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Dear <<First Name>>,
From the fertile farms of China and into Mongolia, the terrain instantly opened up and emptied out, arable agriculture seemed to have been forgotten. The Mongolian Adam and Eve hadn't touched that alluring apple: there had been no fall of grace, no broken-back from working the land for a clutch of corn. The Mongols are firmly in Abel’s camp, occasional herds are the only visible population in this sea of grass. The terrain doesn’t provide for a lazy shepherds lifestyle though. Dried-out animal corpses, likely death frozen in winter, were like ominous road signs, testifying to the unforgiving nature that encased us.
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The rich and almost rainbow colours of the mountains reflected the great and varied mineral wealth of the land, each hue of rock was another treasured ore to pull from this as of yet untouched and unbroken land. The western regions of the country have largely evaded this fate but their time is now and in the coming decades. Years ago, I was told how one could dig down anywhere in Mongolia, and it would always prove their while; Chinese-Mongolian mining collaborations are putting this saying to the test. As we were to find in Ulaanbaatar, this industry, and the money it brings, are perhaps changing the Mongol people more than the Mongol land.
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We saw the capital city UB in its best Summer season: in Winter, temperatures can easily reach -40*C, and an apocalyptic smog is birthed from the coal fires that are desperately heating the shanty ger districts. These districts ring around the city proper like a thick white studded necklace, a necklace that strangles the wearer with suffocating smog. The four Soviet-era coal power stations situated on the four points of the compass complete the air pollution problem. We interviewed representatives from Unicef and other UB residents who explained how this, the world's worst pollution, punishes the youngest poorest of UB, and how slowly solutions are coming from government. Electric heating powered by renewable energy was their consensus, what we are trying to doing at Lotus is just one breath of fresh air in an ocean of toxic fumes.
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As we realised on our much anticipated arrival, the Lotus Centre is set away from the pollution in an idyllic river valley, where life and noise abounds from the grazing herds and playing children alike. We spent 5 days at the Center, mostly just playing with the kids and understanding the workings of the massive family flourishing there. This heart-warming play melted some of the hard edges that had formed after months on the road, it was difficult but necessary to turn to planning the project on site, and discerning what other forms of help were most needed and we could best offer. More of this is discussed below.
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Besides leaving our own homes, it felt like the only place of the journey so far that prompted a real and wrenching goodbye. In a year of just passing-by, here was a place that had left a remnant in our hearts, a place we knew we would return to, and where our effort and fundraising could mean something more than our own accumulated experience.
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Latest on Lotus
We had two really successful meetings with Solar Tech CEO Erdene and project manager BK. The team were so professional, knowledgeable and helpful, and we achieved a lot in short time together,
We now have a more concrete project schedule: orders for hardware will be made in Febuary, work can begin in April or May as the ground thaws, and by June we should be ready for an opening and operations.
Erdene has kindly agreed to give a workshop to some of the older interested kids on the renewable energy industry in Mongolia and employment opportunities therein, and an instruction course for basic operation of the plant. We want to set a system run by a few older monitors, whereby the kids can track the performance of the plant and work out the savings being made, gaining valuable experience in the process.
Learn more about Lotus Children’s Centre
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Special Thanks
The horse-transport driver who patiently lit our way on a treacherous dark night, and the 'Kimchi' brand of instant noodles for sustaining us when all else failed. In UB, Alex and Mushi from the UN for the pollution interviews, and Erdene and BK from Solar Tech for the progress meetings.
At Lotus, Didi, Mahananda, Ruby and all the kids and staff for looking after us so well and providing powerful motivation for the trip ahead.
Finally, to Asli and Nadine for enduring Mongolian telecoms, our ceaseless fatigue and all the rest.
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Following in the Foot-Steppes of Ghenghis
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Initially in Mongolia, we only shared the road with coal trucks, they were to be our constant companions for the first 300km of the country. Passing us every 20 minutes, they formed a jet black conveyor belt back to the Chinese border. Eventually we reached the quarrying operations that now dwarfed the mountain being mined, metallic churnings were heard for miles over the otherwise silent steppe. The moment we passed the source of this river of coal, road quality fell away from peerless tarmac down to utter rubble.
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The endless train of coal lorries headed for China
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The downgrade in the road was the clearest and most concise insight into the motives behind Chinese investment and road-building in Mongolia. This was not a road built for the people of Mongolia but for the factories of China. This made me wonder how fundamentally different our Mongolian cycle touring experience would have been at the time of my last visit in 2013 before much of this influx of industry. In a small and indirect way, this why we were installing the solar project at Lotus, and this battalion of trucks, perfect asphalt and blackened mountain are what we are up against.
