Unusual Sauna Experience
The Ger camp that we stayed in Lake Khovsgol (Lake Hovsgol), Ancient Resort converted a large wooden log house into a first class sauna facility with separate sauna rooms for men and women. This wooden log house also equipped with modern bathing facilities with hot shower and lockers. To have an unusual sauna experience, we planned to jump into the freezing cold Lake Hovsgol or Lake Khovsgol (of less than 5 degree) for our final dip and run back run back to the sauna house to warm our freezing bodies. This is our final dip because Lake Hovsgol is the last lake we would visit for our 8 Day Mongolia Adventure Trip.
We executed our plan carefully – We put on the bathrobe and walked to the jetty. We removed the bathrobe unwillingly and placed them nicely near the jetty so that when we got out of the water, we could quickly put on the bathrobe and ran to the sauna room. We did some exercise to warm up our body as the lake was really freezing cold. Everything was according to plan… BUT…
In the end, we had to dip twice in the freezing cold lake (it felt like zero degree) because we forgot to pose for photographs. My legs felt like having thousand of needles prickling into the bones when I stayed more than 3 seconds in the water. We clambered out of the water clumsily and hastily make our way to the comforting sauna room.
This is definitely one the best and most unforgettable “cold and hot” sauna experiences I’ve ever had. Fellow travellers who did not try the lake dipping called us crazy but deep inside, we were rejoicing that we did it!
Dinner and Singing Competition
After the crazy lake dipping, we were hungry and eager for dinner. We were served grilled fishes for dinner! That was a nice change from the previous meals where we had mostly lamb or beef. Besides, the fish dishes are considered rare in Mongolia because there are no seas in Mongolia and the locals do not really fancy eating fish. The fish served to us were very fresh and they were caught by the resort staff from the lake the day before. We also tasted some Mongolian smoked fish which were bought by our caring drivers from a nearby town after knowing we like to eat fish!
After the dinner, the resort’s staff dressed up in traditional Mongolian garb and performed for us. They sang and played the “Ma Tou Qin” or 马头琴(horse-head two string fiddle), a traditional musical instrument.
We enjoyed the performance so much that when the show ended, we sent our musically inclined Mr Leong up to perform! We decided to show them our Singaporean style of singing or karaoke – he played the electronic organ while we sang along the evergreen song “The Moon Represents My Heart” (月亮代表我的心） by Teresa Teng.
It was a really a fun-filled evening which we truly enjoyed and it was one of the happiest days of the adventure trip.
