Cincinnati Nature Center’s Winter Travel Series begins January 4, 2009, with Richard Munson’s, “Mongolia: Land of Chinggis Khaan.”

In July 2007, Richard Munson accompanied his daughter and son-in-law, both residents of Mongolia and former Peace Corps volunteers, on a 1,440 mile excursion in central and southern Mongolia.

Visitors to Cincinnati Nature Center can journey with him as he retells his adventure during CNC’s opening Winter Travel Series program January 4, 2009 at 2 p.m. Munson’s travelogue presentation gives visitors a glimpse of a place of that most can only imagine. Each Sunday in January, visitors can take a trip to a new part of the world, without leaving the comfort of the Rowe Woods auditorium.

“I was enthralled with the vastness and the subtle beauty of the land that few Westerners have the privilege of knowing,” Munson said of his journey through central Mongolia and the Gobi Desert.

From the Flaming Cliffs of Roy Chapman Andrews’ fame—who was the model for Indiana Jones in the movies—in the dry and seemingly empty reaches of the Gobi Desert, to the vast herds of sheep, goats, yaks, camels, and horses in the steppes, Munson saw sights that forever changed his view of the world. Foremost, however, were the people, the proud and friendly descendents of Chinggis Khaan (the Mongolian spelling for Genghis Khan). read more...