Modern Mongolia

What was it like to grow up in Mongolia, then and now? In this episode, we explore the joys, challenges, and cultural contrasts of childhood in Mongolia. From nostalgic memories of June 1st celebrations to the stark realities kids face today, air pollution, poverty, and safety concerns, I look at how growing up Mongolian has changed over the years. With personal reflections, listener stories, and real talk about today’s social issues, this episode captures both the warmth and complexity of childhood in this "young nation".

What happens when traditional beliefs meet modern thrift culture? In this episode, we explore how Mongolia’s secondhand fashion scene is evolving, from the stigma of komissiin baraa to the rise of trendy thrift shops like Toirog.

Many Mongolians believe that clothes carry a person’s energy or their hiimori, or life force - making secondhand fashion both spiritually complex and socially loaded.

The host Dono also shares a personal journey into thrifting, while unpacking how younger generations are redefining secondhand as stylish, sustainable, and meaningful.

Daniel, a young and enthusiastic Peace Corps volunteer, shared his experiences teaching English to children in Mongolia and working on community development programs. Our conversation covered a range of topics, including the Mongolian education system, the dynamics between teachers and students, the local cuisine, and more.

Shared my thoughts on the current election and voices from Mongolians abroad. As voters from abroad, we could only vote for the party, according to the proportional system. The younger generation wants a new political force. Young people want to vote for neither the Mongolian People's Party nor the Democratic Party, and that's understandable. Can we hope to change the political landscape? or was it already decided with the electoral system change?

Intro music credit to @nicolasjaar.

Summer is approaching and that means the Playtime Festival is approaching for us Mongolians 🎵 In this episode we dive into the concept and vision of the Playtime festival with the Artistic Director Batgerel. Our guest shared insights, changes, updates, and artist lineup of the 2024 edition. Lots of news, new artists, and exciting program awaits. The main headliners will be Deafheaven, Idiotape, Teenage Fanclub, A Sound, Night Train, and Ineemseglel.

In this episode, Breanna J Wilson (@breannajwilson), the creator of Meanwhile in Mongolia shares her insights into crafting memorable travel experiences in Mongolia. Get a sneak peek into her upcoming ventures, including Digital Nomad Week and Women's Retreat, and explore her perspectives on Mongolian tourism, hidden gems, and exclusive travel tips.

In this episode, Zach (@ausalien) shares his volunteering journey in Mongolia, working with Caritas Czech Republic Mongolia on sustainability projects in Ulaanbaatar and rural areas. We delve into sustainability challenges, composting, and recycling practices. Additionally, explore his unique insights into taking street photography and the process of developing films at home in Mongolia.

This is the part 2 of ep11. Did you know that fintech products and the banking industry are excellent in Mongolia? Though international services like PayPal are not in Mongolia, our internal finance system is fast, safe, and efficient. As such, here are the 5 things I miss from Mongolia.

Ian first came to Mongolia in 2002, right after college. He was planning to stay in Mongolia for 3 months for the summer, but instead ended up staying for 3 years. Ian has so many interesting stories to tell from producing the very first Mongolian Talent Show "Oddiin Ereld" to producing a musical that featured in Busan International Film Festival. Listen to Mongolian movie suggestions from Ian and stories of having fun with Mongolians.

Guest: ⁠⁠Ian Allardyce⁠⁠

Do Mongolians also share Asian values? The answer is yes.

Mongolian culture values connectivity and collective living. Family ties are strong and filial sentiment is firm. But, there are certain personal struggles to be an individual in Mongolian society. I shared my personal feelings and thoughts.

I discussed the article on the social connectedness of Mongolians and the double sides of this connectedness.

Mongolia is a free, equal country when it comes to gender concerns. I feel like I have all the opportunities as a Mongolian woman, but there are complexities in the difference of women's experiences in urban and rural life. In addition, Namka and Tugsuu contributed to this episode, sharing their thoughts on being women in Mongolia.

Our first guest of this season is Yumzhana Sui from Ulan-Ude, Buryatia. She's a talented artist who creates art about decolonization, Buddhism, and environmental activism. We talked about her life in Ulaanbaatar, the current time of uncertainty, and giggled a little bit.

Instagram:

Yumzhana Sui @su.realism

Modern Mongolia Podcast @modernmongolia

As I mentioned before in another episode, the government announced that the next 3 years are the years to visit Mongolia and there are a lot of promotions going online. I see many articles about why you should visit Mongolia and a bunch of aerial footage of the landscape and so on. But here, on this podcast, I only talk about the candid reality of Mongolia. For this episode, I’m diving into the perks of living in Mongolia. I covered 6 things that I myself and expats find as perks of living in this country. There is a bonus point at the end and it's such an unexpected thing you'd think you'll like in Mongolia.

Peace!

FYI: Always bring your toilet paper with you.

In this episode, I've talked about three ...isms in Mongolia that you can spot in daily life. These are Ageism, Nepotism, and Materialism. Getting real about Mongolia.