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Our first settlement was the town of Bulgan, where Gers were now more common than houses, here nomads are majority in motion. We saw kids stream from their white canvas mushrooms and into the river to splash around with their family horses. One could see the bonds forming that have defined these equine people in history. From playmates to place-mats though, as horsemeat dumplings were the only available fare upon inspection of the handful of cafes. Served as a trial of six, each grizzled and grease soaked ball of mincemeat was set in a dough fortress, and the rancid meat juice burst forth like cavalry from a castle under siege. A single and symbolic plate of these was all we could manage, upon each attempted mouthful my stomach would tense up and my spine would roll in a wave of disgust. We then offered to pay for two bowls of hot water to make a pair of instant noodles for each of us. Over the next fortnight, these noodles wound around the rest of our diet and constricted it. At our peak, we ate six packs a day and not much else.
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On the road out we met another cyclist: a wiry Mongolian chap who was aiming to be the first person to cycle around the whole border of his country. He was perfectly placed to tell us of the roads ahead. He assured us that the smaller of the two roads was properly surfaced, and that although there were no towns for 350km nor any rivers marked, there were some mountain streams that would allow us to refill. On this and this alone, we chose the more remote route to the East, placing our fate wholly in the word of a fellow cyclist.
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Whether it be a small thing like picking the right restaurant, a mid-level issue like finding a campsite, or a major route decision, we've become more in tune with gut feeling. I feel now like I have a toy 'black 8-ball' down there that is shaken and judged at each juncture. It seems to be right far more than half the time, and as such I'm learning to place more faith in this internalised shamanic entrail spilling.
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The infinite steppe means that real progress on a bike is to be made only with the favour of the wind gods. A decent tailwind can almost double our cruising speed to over 35 km/h, whilst a head wind can crush it near half. At times we've even been reliant on a fortuitous wind not to run out of water. When the wind is good and the asphalt exists, one can appreciate the scenery, or indeed the company, to a fuller extent. The long lonesome terrain proved fertile ground for some richer and meaningful conversations. Because of the isolating chamber of air rushing past at 35km/h and no human existence for hundreds of km, ideas are spoken that would be too fragile or bashful for any more of a public setting.
This opportunity for contemplation and freedom of expression away from judgement was one of the big reasons for both of us in doing this trip now. I saw this trip as a culmination of education in a way, in line with the Rockefeller approach to a life in thirds (25-50-75 plus life expectancy growth), these are: an education in the widest sense; creating value in the world, and then giving it back to do the most good. With the majority of the journey done and nearing its outward purpose, the expansive steppe of Mongolia gave space for ourselves to open into. The fermenting emotions and contemplative thoughts could take form here, and take their nascent steps into beliefs and principles - green shoots of meaning for the rest of life.
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We endured through several days where the road broke down to a Bronze Age state, we each had more crashes in a single hour than in the whole 14,000km previously. Morale and speed plummeted, the passing 16 wheelers looked like rockets taking off sideways in the sand, such were the brown billows from their tails. Within a minute or two of this goat path cum motorway, every crease of our skin was filled to the brim with a powdering of fine dirt and sweat, and our panniers and bikes had taken on an earthy matte finish.
A few reflections were formed when washing off these travails in a fly infested river meadow under a full moon. The river was just shoulder-width, but waste deep and fast-flowing, the whinnying of horses closing in on my bathing completed the immersion. Stark naked in that stream, the weeks of outdoor living aggregated and for a moment broke that conception of us humans as apart from it all. This veil, between us and nature as is, is thrown up from our first cry when we are immediately swathed in the already artificial cotton skin. That second skin is so rarely pierced throughout our well insulated lives, and ever less so as digitalisation adds another layer of separation. This removal of the veil did not last however, and any revelation was retracted the next evening upon our first night in civilisation for a fortnight.
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Bayankhongor has a swelling population of 30,000, putting it amongst Mongolia's largest mega-cities. There was 'high' fashion on the streets, a couple of almost coffee houses, and a full two restaurants to choose from. In these nomadic regions, Karaoke houses often prove the only place to eat out in a town. In a quirk of modernity, they play the central role of community building: the eternal power of communal singing is harnessed in this late 20th century guise.
In one sitting we bought the equivalent of three square meals each, we half-hoped this feasting would make us valuable customers and allow us to stay for the night, it wasn't to be. And nor would it have been plausibleto get any sleep here, a circle of Mongolian hell was strung out on the Karaoke corridor flanking the kitchens. Woeful worldwide karaoke classics churned with traditional Mongolian folk-opera, no sound isolation in any of the separating 'wonder'walls. The stark white strip-lighted corridor had seven doors for seven booths, each private circle that could have well have inspired Dante in this millennium. The floor of a damp hotel store-room was our eventual heavenly-retreat, a small but stolid respite before exposure on the steppe again.
