By David Fleet

Editor

Tushig Orkhon is from the other side of the planet. Literally.

Known to his Goodrich High School classmates as “Tuska,” the 15-year-old is from Ulaanbaatar, the capital city of Mongolia and a 6,000 mile journey from Goodrich that for him featured a 12 hour non-stop trip flight from Beijing to Chicago.

“I could not sleep on the plane either,” laughs Tuska. “I had the choice between Germany and United States. This is one of the greatest countries in the world and a totally different lifestyle here. They said Goodrich was a small village—it is, but still they have way more than I ever expected.”

Tuska arrived at Goodrich High School last fall as part of the American Scandinavian Student Exchange (ASSE). Founded in 1976 by the Swedish government to organize student exchange programs between Sweden and the United States, ASSE has grown to now include 35 countries. Tuska, who lives with local host family Greg and Kelsey Thurk of Atlas Township, will return to Mongolia in June

Tuska is almost 6 feet tall, soft spoken and bilingual—fluent in his native Mongolian and English. His country is bordered by China and Russia and features an expansive, rugged countryside and nomadic culture. Ulaanbaatar centers around Chinggis Khaan (Genghis Khan) Square, named after the founder of the 13th- and 14th-century Mongol Empire. The city has 1.3 million residents, about half the population of the country.

“We learn English in school,” he said. “My generation stopped learning Russian in 2001; however, there’s still a lot of Russian influence. Older people speak Russian, but that’s changing. We need to learn English to prepare us for jobs. You can’t get by just on Mongolian—many leave the country to find work after graduation.”

Tuska lives in an apartment with his father Orkhon, mother Narantsatsralt, and 8-year-old brother, Tuvshin. His parents are both engineers and his plans are the same. They drive a Honda automobile. He attends New Era High School and typically walks the few blocks to class each day. He plays volleyball, basketball and has been a member of the robotics team for a few years.

“I’m on the Goodrich Robotics team and they are very advanced,” he said. “It’s different in Mongolia. We have to travel to Japan and other countries to compete in robotics.”

While the climate of Mongolia is rather harsh—even colder than Michigan, laughs Tuska—his family enjoys the short summer months with vacations to the remote countryside and the many lakes. Tuska opens photos on his smartphone of nomadic tents in a province of Mongolia he took during a recent family trip.

“The nomadic people are some of the nicest people in the world,” he said. “They are very welcoming and kind.”

Getting to those remote areas is often a challenge, however, due to the lack of major highways, but many roads are paved.

“We just don’t have the major roads like here in the United States,” he said.

Besides the infrastructure, entertainment can also be a challenge, even in the country’s largest city.

“We have just one HBO network to watch,” he said. “Here there are several—greater variety. Like the food here, many types. I had Mexican food for the first time—Taco Bell. Much of the Amerian food is really unhealthy, but we also have KFC at home.”

Tuska is a sophomore and after high school will seek a career as an engineer.