Bags are packed, and I'm on my way to Heathrow.
Heading to Debconf in Busan, Korea 🇰🇷, followed by Wikimania in Katowice, Poland 🇵🇱.
#Debconf #DebConf24 #Wikimania #Busan #Katowice #BristolTempleMeads #BagsPacked #TechConference #ConferenceTravel #TravelAddict
Tunnel between Heathrow 5A and 5B. Nobody else here, just me.
In my hotel room, there's a photo of someone in bed with a dog. This is Germany, so naturally, the dog is eating a pretzel.
#MoxyFrankfurtAirport #QuirkyHotelRoom #DogWithPretzel #TravelAddict
Back at Frankfurt airport. Today I'm flying to Seoul with MIAT, a Mongolian airline. I've got a fifteen hour layover in Ulaanbaatar, the capital of Mongolia. My hold bag is checked all the wait to Seoul.
#Debconf #Debconf24 #MIAT #FrankfurtAirport #Ulaanbaatar #ConferenceTravel #TravelAddict #LongLayover
Mongolia, here I come!
#debconf24 #DebConf #conferencetravel #traveladdict #miat #frankfurtairport
The jetway computer says "Detecting IDE drives...", which doesn't inspire confidence.
I've arrived in Mongolia, and I've got my passport stamp.
#conferencetravel #stampcollecting #traveladdict #passportstamp #debconf24 #mongolia
7am breakfast at the Mongolian nomad camp. My guide looked up what the name for the food, she said it translates as 'dairy product'.
#ConferenceTravel #Nomad #MongolianNomads #TravelAddict #food #breakfast
Looking around the Mongolian nomad camp
I had the unique experience of joining in with milking the horses.
The nomads keep foals tied to a long rope fixed to two stakes on the ground. At milking time, they detach a foal and lead it to its mother, allowing it to drink briefly before starting the milking process. My guide, Buyna, was the one doing the milking.
Unlike milking cows, which involves sitting on a milking stool, milking horses requires a fabric knee pad for kneeling on the ground.
I hoped to align my visit with Naadam, a vibrant showcase of wrestling, horse racing, and archery, but this year the dates had changed. After emailing several tour operators without success, I turned to Airbnb and organised a stay with local nomads. The host was accommodating, arranging for someone to guide me through the nomadic life for just $100. This included an English-speaking guide, a driver, and meals—an exceptional deal, deserving of a generous tip.
The experience was authentically enriching; it wasn't a staged tour but a genuine interaction with Mongolian nomads. The simplicity of organizing such a unique visit through a few emails was astounding, I got lucky and hit the jackpot.
Ulaanbaatar has a newly built airport connected by a fresh road. To reach the nomad camp, we briefly followed this road before veering off onto bumpy dirt tracks for about 30 minutes. We navigated in a Toyota Prius—not exactly a 4x4—so I felt every bump. While Mongolians drive on the right, many of their cars, including ours, are right-hand drives imported from Japan.
Internet connectivity was excellent throughout the journey; I enjoyed a strong 4G signal the entire time including at the camp.
I spent a gripping 45 minutes riding with a local horseman who spoke only Mongolian. At one point, he gestured for me to try some horseback photography.
He had us galloping through the vast landscapes, which seemed effortless to him. He would have happily continued for hours, but after 45 minutes, I was ready to call it a day.
Getting the hang of the stirrups was a challenge, and let’s just say there was a bit of unintended friction. Now, sitting down has become a delicate art for me.
After spending twelve hours at the nomad camp, I headed back to the airport for my flight to Seoul. I always choose a window seat and luck was on my side again—I managed to spot the nomad camp from the air as we ascended.
#MongolianNomads #ConferenceTravel #TravelAddict #Debconf24 #Debconf #AerialPhotography
Time for the next leg of my journey to #DebConf24
As I waved goodbye to Mongolia, my passport received a fresh stamp from Chinggis Khaan Airport—commemorating yet another adventure in the land of Genghis Khan.
Next stop? South Korea! Upon arrival, the usual stamp was replaced with a sleek entry confirmation sticker, a futuristic touch that piqued my curiosity. I'm looking forward to exploring what the future holds here!
#ConferenceTravel #StampCollecting #TravelAddict
#PassportStamp #DebConf
Seoul is quite different from the Mongolian steppe.
#ConferenceTravel #TravelAddict
#DebConf #DebConf24 #Myeongdong #Seoul #SouthKorea
At the nomad camp in Mongolia, I spotted small rodents darting in and out of burrows. After some research, I believe they were Tarbagan marmots.
#Marmot #MongolianNomads #DebConf24 #DebConf #ConferenceTravel
Chinggis Khan International Airport
#ConferenceTravel #DigitalNomad #DebConf24 #DebConf #TravelAddict
The view from my hotel room in Myeongdong, Seoul
#HotelRoomView #ConferenceTravel #Debconf #DebConf24 #Myeongdong #Seoul #SouthKorea #TravelAddict
Thanks to a fortuitous Mastodon exchange with @ianthetechie, I found myself joining a group of remote-working programmers at a coffee shop in the Mapo district on my first day in Seoul.
As the day drew to a close, we popped over to a Korean BBQ restaurant called Donjose for some excellent belly pork and kimchi.
Massive thanks to Ian and the group for the warm welcome, delightful company, and insider tips for my 3-week stay in South Korea.
Shout out to @kcalvinalvin for the group photo.
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