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Lotus
We think its important to give you our loyal following and supporters a genuine warts-and-all appraisal of Lotus. A rose-tinted 'Live Aid-esque' money magnet advert will not give you the understanding of the real issues and dynamics at Lotus. These workings are sometimes bursting with love, at other points riven with pain, but for the largest part are filled with the sheer mundanities and profundities of growing up.
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In Summer time and in some ways, the 100 abandoned or orphaned children in Lotus' care enjoy a childhood that Western parents would pay thousands for, sending their kids to Waldorf schools or fancy Summer camps. The natural setting in an idyllic river valley is the start. Mountains tower to one side, this presented a pre-breakfast hiking challenge, where we were guided up by a pair of 10 year-olds and the Center's predominant dog, Tina. Delicious wild berries were foraged on the slopes, and enjoyed on the summit's panorama looking over UB in the distance. On the other side, the Center is flanked by a river breaking into miniature deltas and meadows. We led one sunny afternoon expedition up to the river's spring, the freezing spring-water is long thought to have healing properties, and whilst our party slurped from our hands, a dozen cars stopped there to fill up too.
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In the compound itself, a few horses graze peacefully, whilst a clutch of hens can be more raucous, dogs have been adopted and watch for intruders on bicycles. From the toddlers in the nursery to the teenagers on the sports court, hours of the day are spent playing outside. Screens are noticeably absent, just a few of the older sponsored children may have a mobile phone, but the tactile world dominates the digital one. The food is plain but healthy, we had more vegetables here than the rest of our time in Mongolia combined. The tap water is the same delicious spring-water as described above. The kids learn baking in a professionally out-kitted kitchen, there is a fully-tooled wood and metal workshop, and there is an arts and craft center with some activity ongoing most days. But more significant than all this, as many parents will testify, the kids have constant access to a near infinite pool of playmates.
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In these respects and from these angles, Lotus may seem a like a holiday camp, and you may question if more money or support is really needed. But this is the Center at its most carefree, in the beautiful summer months when kids can play outdoors, and the season when almost all of volunteers come to help and enrich the place in a whirl of group activities. However, while smiling volunteers come and go with the breeze, critical permanent staff are outnumbered and overstretched. The Centre's founder, Didi, counts some veteran staff of over 15 years, but staff churn is high where the stress and strain of the job can't be well compensated. Burn-out can be contagious, and constant turnover doesn't provide the kids with stability in key relationships. Moreover, the bitter cruelty of the winters puts an end to much of the outdoor idyll, and frustrations can boil over as fingers freeze in these harsher months.
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Harry getting a quick perm in the Lotus Salon
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Living in a true community, rather than as the dependents in a traditional family unit means that the kids are incredibly self-sufficient. During our stay the cook took 5 days off after a non-stop fortnight with extra volunteer groups. And so, cooking and cleaning was then done by rota through houses, split into age and sexes. So a house of 6 girls between from 9-13 will be fully and successfully responsible for cooking for 80 people, and 6 boys around age 8 will do all the kitchen cleaning. Alternatively, one of the dogs was wounded badly in a fight, few of the older kids could quietened him down, and then removed dozens of maggots from inside the canine's head and disinfected the wound. We also witnessed a group of young teenagers bake an industrial quantity of bread in several varieties, enough to feed the whole center for 3-4 days.
In familial normality all of these undertakings would likely be performed or at least marshalled by a parent and all on a far smaller scale, here mass cooperative tasks are performed with minimal fuss, we were left feeling like skivers despite our best efforts. The mass teamwork and collaboration is astounding, be it in the kitchen, bakery, or mass choreographing birthday celebrations. I feel that many of these kids' social and team-working abilities and 'EQ' would be way above average. Moreover, I suspect their is English is better than the average Mongolian child too, namely because of the number and nature of volunteers they have through.
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Communal dance sessions are a daily occurrence
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The above paints a youthful eutopia, but in reality it was no contrived or all-smiling model of harmony. Older kids of 7-8 often seemed vindictive or sometimes outright cruel to the toddlers: they might remove their toys, slap them on the head, or even playfully lock them up en masse in a mini ger. Currently, self policing is the quick fix, where the most mature 'sisters' (+15 y/o's) protect the youngest from the 8-10 y/o terrors. . But more staff and supervision would help limit this natural 'law of the jungle', like my own mother did in sheltering Tom, my own younger brother, from my vindictive abuses. Whilst the staff being in short supply maybe helps the kids accelerate to a form of independence and self-reliance, this is perhaps at the expense of encouraging self reflection or other forms of subtle nurturing.
