Welcome to Ulaanbaatar, the capital and largest city of Mongolia, and the coldest capital in the world by average yearly temperature. It lies at about 1,300 metres in a valley on the Tuul River, and almost half of the country's people live here. Its beginnings are wonderfully nomadic: founded in 1639 as a Buddhist monastic centre, the city changed location 29 times before settling here for good in 1778. Known then as Urga, it was the seat of the spiritual head of Tibetan Buddhism in Mongolia, and in 1924 it was renamed Ulaanbaatar and declared the capital. Let us explore.
Sükhbaatar Square
Photo: Zazaa Mongolia · CC BY-SA 4.0 · Wikimedia CommonsYou are standing in Sükhbaatar Square, the heart of Ulaanbaatar. It is named after the revolutionary hero Damdin Sükhbaatar, who died in 1923, and his monumental equestrian statue rises in the centre. Turn to the north and you will see the Government Palace with a great colonnade. Seated at its centre is Genghis Khan, with Ögedei Khan and Kublai Khan to either side. Curiously, the square itself briefly carried Genghis Khan's name: it was renamed Chinggis Square in 2013, but the original name returned in 2016.
Gandantegchinlen Monastery
Photo: Chongkian · CC BY-SA 4.0 · Wikimedia CommonsWelcome to Gandan Monastery, the centre of Buddhism in Mongolia. Its full name, Gandantegchinlen, is Tibetan for complete rejoicing. Founded in 1809, it was closed amid persecutions in 1939, yet from 1944 to 1989 it was the only active monastery in the whole country. More than 100 monks live here. Step inside the main temple and look up: a statue of Avalokiteśvara, the bodhisattva of compassion, towers 26 metres high, made of gilded bronze and precious stones.
Winter Palace of the Bogd Khan
Photo: Chongkian · CC BY-SA 4.0 · Wikimedia CommonsHere is the Winter Palace of the Bogd Khan, built between 1893 and 1903. It was once part of a larger complex called the Green Palace, the residence of the eighth Jebtsundamba Khutughtu, the spiritual leader who was later proclaimed Bogd Khan, ruler of Mongolia. The Bogd Khan had four main residences between the Middle and Tuul rivers, but this is the only one left. Today it is a museum, considered the oldest in Mongolia and said to hold the largest collection in the country.
Equestrian statue of Genghis Khan
Photo: Vaiz Ha · CC BY 2.0 · Wikimedia CommonsOut on the steppe, 54 kilometres east of the capital, a gleaming figure appears on the horizon. This is the world's tallest equestrian statue: Genghis Khan on horseback, 40 metres tall and made of stainless steel. It stands at Tsonjin Boldog, where, according to legend, he found a golden whip, and it points east towards his birthplace. The visitor centre beneath has 36 columns for the 36 khans from Genghis to Ligdan Khan. Here is the best part: you can walk up through the horse's chest and neck to its head for a panoramic view.
Zaisan Memorial
Photo: Quintin Soloviev · CC0 · Wikimedia CommonsClimb the hill in the south of the city to reach the Zaisan Memorial, which honours Mongolian and Soviet soldiers killed in the Second World War. It was unveiled in 1971, on the 50th anniversary of the People's Revolution. At the foot of the hill, the symbols of two nations greet you: the Mongolian Soyombo and the Soviet hammer and sickle. From here a staircase of 612 steps leads to the Heroes' Monument at the top, where a circular painting depicts scenes of friendship between the two peoples.
Gorkhi-Terelj National Park
Photo: Chongkian · CC BY-SA 4.0 · Wikimedia CommonsLeave the city behind for Gorkhi-Terelj National Park, linked to Ulaanbaatar by a paved road. Its small southern part welcomes visitors with ger camps and horses and camels for rent, but most of the park is wild and hard to reach. Brown bears roam here, and more than 250 species of birds have been recorded. Keep an eye on the rocks, which are popular with climbers. Two famous formations are named for what they resemble: Turtle Rock, and the Old Man Reading a Book.
Lomakuume
