Ulaanbaator is the capital of Mongolia, and it's COLD here (about 0 everyday). The city is not attractive, with lots of construction, footpaths, buildings and roads in general disrepair, as well as a lot of dust and a fair amount of rubbish lying around. But the people are attractive, friendly and well-dressed, and surprisingly there are lots of flash cars driving around the potholes in the roads (think BMWs, Hummers, Land & Range Rovers, Mercedes etc). It's every pedestrian for themselves, as there are crossings on the roads, but the cars don't stop for you. It's pretty cheap here too - we're paying US$12/night for a double room in a guesthouse.
We like it here, but I can understand why other people might not. The locals are not as pushy (to get you to buy stuff) as in China, although UB has a reputation for having a high rate of thefts, esp of tourists.
On our first day here we visited the Gandantegchinlen Khid monastery, where the Dalai Lama has been some years ago. It was refreshing to be the only tourists there, after the swarms of people in Beijing. We saw young monks going about their daily business, and an enourmous 26 meter golden Buddha statue.
