Mongolia continues to adhere to the Soviet model of 10 years of school education of which 8 are compulsory, although this is being gradually extended in the direction of the European model.
There are over 4,000 rivers in Mongolia, known as Gols in Mongolian. Most of the country's 20 or so significant waterways are in the Northern Arctic Basin in Central and Northern Mongolia, which has the highest annual precipitation.
Mongolia is far-flung and little visited yet has much to offer, from the stunning scenery and wildlife of mountains and deserts to the emerging luxury hotels and restaurants of capital Ulaanbaatar.