their daugher Cindy to a nice lunch at a local restaurant of their choosing located about five minutes from my apartment.

This was my introduction to the HOT POT KOREAN restaurant. It fast became one of my favorites here in Ulaanbaatar (УЛААНБААТАР).

A very nice building ..

A nice building right on Peace Avenue so very close to where I am living.

All of my Sukhbaatar adventures originated with Deegi. The great automobile ride North from Ulaanbaatar to Sukhbaatar and return were with the family. She also arranged for people to meet me when I took the train to Sukhbaatar.

 Cindy with her Dad Saina ..

The below photos show the interior of the restaurant .. Our booth was the first booth on the left ..

A close-up of our booth ..

More photos of the interior of the restaurant ..

We ordered a dinner for four. Below is what it looked like. The covered silver bowl was one of three bowls of white rice. Going clockwise from the silver rice bowl .. we have .. Korean Kimchi .. A green vegetable maybe spinach .. Candied sweet potato .. SPICY sliced cucumber pieces .. Transparent rice noodles in a gravy .. Mushrooms .. Fish .. SPICY julienne cut vegetables ..

Below is a close-up of the center dish .. the main meal .. Sheep with roasted vegetables ..

I also ordered a side-dish .. Bacon Potato Salad .. My Oh My .. It was great ..

A photo showing the rice bowls uncovered ..

The cost (I was STUNNED) was interesting .. The main meal .. the Centerpiece  .. The Complete Dinner-for-Four if you will .. cost 22,000 Mongolian Tug or US Eleven Dollars and Fifteen Cents (US $ 11.15)! When I saw it on-the-menu I thought to myself .. “They mean 22,000 Tug PER PERSON.” My Bacon Potato Salad cost 7,500 Mongolian Tug or US $ 3.80! We also had a plate of Sushi with about one dozen pieces on it. I just spaced it as to taking its photograph. It was my treat and when we walked out ..

THE bottom line was .. 49,600 Mongolian Tug or US $25.15 for what I consider to be a fancy or dressy or formal dinner in one fine restaurant! 

This sit-down formal meal cost less-than-the-Colonel cost at KFC. Can you imagine.

Today .. This afternoon I visited the ticket office of Mongolian Airlines ..

I remain so impressed with so much of Ulaanbaatar Mongolia ..

The Mongolian Airlines identifier is pronounced ME – AT . So my backwards N is an ‘E’ sound I guess.

I fly back to Hong Kong THIS Friday August the 28th .. PATTI’S BIRTHDAY .. So I paid the ticket office a little visit to be sure everything is in proper order. I do NOT like any DRAMA on flight-day at the airport ..

Then I paid my favorite restaurant a visit ..

I did NOT find this myself .. Changer took me here ..

Very pleasant ..

Not too busy .. Just Right ..

A Chicken Caesar Salad .. Yes the chicken was hot and the cheese melted down into the salad .. a tad ‘different’ ..

The waiter got confused .. When he showed up with two (2) salads .. I said .. He said this is a Shrimp Salad and left me with the two of them .. What-To-Do .. GOT IT .. Eat them both .. forget I don’t eat shrimp .. One for the Corps ..

I was absolutely positively starved for a salad .. That is why I went here .. They have great salads .. YES Patti you would have indeed enjoyed MY shrimp salad .. Go Figure ..

Side-By-Side ..

Nice .. Very Nice Salads ..

I am happy that I was NOT the ugly American making a fuss over NOT having ordered the Shrimp Salad.

The cost .. The Caesar Salad was 7,500 Mongolian Tug or US $ 3.80. The Shrimp Salad was 8,500 Mongolian Tug or US $ 4.31. Bottom Line .. US $ 8.11. Play ‘Taps’ for the two salads.

My apartment is at the bottom of the first row of windows in the sunshine .. Basically straight ahead .. the top of my bedroom window is open and it is on the left edge of the building NOT in the recessed section.

As Bugs Bunny used to say in the movies .. That’s all folks ..

Smiles .. Cap ..

• ← AUG 21, 15 .. PART 1 .. A TRAIN RIDE ON A ‘LOCAL’ MONGOLIAN TRAIN ..
• AUG 26, 15 .. PATTI TOOK A TERRIBLE FALL THIS MORNING .. →