Been a while. I had been hoping to write everyday. My plan has fallen into disarray. It’s easy to fall off course when there’s so many people and things to keep up with. Relationships. Family. Friends. New Friends. Laundry. Groceries. Cooking. Working. Television. Netflix. Reading. I could go on. Needless to say, I am enjoying my stay here in Mongolia and learning everyday.
To begin with, I want to talk about my apartment. It is very spacious. It has two excess size bedrooms, two bathrooms, a full kitchen, a family room area with a big screen TV, and more lights than I can count on my two hands (and possibly toes). I couldn’t have asked to for a nicer place. I had no involvement in choosing it.
I’m grateful for the firm’s thoughtfulness and care. I found out after I arrived that they were thinking of putting me up in an appartment that was further away from the office and apparently was not in as safe an area. It was the last minute when they secured this place. That’s why my colleagues could only give the office address when I asked over and over again. It all makes sense now!
Apartment Pros
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It is humongous (anyone is welcome to come visit! A family of 4 could get by here without problems. I guess apartments are normally this large because Mongolia is so sparsely populated.)
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The apartment is nicely decorated, some of which is very ornate and fancy. It is fully furnished (having a sectional couch is key to my relaxation. A desk and comfy chair is also helpful. Yes, I still have some leftover work from Canada to complete. I can’t wait to finish it, but I am procrastinating here and there).
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I’m on the 12th floor, so I have an good view and I’m high in the sky.
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The applicances, eletronics, and lighting work fine other than figuring out how to flip cable channels on the TV, not that the shows would be in English anyway. I have to give thanks to my husband for helping me figure out where the power grid is and how to plug in the stove. Everything was unplugged, except for the fridge.
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There’s an in-suite laundry that functions as a washer and a dryer.
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There is a large tub in the master bathroom in which I plan to have at least 3 bubble bathes while I’m here (3 sounded like a good number to me. We’ll see how many I actually take).
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The apartment is cleaned weekly. The firm had initally offered to have it cleaned twice a week, but since I’m only one person, I insisted that once a week was more than fine.
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Most importantly, there is wifi. And that’s all there is to say about that.
Apartment Cons
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I’m all by myself in such a big place. If I don’t keep myself occupied, I think about how quiet and empty it is and start to feel homesick. So far I’m coping okay. Some days are harder than others. When I feel lonely, I reach out to family and friends on my phone and then I feel connected again. I recognize the power of the internet and I am so thankful to be able to feel close to family and friends despite them being hundreds of thousands of kilometers away.
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Other cons are not having a dishwasher, having to translate Mongolian/Korean/Russian into English, and there is only one lamp. Not having a dishwasher is really not that bad because I am cooking for one (something I’m still getting used to and not sure I ever will).
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I’ve learned that it is fairly normal to leave dishes in the sink in the morning when you’re a working professional. There is just not enough time to get ready, eat breakfast, and then wash all the dishes before going to work. It’s that last task that doesn’t get finished. But at the end of the day, the dishes are cleaned, the sink cleared.
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Translating non-English language is managable with the Google translate app on your phone. I could not have done my laundry last week without it.
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The lamp situation is not that fun, but livable. I take the lamp back and forth between the ‘office’ bedroom and the ‘master’ bedroom when I need to. I’ve learned that I like having softer/non-ceiling/study light on in the evening. It changes the mood and helps keep me focused.
In all, I am finding this temporary place of living comfortable and an environment that is allowing me to reflect on and realize my likes and dislikes about a home.