In Mongolia’s countryside, the underrated joy of a bucket-list experience without phone reception

Singaporeans abroad frequently proclaim, with equal endearment and exasperation, that we can spot our fellow countrymen by hearing them before we see them. Personally, depending on what I overhear, I’ve found the Singlish accent can either ease the homesickness or make me extra sick of home.

But a work trip to Mongolia’s countryside in late August showed me another surefire method to identify a Singaporean in the literal wild: They flock to the sole Wi-Fi zone with their phone in the air, waving like a person drowning. 

To be specific, I was one of the sad souls searching for Wi-Fi at the Mongol Nomadic Camp after travelling roughly 55km from Mongolia’s capital Ulaanbaatar, during which my online access gradually faded into oblivion. 

A colleague and I were in the country for a preview of Mongolia’s first theatre production to go global, The Mongol Khan, before it comes to Singapore later this month. We’d caught the show the night before, and I hoped experiencing nomadic life firsthand, albeit in a popular tourist camp, would enhance our appreciation for the rich Mongol culture on proud display in the play.

Alas, I am but a Singaporean millennial. It didn’t seem to matter that I would be staying at the camp – which had little to no cellular reception, never mind data connection – for just one night before returning to a five-star hotel accommodation in the city. Nor that I was surrounded by the majestic landscape of the landlocked East Asian country I’d long desired to witness in person.