When did Ben first become interested in Mongolia?

Ben became interested in Mongolia early in life. When he was nine years old he read a book about Marco Polo, about how Marco Polo traveled with his uncles on the ultimate business trip to the Mongol Empire at its height. Marco Polo’s trip lasted almost a quarter of a century, during which he grew up, mastered Mongolian, gained the confidence of the Mongol emperor, and then eventually returned home with fantastic tales of strange lands and stranger people. The story of Marco Polo fascinated Ben. Ben tried to save money from his first job delivering newspapers with an eye toward a $3,000 trip to Mongolia. But in those days it would take him years to have the money ready. So he continued to read about Mongolia in the meantime but spent most of his teenage years in the Arab world, where he learned the language and became interested in journalism. He took courses in classical and modern Mongolian while studying for his master’s degree and found it very difficult. But he still wants to visit Mongolia in the spring or summer, he said. "Mongolian winters, when temperatures drop to -30°C are not for me." The price today with an upscale company is reasonable, Ben said, "compared to the $3,000 it was back in 1971. Today the same trip is around $5,000, which though still a large sum, is, in terms of inflation, a good bargain."