Stage 34: From Beijing to Ulan Bator - the Gobi Desert awaits

The 34th stage of XWORLD led from Beijing to Ulan Bator and held an extraordinary challenge for the eight participants: Their mission was to drive across the Gobi Desert! The Gobi consists mostly of bare rocks or desert steppe. One of the participants wrote an account of how she and her fellow adventurers handled these conditions and everything else they experienced:

Photo op and press conference in front of the Kempinski
Photo op and press conference in front of the Kempinski
Listening to the stories of the guide in the Forbidden City
Listening to the stories of the guide in the Forbidden City
The Forbidden City
The Forbidden City
The Great Wall in the rain
The Great Wall in the rain
17.6 Yungang grottoes. Visiting the UNESCO World Cultural Heritage site
17.6 Yungang grottoes. Visiting the UNESCO World Cultural Heritage site
17.6 Lunch break
17.6 Lunch break
17.6 Yingxiang: Wooden pagoda, the oldest wooden structure in China
17.6 Yingxiang: Wooden pagoda, the oldest wooden structure in China
17.6 Two XWORLD adventurers in Yingxiang
17.6 Two XWORLD adventurers in Yingxiang
17.6 Yingxiang: Chinese NGO
17.6 Yingxiang: Chinese NGO
18.6 Datong: Linking cultures with cameras
18.6 Datong: Linking cultures with cameras
18.6 Just outside of Erenhot (Chin. border town with Mongolia)
18.6 Just outside of Erenhot (Chin. border town with Mongolia)
19.6 Erenhot, refilling canisters
19.6 Erenhot, refilling canisters
19.6 The border near Erenhot from the Chinese side
19.6 The border near Erenhot from the Chinese side
19.6 Mongolian border; vehicles being checked at the border crossing
19.6 Mongolian border; vehicles being checked at the border crossing
20.6 Mandakh; Horses on the steppe
20.6 Mandakh; Horses on the steppe
20.6 Mandakh: Muddy road
20.6 Mandakh: Muddy road
20.6 Mandakh; The camp at twilight
20.6 Mandakh; The camp at twilight
21.6 Mandakh: The camp at daybreak
21.6 Mandakh: The camp at daybreak
21.6 Mandakh: Preparing camel milk in a yurt
21.6 Mandakh: Preparing camel milk in a yurt
21.6 Mandakh: Sheep shearing
21.6 Mandakh: Sheep shearing
21.6 Mandakh: Training horses for the Naadam festival in Mongolia
21.6 Mandakh: Training horses for the Naadam festival in Mongolia
22.6 Vulture Canyon: Hiking in Vulture Canyon
22.6 Vulture Canyon: Hiking in Vulture Canyon
22.6 Vulture Canyon: Mongolian vistas
22.6 Vulture Canyon: Mongolian vistas
22.6 Vulture Canyon: Lunch
22.6 Vulture Canyon: Lunch
22.6 Singing sand dunes: Walking down the sandhills
22.6 Singing sand dunes: Walking down the sandhills
22.6 Singing sand dunes: Driving fun on the dunes
22.6 Singing sand dunes: Driving fun on the dunes
22.6 Singing sand dunes: Walking down the sandhills
22.6 Singing sand dunes: Walking down the sandhills
23.6 Ongyin: Driving fun on the road to Ongyin monastery
23.6 Ongyin: Driving fun on the road to Ongyin monastery
23.6 Ongyin: The ruins of the monastery at Ongyin
23.6 Ongyin: The ruins of the monastery at Ongyin
24.6 Avaikher: Milking horses to make airak
24.6 Avaikher: Milking horses to make airak
24.6 Avaikher: Talking with a nomad family
24.6 Avaikher: Talking with a nomad family
24.6 Avaikher: River crossing
24.6 Avaikher: River crossing
25.6 Kharakhorum: Monks call to prayer
25.6 Kharakhorum: Monks call to prayer
26.6 Ulan Bator monk in Gandan monastery
26.6 Ulan Bator monk in Gandan monastery