TRAVERSE Issue 39 - December 2023 | Page 29

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strive for despite its dangers , for to race at Naadam is to take part in cultural history and to prove you are becoming a man .
In 2010 Naadam was inscribed on UNESCO ’ s Representative List of the Intangible Cultural Heritage of Humanity , essentially enshrining it as a cultural aspect that must be preserved yet having no tangible object or writings .
As the airag was served we all baulked at the thought of another mouthful of this fermented horse milk . A liquid so unpalatable to Western tastes we passed and asked for a regular Chinggis beer , the matriarch grinned as she placed the offered sheep intestine in front of us . With little hesitation myself and
another rider in our group thrust our hands into the bowl and pulled the prepared offal to our plates , everyone seemed surprised as we devoured the protein rich foods .
In appreciation we asked our host to join us at the table as a bottle of Mongolia vodka was produced , at eight Australian dollars a bottle this stuff was cheap and yet was the best
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