That Escalated Quickly?

I had my first meeting today with the Arts Council of Mongolia, a really awesome Mongolian NGO with an unfortunately hacked website I can't show you. They were originally going to be my visa sponsor for the Fulbright, until I discovered I needed to be affiliated with a university. The ACM is about to become my work home away from work home, or whatever less confusing term there is for: place where I have a personal desk, computer, and email account. I met today with the financial director to go over my expected research plans and the ACM's needs, and I'll start on Monday! They work Monday-Friday from 10 to 7 (Lunch break from 1 to 2), so I think starting out I'll try to work full-time three days a week. It's a great group of ladies (plus one male intern), and the organization is fully bilingual which is fantastic for me. I get to doublecheck/edited pretty much everything, which means I get to read/analyze pretty much everything and get to see how such topics are written about in Mongolian for different audiences. Plus, the ACM covers all the arts, so another opportunity to hear about shows/exhibits/films/concerts/etc.

The real meaning: my dissertation research officially starts collecting data as of Monday!

Talking with Dolgorsuren yesterday, I realized anew that this is an excellent time for my research topic (trying understand how Mongolians understand and manage cultural heritage and how that is impacted by international funding). Only a few months ago, all government activities/organizations/committees that dealt with "Culture" have been moved from the former Ministry of Science, Education, and Culture to the new Ministry of Culture, Sport, and Tourism. We'll see if this indicates a growing shift in how Mongolia considers its cultural heritage and how it wants to preserve it for the future, but I'm excited to investigate.

Leaving aside the academic talk, since I know this blog has a variety of readers: Mongolian countryside time!

I've ridden a horse five times in my life, two of which have been in Mongolia. (I have also ridden a yak and a camel here). I am not, by any means, a great rider. I think horses are beautiful, but we don't seem to communicate well.

I have been camping (tent/ger) a decent number of times, including a few times this past spring. The last experience I had camping in ger was actually in Pittsburgh and about this same time of year...and I was the coldest I have ever been in my life. The weekend here in Ulaanbaatar is supposed to be 60s and sunny (probably the last hurrah of warm weather), but the evenings are going to be 30 degrees. I've been advised to bring a sleeping bag and warm clothes...no kidding. My sleeping bag is pretty decent gear: it packs really small and is certified to 0 degrees, I believe. Right now I'm feeling fairly confident and actually more worried about what to wear during the day while riding (helmet and half-chaps are apparently provided). I'm also debating about whether or not to bring my camera...pictures I get to upload myself when I want vs. the possibility of it getting broken/lost/other unfortunate incident.

I know the blog has gotten a bit text-heavy though, so I'll see what I can do next week.

I hope you all are enjoying the fall! Please, eat lots of pumpkin pie for me. Apple crisp is something I should be able to make here, so don't worry too much about me though. ;)
Enjoy your weekend, however you spend it!