Gobi Diaries: A Tale of Sand, Survival, and Adventure
In Gobi Diaries: A Tale of Sand, Survival, and Adventure, Claire Dalton delivers the Mongolian half of a two-part travel saga filled with comedy, chaos, and questionable decisions. This side-splitting tale follows four overly optimistic friends—Claire, Brian, Lin, and Doug—on the first leg of an overland journey from Ulaanbaatar to Istanbul. After Claire’s French “fast train” is stopped by a fallen tree, and a brief detour through Paris and Moscow, she finally joins her companions in Mongolia—where things promptly begin to unravel.
Led by the saintly Victor and their desert-whispering driver Gambaa, the group ventures into the Gobi Desert. Showers become a myth, meals arrive with enthusiasm if not always clarity, and beds range from thin mats in gers to the cold, hard ground. They bunk with cheerful locals, battle dust storms, and endure a squat toilet with a slimy “safety rope”—offering neither safety nor peace of mind.
The adventure winds through icy canyons, vast sand dunes, and Hustai National Park, where 70 of the world’s last Takhi horses graze—if you can see them through the swirling dust. Brian tracks plague-carrying marmots, Doug seeks the perfect “toilet rock,” and Lin attempts to keep chaos at bay.
Yet amid the discomfort and disasters, it’s the warmth of the Mongolian people—offering food, shelter, and generous hospitality—that leaves the deepest impression.
From shady train-ticket deals to vodka-fueled karaoke, Dalton’s storytelling brims with humor, heart, and absurdity. The Mongolian madness ends here—but the Trans-Siberian Railway lies ahead.