“For this first story, unfortunately, there are no known photos. All my pictures from Eastern Europe, the USSR, and Mongolia were lost while I was traveling in China during the autumn of 1985.”

I’m posting a few photos which I got from Google search and Wikipedia to help fill in some of the images that are described in the story.

The Ulan Bator Hotel https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ulaanbaatar_Hotel

Vintage postcard of the Hotel Ulan Bator

“Sukhbaatar Square was larger than any other I had ever seen before. In the center, there was an immense statue of a general sitting on a horse. As I put my foot into the street about to cross into the plaza, I abruptly pulled it back onto the sidewalk and froze in my tracks. Marching through the square was a contingent of soldiers clutching rifles.” https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sükhbaatar_Square

“I had never been threatened with a gun before. Now I was surrounded by five soldiers brandishing arms in my direction. I could see that these young Mongolian recruits, who were all about my age, seemed scared. Of the many things to be concerned about, the most worrisome was that every one of them had their finger on the trigger.” Photo circa 1980s https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mongolian_Armed_Forces

“With all the pomp of young men following orders but not their conscience, they carried themselves with the same attitude as the chaps who had held me captive yesterday morning. From across the expanse, I could see that some of them had taken sight of me and began gawking in my direction.”

“… I stopped in front of a pale yellow building with Doric columns … Perceiving that I was standing in a long morning shadow, I looked up and beheld a hulking statue looming over me … I realized that this hunk of deftly wrought metal was none other than Josef Stalin.” https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/National_Library_of_Mongolia

” … I soon came upon extensive dwellings for the vast majority of the population of Ulan Bator …”

… “On both sides of the road spanned what appeared to be endless rows of yurts. Not the sparkling white variety which we’ve all seen in National Geographic or a Hollywood movie. These were, for the most part, threadbare, patchwork, and falling apart at the seams …”

” … I noticed some ragamuffin children hauling buckets of water through the alleyways which separated the encampments. The gullies which ran between the yurts seemed to be open sewers filled with refuse and garbage. Wild dogs could be seen scavenging everywhere …

” … Stepping outside, I stood in front by the roundabout. The streets had the occasional passerby and only a few cars rattling by, which appeared to be all taxis. It was freezing out but, after the past several hours in my cramped room, the brisk air felt good. I lit a cigarette and luxuriously puffed away on it … “

” … With darkness setting in and an empty stomach gnawing inside me, I snuffed out the cigarette and made my way to the dining room …”

” … On the morning of the third day during another meander about the deserted hotel, I had a surprise. In a rear corner of the banquet hall, I came upon a forsaken spinet …”

{Spinets are smaller and lighter than upright pianos. Spinets are typically 36–40 inches tall, while upright pianos are usually 48–60 inches tall.}

” … By now I had played about ten pieces by Chopin. A few waltzes, a couple of Nocturnes, a Prelude of two, several Mazurkas, and the first half of a posthumous Polonaise I was working on …” https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Frédéric_Chopin

Trans-Mongolian Express

Gobi Desert https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Gobi_Desert

Route of Trans-Siberian and the Trans-Mongolian Express trains.

Mongolia

Old flag of Mongolia

Cover art from Mongolian Soirée https://a.co/d/59YWo7c

P.S.- There is a slight possibility that my friend Doug might have some slides of the Soirée and Ulan Bator stashed away in his garage. If I ever make it up to Sacramento and uncover them, I’ll be sure to update this page.