BACK FROM MONGOLIA

Under those huge blue skies (wearing five layers!)

It's been called The Land of Blue Heaven, and on my return to Mongolia last month it seemed enough just to stare up above at the skies.

That blueness was almost overwhelming!

BUT there's a reason why the most revered god of the Mongolians is traditionally Tenggur, who represents the forces of the skies above - and that's because the weather can change in an instant! Death awaits the unwary!

On my arrival at Ulaan Bataar, the capital, it was over 30 Celsius. Over the next few days as I headed north on my mission - to look up the first of many people who'd helped me on my expedition of 1997 - the temperature dropped to below zero.

Reunited with the Tuvan reindeer herding families that I first got to know almost thirty years ago

There's nothing like meeting up with old friends - but all the more so with those you haven't been able to visit for a number of years. 'WE knew that we'd never forget you,' said Ganaa, a herder I'd first met when we were both young men, 'but we couldn't help but wonder if YOU would forget US!'

But I hadn't forgotten him - or his people - and soon we were sharing our memories of long ago.

And so the journey continued - to sheep and goat herders, yak herders, camel herders, and others I'd known...

It was a wonderful journey - and through my travels I was reminded not just of the value of friendship but the resilience of Mongolians (of all walks of life) in the face of an unpredictable and often harsh climate.

I'll share more of these encounters - some poignant, some unbelievably uplifting - with you over the coming weeks on Twitter/'X', Instagram and Linked In (see links on this site).

In the meantime, I'm about to be busy touring schools with my new book for children - THE NINE TIMES I NEARLY DIED - see elsewhere on this site. Exciting!