Note to the change of episode format: Yes, I've decided to remove the music session due to a highly possible copyright allegation even though I consider it to be fair use. But, don't worry, at the end of the year, there will be a whole episode only about Mongolian music and artists.

Thank you for tuning in!

How do you imagine Mongolian life? Let's see if your imagined Mongolia is different in real life. 

Do you know any stereotype about Mongolians? Let's see if they're real or no. 

Contemporary Mongolian herder families living in a ger (yurt) in the countryside,  herding animals for living look like this: They have a satellite tv, cellphone, at least 1 motorcycle and a mini truck, solar panel and some have a freezer. This is normal standard these days.

For the Mongolian music time, I introduced legend of legends, singer Norovbanzad and her long song "The sun over placid the placid world". 

Please leave a review on the podcast, that will help me to understand how I can improve the podcast for better. 

Happy Spring everyone! Did you know that in Mongolia we count winter days with 9 of 9 day cycles and we consider that spring starts after the end of 9th 9 day cycle. We just celebrated Lunar New Year aka Tsagaan sar. Lunar New Year is one of the biggest holiday in Mongolia and serves as a big part of Mongolian cultural identity. There's a lot to uncover about symbolic meanings related to the celebration. However, on this episode I shared about practical reality of celebrating Lunar New Year. Also, I covered about must know and interesting rituals we perform as a tradition. 

2023-2025 announced to be "Years to visit Mongolia" and 34 new countries are temporarily exempt from visa up to 30 days. Here you can get the list of countries. https://montsame.mn/en/read/310896

With music break I introduced legendary folk singer G. Tumendemberel and her most famous song "Usnii Tungalag Tamiriin Gol". Hope you'll find it enchanting as I do. 

Happy New Year! 

Modern Mongolia is back in 2023. The podcast is restructured with shorter format and will be publishing biweekly. With the new format, there's fun facts, must knows about Mongolia and musical exposure of Mongolian artists, which I'm very excited about. On this episode we covered New Years celebration related must knows. 

Sebastian has been teaching English in Mongolia for last three years. Besides Mongolia, he taught English in several Asian countries including Myanmar, which we discussed a bit about. Unlike the others, Sebastian has adapted to Mongolian weather much easily because he likes winter. Also I confessed about my procrastination of not uploading the episode on time in the beginning of the podcast. 

Reach out to Sebastian: sebastian.jefferies86@gmail.com

Reach out to the podcast: modernmongolians@gmail.com

Tim decided to accept the job offer in Uvs after visiting and seeing the beautiful Khyargas (Хяргас) lake. It was not only the Mediterranean view of the lakes in the region that convinced him to stay. He's also befriended the local businessmen who are committed to giving back to their hometown and working together for the local community. Because of the environmental issues (desertification, deforestation) in Mongolia, Tim is enthusiastic about teaching horticultural skills to the kids. Tim shared that he likes living in Mongolia because he always seeks a place where he can grow. We also had some mouthwatering moments when Tim recommended his favorite Korean restaurants and the best desserts in Ulaanbaatar. 

Tim on Facebook: Tim Luea

Tim's email: timluea@gmail.com 

Contact with the Podcast: modernmongolians@gmail.com

Karolina is a historian, traveler, and minimalist from Poland. She lived in Mongolia for over 8 years studying, working, and traveling. We talked about her study, experience of being a student in Ulaanbaatar, making friends, and the feeling of spaciousness that she got from Mongolia. Karolina also described Mongolians as very resistant and music lovers. 

Karolina's blog: thesilkroadminimalist.com

Karolina on Instagram: Thesilkroadminimalist

Karolina's email address: karolina.zygmanowska@gmail.com

Contact with the Podcast: modernmongolians@gmail.com 

Happy 2021! New year, new episode!

Dima shared about the challenges of working with locals, how it's like being a Russian, working with students and hitchhiking in Mongolia. 

Dima on Instagram: dmitry.kosintsev 

Dima's email: dmitry.kosintsev@gmail.com 

Contact the podcast: modernmongolians@gmail.com

Andrei is from Romania, doing a cultural anthropology Ph.D in Shanghai, and has been "stuck" in Ulaanbaatar since February lockdown. We had a very interesting talk about how he's surprisingly finding a feeling of home in Mongolia. Andrei shared us he's liking Mongolian meet and bread a lot,  his interesting encounter with a local shaman and how he's exploring modern Mongolia. 

Andrei on Facebook: Andrei Coltea

Andrei's email address: andrei.coltea@gmail.com

Contact with the podcast: modernmongolians@gmail.com

Atika is from Indonesia and she works at APU LLC in Ulaanbaatar, as an English teacher. She also has her own podcast "The Frontal Queens" with her friend. We talked about Mongolian food, weather, music, workplace and dating experience with local. 

Atika on Facebook: Atika Mustar

Contact: modernmongolians@gmail.com

Podcast host Dono, a cultural anthropologist shared her experience of re-entering Mongolia and having reverse culture shock.