On the second day of our couples retreat we stopped here so the couples that were not here last year could hold an eagle.  This guy also had two vultures.  Elder Hunt was the only one brave enough to hold one and have it look him in the eye.  I thought the look in the eye of the one in the top pic was saying, "Are you my dinner?"  So no I did not want to hold him close!!!

Our next stop was at a Buddhist shrine.  You can see these all over Mongolia.  I am throwing a small rock on the pile.  Not a very flattering pose of me!!!  You walk around the shrine three times putting a rock on the pile each time.  Then you make a wish or pray for something.  Most of the scarves are blue which stands for the sky or eternity.

 Then the 4 couples that did not get to ride a camel last year had the opportunity to do so.  This was a little place right beside the road.  In fact this is where we held our eagle last year.

This is a rock formation called the 100 Monk Cave.  Elder Shrope is the one in the teal colored shirt climbing up and into the cave.  It is called this because 100 monks had to hide here one winter in order not to be killed by the Russians.  It is hard to imagine trying to survive in that cave in the cold, cold winter they have here!!

We had a delicious lunch of fish at this beautiful spot back off the main road.  This national park has many beautiful rock formations.  This one reminded me of the sphinx in Egypt. 

And Elder Shrope said this one looks like an elephant.  Can you see the elephant?  Look for its eye.

Next we went to a medical temple.  This shot is from about 4 yards from where we parked the vehicle.  And of course it is all uphill!!

This is halfway up the hill looking back at the valley.  The building with the yellow roof  is the President of Mongolia's prayer house.  We were not allowed to go in it.

To get to the temple we had to cross the suspension bridge.  Right where Elder Lamoreaux is the boards were all loose at one end except for about three of them.  We had to step cautiously and it did sway!  We were told to cross only four people at a time and I held onto the cord the whole way! 

When we got to the base of the temple, we had to climb 108 steps to the top.  And yes there are 108 steps, 8 at the base and then 10 sets of 10 steps to the front porch of the temple.  We counted them.

 It was a hard climb up those steps but what a beautiful view from the top!!

 This is the inside of the temple.  The center area is where the monks pray.  And this is two of their gods.  Many people come here every weekend to pray for their health.

Also many medical students come here and study these medical manuscripts that are wrapped in yellow.  The slots on the side are where people leave money after they have prayed for health.

This is the sign over the door that says it is also a meditation center.  All around the outside of the temple on the beams of the roof's supports were depictions of the tortures a person goes through if they do not live as they should.  They were quite grotesque and so I did not take any pictures of them.

Our last stop of the day was to visit a nomadic couple in their ger.  This is their 'winter palace'.  It is where they will keep hundreds of sheep and goats when winter comes.  They will also move their ger right next to this structure so they will not have to go far to care for the animals. They cover the roof with manure from the cows and horses, then put a layer of feed grass, another layer of manure, and then another layer of grasses.  This insulates the animals from the cold but also they pull the grasses down to feed the animals during the winter.  The outsides of the walls are also covered with manure to seal the cracks and insulate against the cold.  They have larger winter palaces several yards from this one for horses and cows.  Also because they out so many animals in here, they keep each other warm also.

Then on Thursday we spent about 6 hours teaching these 6 Elders and 2 Sisters lessons to prepare them to go to the temple.  They are just beginning their mission and will serve here in Mongolia.  They left the next morning to Manila where they will receive their missionary training and go to the temple.  We look forward to their return when they will share their experience with us.  Thursday was Elder Shrope's birthday and these young people sang Happy Birthday to him, some in English and some in Mongolian.