We woke up yesterday to snow. By the time we got to the Terelj National Park there was 3 or 4 inches and visibility was down to 20 or 30 metres. There was no hint of what surrounded us as we made our way up to the Aryapala Monastery clinging to the side of a mountain across an extremely ropey bridge... Sarah took on a new spiritual aura as she flung snowballs at my head.

We eventually found a ger for the night and the clouds lifted to reveal a stunning backdrop of snowy peaks and ger camps (the butlines of Mongolia) everywhere. The rest of the trip was spent walking then drying off by the fire.

After hitching a lift with the family who ran the camp back to UB, we stopped at a cave where he showed us where 100 monks had hidden during the Stalinist purges. They all died apparently along with 40'000 others at the hands of Russia. And yet the Mongols insist they love the Russians but hate the Chinese. Not figured that one out yet...

Back in the city for another day then off to China. Plenty more photos of Mongolia on the Flickr site now.