Arizona Veterans Memorials

For Veterans Day this year, I decided to go out and visit some of the unique Veterans Memorials around Arizona. It’s a time to honor those who served in the US Armed Forces, and having so many family members myself in the military, I decided to join in the celebrations here in Arizona.

Indigenous People’s Day

There is a very large Native American presence here in Arizona, so it was no surprise to hear that Phoenix is the largest US city that observes Indigenous People’s Day in place of Columbus Day (this year, October 10th), which was first celebrated in Colorado in 1909. There has been a popular movement in recent […]

International Women’s Day

Did you know? It happened this past Friday, and it’s a national holiday in Mongolia, meaning that schools are closed and government workers get the day off. How you celebrate International Women’s Day differs from region to region, even from home to home. Most schools have concerts or parties to celebrate women’s day. My school […]

Happy Birthday, Chinggis Khaan

First, there is something to be noted about the man’s name. Many of us in the West know him as Genghis, while he is most assuredly Chinggis in his homeland. Why? Well, you have to look back at the chroniclers of his life to understand why. Rashid-al-Din wrote an important history collection called Chronicles, and […]

The Halloween That Almost Wasn’t

“You can’t have a Halloween party. A few years ago, a girl in UB, she died. From being shocked. I think Mongolians cannot handle this holiday.” Words that, in retrospect, sound like they came from someone who had only read about Mongolia, and never experienced it. Mongolians have taken to Halloween. It comes naturally. Interest […]