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A mountain view of the Lotus Centre
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Mahananda is a serial volunteer at Lotus, as well as running auto engineering workshops he helps the children in self-knowledge and connecting more positively to themselves and others. The origins of the center lie with Didi and her path of compassion which is rooted in the same ground as Mahananda - they were both disciples in the same spiritual order. He is transplanting the sustainability of his life in an Australian commune to Lotus: creating buildings made from sandbags and recycled bottles and tires, starting off a permaculture effort, and getting the circular notion of wast products spinning there. His work here is really aligned with our solar project and a fertile conversation grows out of this.
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He explained how this is more to alter the children's mentality as it is to alter their living conditions. The emphasis is to get the children to understand that what they need is sometimes already in their direct environment if used in the right way, to pull the children and staff from a reliance on external aid to a cycle of sustainability where their needs are met on the land about them, the sunlight above them, and through the in-house initiatives that will grow and create value for them. This lesson and mentality applies as much of not more to the inner existence as the outer one also being cultivated. 15-20 years ago in Mongolia, nomadic life necessitated circular living and people practiced the skills and mentality for that mode of living. Since then the excesses of waste capitalism have rushed in and broken that virtue, even in the relative haven of Lotus. The most fertile and powerful place to reinvigorate that sustainability is in the minds of children.
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Arts and crafts
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On the day of departure, we had breakfast in Didi's cabin up on the hill. After two decades of living in a Ger (yurt) onside and despite protestations, a donor built her a small house. Didi drew the line at running water, saying the piping was too expensive given the other needs of the Center. The charming vegan breakfast of muesli and smoothie sided with salted cucumber toast could have been served up in one of the trendiest vegan brunch spots in Amsterdam.
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I couldn't wait to push past the pleasantries and get into Didi's arc of experience, 'it started with lunch for one kid, then his friend, then a few more, and then before you know there are 120 of them.' Help and love isn't measured and metered out with Didi or Lotus, but flows in a torrent from a deep point of the heart.
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She explained how traditionally there is no culture of philanthropy in Mongolia, at the very start Didi found it difficult to explain to neighbours why she was helping the street kids. They could not easily comprehend why she would want to help 'bad kids without parents', there just wasn't a category for her actions. Moreover, government authorities and regulation in constant flux have proved a regular thorn in the side for Lotus. Each 2-year government lifespan has a mentality of 'get in, get rich, get out'. Every cycle entails the wholesale replacement of official posts with the new family, friends and 'favour creditors', all this leads to burdensome changes in regulation for Lotus to comply with.
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The densely populated ‘Ger’ district in Ulaanbaatar
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When pried hard on the real obstacles she is facing she was eventually forthcoming: there is a lack of male role models at Lotus, especially Mongolian speaking ones. The Center's location is around an hour outside the city centre, more in traffic, this is great for air and life quality for the kids, but again doesn't help in staff retention. Donations are not always the most sensible objects, which can lead to the hoarding impractical and expensive divisive toys, whilst money lacks for heating and food.
There are donor Scholarships for a few kids to go to the posh English school, but there are concerns an observed up-swell in the arrogance and cheekiness of the beneficiaries, probably derived from their more privileged peers.
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The focus is now moving away from such western-branded schooling, where the school itself can be conceited and western culture and ideas are pedestalled without critique or circumspection. She is looking to start up again the school at Lotus, and balance the acquisition of modern skills with the absorption of Mongolian culture and the development of good character traits. A powerful but unorthodox donation would be to sponsor an extra staff member over a scholarship for just one child. This is suggested as to where the money could best go, whilst maintaining a personal nature to the gift.
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In the end the most fundamental fact is that more money for basic operations is needed, this comes from increasing the flow of cash donations, or being able to cut the running costs of the orphanage. With vegetable gardens and burgeoning beehives, they are working toward food independence, heating and energy is the area that the Rising Sun Cycle is acting upon. Plain money is not always the 'nicest' gift to give for the donor, but it is often the most useful when through long experience the charity really knows how to best spend it.
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No child is singly good or bad, just as no family or Center can be either. The sheer numbers of people and of relationships at Lotus brought intense insight into this law of variety. Sometimes when one thinks of orphaned or abandoned children, the mind emphasises the 'orphaned and abandoned' part, rather than the 'children' - there is an assumption that the kids must be different in a myriad of ways. Though really the same core elements of childhood ring out: laughter and tears, cruelty and grace, home and community and yet missing and yearning. How this normality of childhood shines through in potentially catastrophic conditions is the real testament to the beautiful work at Lotus, and why we want to work so hard for its continuation and ever-improvement.
This journey in its course has meant many things to us, but we learnt in this short stay that Lotus provides the anchor of meaning. An anchor holding the heart in place and the mind true for when the legs grow weary, a place and a community that grounds this mad trip in meaningful reality.
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