Things I Will Miss About Mongolia #1

With less than two weeks to go until I set sail for (much ado about)melbourne, it's time I recap on the wonders of Mongolia I have yet to 'big up' before now. This week's Things I Will Miss About Mongolia post is a shout out to...

MONGOLIAN MYSTERY MEAT GOODS

aka Meat I Have Eaten That I Possibly Should Not Have Eaten. This post is slightly more poignant given that I (very gently) embraced vegetarianism before getting on a Mongolian Airlines flight almost a year ago. As a general rule, when I go to a place that isn't Sydney/Melbourne/Brisbane, I like to eat the food that everyone else eats. In Texas I eat deer jerky, in Dandenong I eat Dandee Donuts and in Mongolia I eat mountains of mutton. Case in point below. Yes, that is one big, old, fatty sheep.

I like to sample the local delicacies, like bull penis in hot pot.

I like to support the manufacture of processed meat goods, particularly those with delicious gelatinous hearts.

I like to eat animals that possibly have the Bubonic Plague.

And, of course, I like to eat the animals most revered by the country I am visiting, particularly in curries or garlic soups. They go faster.

I Ate This #2

If you happen to follow my Twitter (yes, the internet and I are unhealthily close), you will note that over the new year celebratory period, I was coming home after many wonderful sessions with my friend Chinggis (he of the vodka variety) and eating fish cheese. I really don't think the cheese is made from fish, but fuck me if it doesn't reek of the ocean and taste a bit rank. I cracked open my 1L duty-free bottle of Jameson this evening and three minutes ago got a little peckish. Although I vowed not to do it again, I revisted my old friend, Mr Fishkäse. Here it is in all its resplendent, plaited glory:



And for the record, I did not purchase this smoked cheese monstrosity. My temporary Belgian housemate did. He also applauds foie gras and is about to go camping in the middle of a Mongolian winter, so it's possible his brain is a little confused.

I Ate This #1

Dairy products are kinda popular here. Apparently traditionally, in the summertime, nomads were effectively vegetarian and ate only dairy and no meat. We tried some of the extensive dairy selection yesterday. I kept it all down, although some of it would have been better out of my belly...

Mystery Dairy Product (name recollection failure)

Dried Curds