If you read my blog or follow me on social media, you saw that our family traveled to Mongolia a couple weeks ago. It was more than your normal trip and we had the best week actually experiencing life in Mongolia… Real Life! We went there to see the NGO Flourishing Futures and check out the work they are doing in the Ger District of Ulaan Baatar and beyond is amazing! We heard about this group from a friend who spent a year there working with them. I’m going to give you some information about what they are doing and lots of photos from our trip {yes, LOTS of photos… I can’t help myself!}
We took this trip with 2 other families, so we had 15 in total – 9 of those being kids. We arrived on Sunday evening and checked in to the simple, but lovely Oasis Guest House. It ended up that our group was the only one there, this was good as with so many kids it wasn’t always very quiet. The guest house has a main building where we stayed and gers to stay in during the warmer months.
Monday morning we were up and enjoyed the toast and tea provided. 
Our first stop was a Girls Home run by Flourishing Futures. Due to many different circumstances these girls need a safe place to live and it is provided for them here. Most were in school on this Monday morning but we played and did crafts with the ones that were there.
We then visited the community center base for the organization and went up on top of the hill nearby. From there you could see a 360 degree view of all the Ger District and expanse of the people living there. People living in this area struggle to meet their daily needs and have often just moved in from the countyside.
We spent the afternoon taking in some of the sites of the city of UB. It was a chilly day!
Our second day we went through a poverty simulation that was good for all of use to gain life perspective and see how blessed we are. The kids had never done anything like this – I’m so glad I can expose my kids to the way others live from a young age. We went through a school lesson, Drs. visit, water station and monthly budgeting lesson during the morning. At the school and Dr. we say how certain people are discriminated against and we were all given a card saying who we were and what our circumstance was. Those in the Ger district have no running water, so we helped a few families haul their water. For perspective: the average person in the US uses 100 Gallons of water per day {toilet, washing machine, shower, etc} in the Ger district where thy have to carry water, it’s about 1.5 gallons per person! WOW!
Our time ended with a lunch simulation showing how much food 1st world countries have, 2nd world counties and 3rd world countries.. We were each assigned a place to eat with different food on each.. after discussion, we all pooled our resources and enjoyed lunch with our team and theirs.
On site they have a felt shop where women in the community earn extra money by sewing these adorable items. I did a bit of Christmas shopping for sure!! You can find out more at https://www.saikhanmongolia.com/. 
Our third day in the city we visited some families in the food program of Flourishing Futures. Through a translator we were able to deliver food and visit with this young mother and her 3 young kids in her home. In spite of her difficult life you could see her love for her kids and that she was doing her best to provide for them and give them a good home. She had a 4th child who was at school this morning. We also shared a bit about our life with her. 
This is a photo of our group and the team at the FF. They are a mix of foreigners and locals working together and it was SO great to spend time with them and learn more about their works. They have provide tutorial for kids, a head start program for little ones starting school, medical services, a community center to meet, shower stations, sports ministry, work in the local orphanages, and so many other services to the community.
Lunch with my beauty Rose!
For the second half of our week we headed out of the city. We were thinking this would just be a time of hiking and enjoying nature, but we took with us a local guide and he was able to arrange several more INCREDIBLE local culture experiences that were just amazing! 2 hours out of the city is a national park. We stayed in this Ger {hotel} for 2 nights.
The carvings on the door were just amazing!
A little tourist stop and a camel ride! Only Max was brave enough of our kids to give it a try. 
We hiked up a mountain that afternoon. The view was breath taking! Rose snoozed in the backpack, ha!
Our group!
That night our guide arranged for us to eat in a local home. We were the first foreigners they had every cooked for and welcomed into their Ger. It was a tasty meal and the BEST experience.
If the fire went out in our Ger during the night we woke up to a chilly room. Rose was warming her hands this morning.
We spent the next morning on horseback.. we headed up a big hill to take in the view.
After we returned from our ride the man who had the horses prepared a local BBQ meal for us. It ended up to be meat and veggies cooked in a big pot with hot stones. It was SO flavorful! Rose was hamming it up for the camera while we were there. Did you see my post on the kids homemade jackets?
Seriously though, I just sat back in this valley and enjoyed the view… we ate outside because it was gorgeous and our host drug all the furniture out of the gers.
Dishing up the food!
And a horse cart ride back to where we were staying. This whole day was full of amazing one-of-a-kind experiences.
We drove back to the city on our final full day and enjoyed a bit of R and R back at Oasis… I love this photo of Bryan and I taken on a stop on the drive back. We flew home VERY early Sunday morning. What a week! This was a trip that had so many firsts… and many memories that will stay strong in my mind for a long time to come. If you ever get a chance to visit Mongolia, look up Flourishing Futures and visit them. You won’t be sad!!
Want to see some of my other travel posts?
Some of these are posted over on our family blog – {which I’ve been horrible at keeping up lately}
Abu Dhabi, UAE {Part 1} {Part 2} {part 3} { Part 4} {Part 5} {Part 6}
Palau {part 1} {part 2} {part 3}
Rhonda says
Stopping by Sunday’s Best Linkup. What an amazing post. It’s great that your children get to experience other cultures and countries at a young age. Most adults won’t experience these type of trips. Thanks for sharing. Heading over to read your Bali posts.
Bonnie C. Westrom says
Thank you for sharing your adventure. You have a wonderful family.
Celeste | The Whole Serving says
Looks like you all had an amazing time. Great way to spend time with family. Thanks for sharing with our Pretty Pintastic Party.
Jennifer Bly says
What an amazing and wonderful opportunity for your family!
Thanks for sharing (and linking up to the last SHINE Blog Hop).
Wishing you a lovely day.
xoxo