Meat Market

Since we haven't blogged much in the past few weeks there is much that we need to catch up on. Therefore, it only makes sense to write two when we have time.

A couple of weeks ago we decided to go with one of our Mongolian friends out to the primary meat market in Ulaanbaatar. Unfortunately, we did not think to take the camera with us, so I will attempt to paint a mental picture for you.

Warning: This may be more vivid than you desire especially if you don't eat meat!

Odka, our Mongolian friend, picked us up early on Saturday morning. He was going to the market for his family anyway, so we had asked if we could go along too. He was happy to have us along. We left our house at about 7:30 am. The first rays of the sun had barely begun to lighten the sky. The air was cold and crisp. A thick haze of smoke, caused by the vast number of coal burning Gers and plants, lingered over the city. The smoke captured each ray and shattered its light across the sky. The colors of the sky ranged from a pale orange on the horizon to a deep grayish blue directly above us. The streets were fairly empty, so we made good time in getting to the market which is located at the northern edge of the city in the middle of a Ger district. The early light illuminated the numerous Gers on the surrounding hills belching forth their contribution to the haze. The market had already been open for a few hours by the time we arrived, so there was a considerable number of cars and people. Odka was able to find a spot large enough for his car. We were not far from the action. Upon exciting the car our breath became as thick as the smoke hung over our heads. The sounds and smells of our immediate environment were now quite clear. Massive trucks loaded down with the dead carcases of thousands of animals were clanking into the market every few minutes. The bellowing voices of the meat merchants boomed over the din of the surrounding crowd. The cold was evidenced by the large clouds of condensation that escaped their mouths. People, all bundled up in thick coats and hats, wondered around the trucks looking at the endless supply of meat. Some with handcarts made their way through the crowd with a yell or a push. I felt like we had just stepped into a picture out of a National Geographic magazine. We entered one of the buildings and purchased the quantity of meat that we wanted. While making our way back to the vehicle, we were not only threatened by an on-coming truck but we also saw an animal carcase that was still steaming. It was quite evident that this particular creature had been alive only a few moments before.

We purchased ten kilos of meat (about 22 pounds) while we were there. Five kilos were beef while the other five were horse. All together we spent about $20 for the lot. Not too bad for that much meat.