The ger (more usually known in English as its Turkic version, yurt) is the traditional Mongolian dwelling. This is what most people expect to find Mongolians living in. According to the 2000 census, about half the households in Mongolia do in fact still live in them. They are most common in the countryside, but they are also found in settled areas, usually inhabited by recent migrants to the city, or the poor. Tourists usually end up spending at least some time in a "ger camp," spending a night or two in a ger. Mongolians, however, also stay often stay in ger camps when they go on a vacation.
Made of wood, felt and canvas, gers can be put up or taken down relatively quickly. They can then be packed into the back of a truck or onto an animal-pulled cart, or even put on a couple of pack animals and moved with the herds to a new location. In ger camps they are often built on concrete platforms. Relatively warm in the winter, the sides are often rolled up at the bottom in the summer to give cross-ventilation. There are different sized gers, based on the number of wall sections used. The standard sized ger has five wall sections, and is roughly 20 feet in diameter. And, of course, any self-respecting ger opens facing south.
The photos here show gers in a variety of settings, give an idea of how they are put up, and some idea of what they look like from the inside.
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