Naadam - fair food, handstands on horses, wrestling outfits

This weekend we were back in the capital for Naadam, Monglia's second biggest holiday.  They've been celebrating it for hundreds of years.

At the opening ceremony I sat next to an older lady whom we named Grandma:

The president of Mongolia attended the ceremony too.  We're not sure which of the important people in the box he was, but we know we saw him.  We remarked on the security measures, or absence of them - no metal detectors, scanners, or such.  He just came along to the event with the rest of us.

During the ceremony we saw some stunt men on horses.  One of them stood upright on his horse's back -- while it was cantering across the green, no less.  Another did a handstand on his horse (also while it was running).

This is khuushuur, the staple food of Naadam.  You buy it from vendors all over the place.  It's like conventional fair food that you find anywhere at a big summertime event - dripping with grease, hot, and delicious.

We saw a bit of archery, one of the three Naadam sports (horse racing and wrestling are the other two).

Wrestling is another of the three Naadam sports (horse racing is the third).  I was sitting innocently in my bleacher when all of a sudden the soldiers down in front started stripping off their uniforms.  I was taken aback till I realized they were putting on some fancy wrestling uniforms.

Today we drive back to the countryside to begin Round 2 of camp.  We'll return to the city on July 27.