It is important to start the new year by visiting your relatives, giving them new money or gifts (new things have no bad history attached to them), and eating as much food as you can fit in (because a full belly on Tsagaan Sar means a year of plenty of food). Tsagaan Sar starts on Sunday, and will probably be a bit subdued for many families in the countryside. Mongolia has experienced a winter disaster due to the extreme cold and lack of hay reserves after a dry summer in 2009. So far more than 2 million animals have died - which is a terrible impact on the livelihood of many many rural families. We are hearing rumours that in parts of the country people have run out of fuel and are burning anything they can to stay warm. It won't warm up here for at least another month. I have no comprehension how people survive here, but they have for centuries. I would never be strong enough...
Friday, February 12, 2010
Year of the Tiger
We are getting a lot of culture lately, well Alesia is. Today we attended the special Tsagaan Sar assembly at her school. Tsagaan Sar is the Mongolian New Year. It is bigger than Christmas is in Australia. Alesia's class bid farewell to the Year of the Cow through dance and then welcomed the Year of the Tiger. Alesia was a tiger. Below is a short video so you can get in on the action. In the dance scene Alesia is the tall one on the end (far right).
It is important to start the new year by visiting your relatives, giving them new money or gifts (new things have no bad history attached to them), and eating as much food as you can fit in (because a full belly on Tsagaan Sar means a year of plenty of food). Tsagaan Sar starts on Sunday, and will probably be a bit subdued for many families in the countryside. Mongolia has experienced a winter disaster due to the extreme cold and lack of hay reserves after a dry summer in 2009. So far more than 2 million animals have died - which is a terrible impact on the livelihood of many many rural families. We are hearing rumours that in parts of the country people have run out of fuel and are burning anything they can to stay warm. It won't warm up here for at least another month. I have no comprehension how people survive here, but they have for centuries. I would never be strong enough...
It is important to start the new year by visiting your relatives, giving them new money or gifts (new things have no bad history attached to them), and eating as much food as you can fit in (because a full belly on Tsagaan Sar means a year of plenty of food). Tsagaan Sar starts on Sunday, and will probably be a bit subdued for many families in the countryside. Mongolia has experienced a winter disaster due to the extreme cold and lack of hay reserves after a dry summer in 2009. So far more than 2 million animals have died - which is a terrible impact on the livelihood of many many rural families. We are hearing rumours that in parts of the country people have run out of fuel and are burning anything they can to stay warm. It won't warm up here for at least another month. I have no comprehension how people survive here, but they have for centuries. I would never be strong enough...
