How Mongolia Adventure Began

Mongolia It was one of the countries I wanted to see the most… Vast steppes, the most beautiful desert in the world, magnificent mountains, lakes, rivers… Nomads living freely in the wild, various animals… And for more, Mongolia was at the top of the list of countries I wanted to go to for a long time…

But flight options were few and the available flights were also expensive. It was possible to pass through Russia or China, but since we had problems with those countries, it did not seem logical to plan for this year again. Would dreams be left for another spring? By the way, I bought a house last year and I had a burden of paying a loan. For this reason, it seemed more logical to throw my costly travels into the following years….

Part of me said that, but the other part of me definitely wanted to go to Mongolia this year. The events started just when such thoughts were thin… The story I wrote at length below tells how all the stones came together to make my Mongolia trip come true.

Those Who Share My Mongolia Dream

1. my family

January 8th is my birthday. Since my family knows my love of traveling, they have been giving me cash to buy a plane ticket for my birthday for a while. This year, my birthday gift was 1000TL from my mother and father, who were the first sponsors of my Mongolia trip. I am very, very lucky to have a family that supports me so much in making my dreams come true. This unexpected money caused my dream of Mongolia to sprout again, it was a sign and I had to act 🙂 But the plane tickets were still very expensive.

2. my friends

A few months ago, in the midst of a busy working day, I received a message from my dear friend, Farrota Gökhan, saying, "There is a campaign in Air Astana, look at Ulanbator". I couldn't look at it during the day, just as I was about to leave work, Gökhan's message came to my mind. I thought I'd have a look before I left, and what should I see, the plane ticket is only 1300TL. At first, I couldn't believe my eyes, but this was very good news because I had been looking for plane tickets all the time and I could find tickets for the cheapest 3000TL. It must have been a miracle.

Just then, my best friend travel dust Burcu's advice came to my mind. “Turna.com supports travelers, contact them for ticket sponsorship,” he said. I thought I'd try my luck Turna.comI sent a message to Abdulkadir Bey. After a very short time, I received a reply from Abdulkadir Bey saying “We would be happy to support you”. That day must have been my lucky day!

3. Turna.com

Now all I had to do was set the dates. I started looking to see when I could find the most suitable tickets if I combined Ramadan Feast with a week's holiday, meanwhile I asked Abdulkadir from Turna.com how to do it, he said, "Make a reservation on the site, you will gain time both to get permission and to make a decision." It was very logical! When I made a reservation, Air Astana gave me an option only 1 hours later, so I had to decide everything within 2 hours. The ticket also has a campaign, now you bought it, I was afraid that I would not find this price tomorrow.

4. My Workplace

By the way, it's past 21:00 in the evening, my option is until 23:00. I sent an e-mail to my boss to get permission, I started to wait for an answer to my phone in my hand 🙂 At that time, the boss answers my work-related e-mails, and I wait for him to reply to my leave mail. At that time, my phone started to ring, the boss is calling 🙂 I opened it on a whim, he was calling about work, we talked for 10 minutes. It will just close, "Did you see my permission mail?" I said, “We'll talk tomorrow, what's your hurry” 🙂 In addition to the explanation that my ticket options are filling up, I explained that it was a trip that I really wanted and that this was a great opportunity. The answer I got at the end was “ok, fill out the consent form” 🙂 It was as if they had given me a never ending lucky day.

Before my option expired, I finally took care of the flight ticket business that day at the last minute of 22:45. Finally, I had a MONGOLIA ticket, with the sponsorship of Turna.com. I was one step closer to my dreams and for free 🙂

5. Travelers Campus Event

It was as if I was jumping from one subject to another, but at Anadolu University, Travelers on Campus I was invited to the event as a speaker. I would like to thank everyone from the organization team, especially Alptekin, who invited me to the event.

Between the presentations, we had the opportunity to chat with many students. One of the students was Jugi, a Mongolian student studying in Eskişehir. We chatted with Jugi and he said he could help if I had any questions about my trip to Mongolia. After I made my route, we corresponded from time to time and even planned to travel together. Jugi's school is over at the end of June, we will meet in Ulan Bator and we will travel to Mongolia together.

This beautiful coincidence will probably make my travel plans in Mongolia much easier. Don't forget how small the world is.

6. Saleduck

One day I got an email from a company called Saleduck. They were saying that they were planning to organize a competition among travel blogs in Turkey and that they included my blog among the finalists. The winner will be determined by user votes and a total of 1800 TL will be awarded (in the form of 1. 1000 TL, 2. 500 TL and 3. 300 TL).

For those who are curious about Saleduck; A coupon platform based in Amsterdam, broadcasting in 10 countries in Europe and Asia.

7. My followers

Normally, I don't have time to spend my time and energy for such competitions, but when I received this e-mail, a voice inside me said, "Another boost to the Mongolia budget"... The end time of the competition and my departure times matched. Indeed, although Turkey's best travel blogs were among the finalists, I became the winner of the Saleduck Travel Blog Awards with the support of my followers. 1000 TL more support came to my Mongolia budget.

It was as if the universe had mobilized for me to go to Mongolia…

That's why you shouldn't talk big!

Everything May Not Go Well All The Time, It May Go!

One morning, an e-mail from Air Astana left all my joy in my crop. Air Astana flights to Ulanbator were cancelled, I immediately called the Air Astana call center. If I wanted to, they would fully refund the price of my ticket or I could make a change for another route. By the way, we are talking with the call center in Almaty as Air Astana does not have a call center in Turkey.

BUT I WANTED TO GO TO MONGOLIA!

9. Darling

There is nothing better than having a life partner who supports one's dreams. When my boyfriend heard that the ticket was cancelled, he said, “Whatever happens, you will go to Mongolia, we will take care of the plane ticket, it is not more valuable than your dreams”... Of course, I was very relieved and very happy 🙂

Still, I expressed my rebellion on my social media accounts. I received comments that Air Astana has codeshare flights with THY and that they may change the ticket for Mongolia. I got a message from Jugi, the tickets of his friends who were in a similar situation were exchanged with THY. So I called Air Astana again, again in the middle of the night. We corresponded until 2 am, and during this time I was clearly informed that I could change tickets.

10. Air Astana Employee Ainash

The next morning I called Air Astana again, this time with a customer representative named Ainash, who we could communicate in English, we managed to change the ticket! I thanked Ainash so much 🙂 Everything went so well that I gained 2 more days in Mongolia due to the changing flight times! While I was happy about this, I was informed that they will also meet my hotels in Almaty and Bishkek, where I will stay during the transfer, and airport transfers.

It seems as if the saying that God will make his beloved slave lose his donkey first and then find it, fits perfectly in this situation.

My sponsors, followers, friends, lover, family… I will take their financial and moral support with me on my trip to Mongolia. Endless thanks to everyone who shared my dreams...

Let's see what awaits me in Mongolia, where I had many adventures even before I set out.