Marc Alaux is a travel publisher and bookseller. He is also the author of about ten books on Mongolia. This man in his forties regularly leaves the Paris region where he lives for the steppe on occasions of several-month stays. On the occasion of the publication of his book Mongolia, Between the Bear and the Dragon, we meet with a passionate walker and historian…

How did your passion for Mongolia begin?

As a teenager and in early adulthood, rather than chasing girls, I wasted my time hiking across France on foot. The barren landscapes of the Causse Méjean in Lozère were a revelation to me. I made a promise to myself to see landscapes that were quite comparable: the steppes of Mongolia. Everything there was larger, more beautiful, more powerful. I needed to expand my life, to give it another dimension.

I went on several expeditions to Mongolia, covering 7,000 kilometers on foot across its steppes, mountains, and taiga forests, then learning the language in Ulan Bator, the capital, living in villages and spending winters in the yurt of nomadic families… For the past twenty years I have been studying the culture and history of this country. And I never tire of it.

Why does Mongolia hold such an important place in your heart?

I wore myself out in its steppes and mountains crossing them on foot for more than two years, I herded sheep there at –30°C for months; this physically binds me to this country; it runs through my blood. And I built myself there, I found my place on earth. But walking above all initiated me to the richness of the steppe. Without making me a nomadic herder, it gently introduced me to this world while demanding the best of myself.

Furthermore, studying Mongolia, great in its steppe, its heritage, and its culture, helps grasp the complexity of this region of Asia: the stakes of mineral resources, notions of borders and acculturation, nationalism and patrimony. Finally, studying a society so different from mine helps me put my own country into perspective. In my eyes, going to Mongolia is not merely a journey, it is a commitment of body and soul and a stimulating intellectual exercise.

You are the author of several books…

I occasionally set down my pilgrim's staff to pick up a pen; writing is the extension of travel, it deepens it, it supports it with thought and generates questions that are at the origin of the next journey…

To better understand Mongolia, I have varied my approaches through writing: I have published travel narratives, including Drunk on Steppes, which recounts a winter spent in the yurt of a nomadic family; an artist's book with calligrapher Togoobatyn Jamyansüren; a collection of Proverbs & Sayings of Mongolia with Charlotte Marchina; a children's novel (Tamir and the Wolf of the Steppes), essays…

I also had the chance to edit I, Naraa, Woman of Mongolia, by Naraa Dash and Journey to Mongolia and Tibet by Nikolai Przhevalsky. And these days, I am publishing with Nevicata editions a brief reflection on contemporary Mongolia, Mongolia, Between the Bear and the Dragon.

All this work has been at the origin of friendships, and that matters to me: no Mongolian passion for me without the surprise and generosity of encounters.

Tell us about your latest book!

The title Mongolia, Between the Bear and the Dragon directly references the geographical situation of the country between its two powerful neighbors: China and Russia. A role of sandwich between two giants but also a role of cultural crossroads where the history of the other two is perceived and takes inspiring forms.

I wrote it for travelers setting out on their journey. To help them grasp the ins and outs of daily life but also broader issues such as Mongolian identity, the condition of women, urbanization, mining exploitation, nomadic pastoralism, beliefs… So many varied subjects made accessible in a pocket-sized work, concise and dense.

The work culminates with three interviews with incredible people: Mongolist Isabelle Charleux, who studies Buddhism; Nomindari Shagdarsüren highly committed to promoting Mongolian culture in France; and finally Naraa Dash, businesswoman whom we saw playing her own role alongside Cécile de France in A Larger World.

This small book is not a guidebook, it tells in short chapters the Mongolia that I traverse with forever renewed joy. I remain a traveler who addresses travelers, with all the vigor of my passion.

Do you have new travel and writing projects?

Both, my friend! I have about a thousand of them in mind, but I believe in work and time, in the deployment of tenacity and patience. Writing is an exercise in retreat and slowness. For instance, I am currently practicing short story writing, but we will see later if that gives birth to a book. As for my solitary journeys to Mongolia, I do nurture one or two projects indeed, but they still need to ripen in me… Let us already salute the reopening of the country this summer, so people can visit it again thanks to Sylvain Recouras and Horseback Adventure.

Link to the book: https://editionsnevicata.be/mongolie

Learn more about Marc Alaux and his various works: https://www.transboreal.fr/auteurs.php?id=60