By STEPHANIE HOO

TERELJ, Mongolia - On Mongolia's vast grasslands, time is measured not in minutes or hours but by how long it takes milk to become cream, when a family's yaks decide to amble home for the night, the red embers in an iron stove fading to black.

Mongolia is one of the last unspoiled travel destinations, where nomadic herders live as they have for centuries and livestock graze unfettered across the gray-green steppe.

It was from here that Genghis Khan's armies conquered China and threatened Europe some 700 years ago, and where round white tents with colorful wooden doors still dot the countryside.

To travel to Mongolia is to step back in time. There are no American fast-food franchises. No luxury hotels, either.

Instead, rent a horse or camel to survey the endless plains, sit back and watch as Mongolian cowboys tame a wild yak, climb the steps to a pristine Buddhist monastery built into the side of a mountain, or relax with a family of herders while sipping big bowls of salted milk tea.

Fifteen years after this former Soviet satellite made the peaceful transition to democracy in 1990, its travel industry is just now getting off the ground. Prices are low, and tour operators offer personalized service, as well as friendly young guides eager to practice their English and tell the world about their storied land.

An Associated Press photographer and I had traveled to Mongolia for work and wanted to sneak in some sightseeing. We did nothing in the way of preparation and still got exactly what we wanted.

Slide show   Alluring Asia From Seoul to Shanghai and Thailand to Tibet, Asia’s diverse cultures and landscapes are a traveler’s dream! more photos

A day after meeting with the very helpful B. Uranchimeg, general director of SSS Travel, we were off to the stunning Terelj National Park where we stayed in big felt tents heated by crackling wood fires.

It was good to get out of the city. Mongolia is endlessly fascinating but also desperately poor. The economy collapsed with the end of Soviet aid, as factories were forced to close and herders lost their monthly wages. Today, the capital city of Ulan Bator is a maze of shantytowns where street children rummage through garbage cans for food.

Ulan Bator is also a place where very little works. The shower head in my hotel room offered little more than a steady drip, so I washed the dust out of my hair each morning by shoving my head under the bathtub spout.

The hotel's business center would close hours early if the manager felt like going home. Contacting the AP's computer network to file a story often meant making an international call to Beijing - racking up hundreds of dollars in phone charges.

AP photographer Ng Han Guan joked that we should get out of the city just to stop bleeding money.

We didn't need to go far.

Just 20 minutes from the city center, the grasslands stretch out forever. An hour out is the national park. Adventure travelers would say the park isn't really the countryside. There are hotels for those who don't want to stay in tents. Our cell phones still had reception.

MORE FROM ASIA TRAVEL

Asia Travel Section Front

Travel Postcard: Bar-hopping in Mumbai Thailand's political chaos keeps tourists home Critics dispute Michelin regard for Tokyo food China designates North Korea a tourist destination Macau looks beyond China to fuel tourism boom Japan's most popular tourist attractions Experience Bangkok on the cheap Sri Lanka's answer to Mardi Gras India enjoys tourism boom, more Americans China discouraging tourist travel to France Asia Travel Section Front   Add Asia Travel headlines to your news reader: