A festival in a frigid park on the edge of the world’s coldest capital in February might not sound like a crowd-puller – but in Mongolia an inaugural celebration of nomadic culture was in fine fettle last week.
The seven-day event is part of authorities’ efforts to boost tourism during the country’s bitter winters, when temperatures can drop to below minus 40 degrees Celsius (minus 40 Fahrenheit).
Though it was far warmer than that, a persistent wind whipped around glittering, metres-high ice sculptures as visitors ducked in and out of the round yurt tents set up to showcase Mongolia’s various provinces.
“There was no particular thing that surprised me very much, but … it was really nice to get an update and a refresher on our traditional culture,” Ulaanbaatar resident Darkhan Altantsetseg said.
“It’s a nice way of reminding us that our culture is so rich.”