ULAANBAATAR CITY
For the travelers eager to discover the steppe, the nomads and wide open spaces, the arrival in Ulaanbaatar may be deconcerting and even disturbing. This is a city of Stalinist’s and modern architecture of Buildings, wide avenues and the inevitable central square seen in most soviet towns. The city located at 1,351 meters above sea level, stretches in an east - west direction across the Tuul river valley.It has a population of aroundone million and a surface area of 135,800 hectares. Mountains surround it: the Bogd uul to the south, the Songino to the west, The Bayanzurkh to the east, and the Chingeltei to the north.The city is divided into 8 districts. Around Sukhbaatar square, the political and cultural centre of the city, is the Government house, ministries, embassies, political party head quarters, the university, teaching institutions, museums, theatre and central post office.
THE SITES AROUND ULAANBAATAR:
The Bogd Khan mountain Protected area
The oldest protected area in the country is located just south of Ulaanbaatar. The Bogd uul has been protected since 1788 and revered since the 1200s. Centuries ald laws forbid hunting, development and the felling of trees. The reserve has an area of 41,600 ha, of which 18,100 ha are forest. The highest point along the broad ridge is Tsetseegun(2268m)Manzushir khiid, an 18th century monastery, is located on the southern end of the reserve, and well worth visit.
Gorkhi-Terelj National Park
One of Mongolia’s best national parks lies under an 2 hour’s drive away from Ulaanbaatar. Terelj was founded as a park in 1994 and is located on the edge of the strictly protected zone of Khan KHentii. It’s 286, 400 hectares of territory contain plenty to do for the visitors, including rafting, horse riding and hiking etc.
The forests are full of birch, cedar, pine, willow, larch, and aspen as well as fox, wolf and squirrel, Turtle rock (Melkhii khad), which is just off the main road into the park. Therefore, you are able to visit and explore the Buddhist meditation temple with108 stairs anda wire bridge, called temple of Aryabalo, on the north mountain from the turtle rock.
The temple of Princess ruin is located in the valley of Baruun Bayan river in Gorkhi Terelj National Park.
Hustai National park
Located 120 km south- west of Ulaanbaatar is the Hustain Nuruu National Park. This 90,000 hectare reserve was created in 1992 as part of the programme to reintroduce the takhi, the Asian wild horse better known in the west as Przewalski horse. Which disappeared from Mongolia in the 1960s. For centuries, takhi was one of the most revered animals on the steppes, but hunting and competition with livestock forced their numbers into decline so much, so that by the 1960s there were completely extinct in the world. The takhi, however were still very much alive in zoos and private farms in Australia and Europe. When Mongolia opened up to the world in 1990, the opportunity to reintroduce these animals to their native territory came to pass. Now the numbers of the wild horses has increased to more than 200.
