-It's 5.30
-It's beautiful, isn't it?
-It's strange to have this in front of my eyes. I almost forgot where we were
-Morning, let's go, wake up
-Hurry up, there is work to do
Batbayar is as strict with the others as with himself, that's how he succeeded to surive in the steppes
in 10 years his strictness has let him learn alone all the skills of his ancestors
the courage and pride account for the rest
-How should I take them?
-Grab them by the legs
not by the fur
-Someone to help me?
-Can't do it, I'm afraid too much, every time I touch the skin
-It scares me
-This excercise makes me tremble
I imagine how I'd cut its flesh
-How to take it?
-Grab by the legs, I told you
-Batbayar, you wounded me
-Ah, it's nothing
-But it can get infected
-He did it to me with scissors
I hit you with the scissors cause you grab them like a wolf
grab them by the legs. It's your fault
-Ok, I understood, but it's first time for me
-The wool and the mutton meat bring 2/3 of Batbayar's income
1500 euro per year
the rest of income comes from the fur of his goats,- the famous cashmere, the finest wool in the world
-I would like to tell you something. It happened, cause you made a mistake
It was like if a wolf was dragging my sheep and I didn't like it at all
that's why I slapped you with the scissors
but it seems I wounded you and I don't want you to feel bad about it
forgive me
To succeed in his new life Batbayar needs help, especially from Erley, his younger brother
as tradition dictates, he has to follow the way of the older brother, he was just 15 when he arrived to the steppes
-I really like the brother of Batbayar
-Me too, a little rascal, he looks even wilder than Batbayar
-You're alrihgt?
-do you hurt there?
-In the beginning I agreed to live in the countryside, I liked the idea
but after 2,3 years of taking care of animals... I find it monotonous
actually I regret now
I think I should've stayed in the city and continue with my studies and have a profession
you need a professsion to live in the city
when I compare myself to the people from the city, who are educated and refined, I envy them
in the city they have everything they need, it's much more developed than countryside
I'd really like to be like them
well, in the steppes I take care of the animals, but city life attracts me more and more
I know that my nephews, sons of Batbayar are going to live in the countryside later
but I tell them, it's no good, I don't want them to make the same mistake as me
I accepted to stay here to help my brother, it's my duty, but I'd prefere them to leave from here
-Will you give it to me?
-The horses are like a drug for me, this stallion is amazing
let's say that he is like a child for me
when I see him run in the Naadam festival... it's beyond words, it's too touching
It's his favourite stallion, his pride
It got injured 4 months ago and was resting since then
Batbayar still doesn't know if he can take part in the Naadam race
but to find out he has to be tried on long distance, and now it is to be decided
-This time it's over
He's never gonna gallop like before, my beautiful stallion
-I think he got injured protecting his herd from the wolves
He had to slip on the rocks or maybe he did a bad kick
He got injured right there above the thigh
Now the race is over for him
-From now on, nobody will ever ride him
too bad for me, now only the wind will ride him, my beautiful stallion
He is injured in the thigh
no more competition
let's let him run free with the wind
He gave me joy for many years
it's too tough
-Take, Bruno, that's fermented mare's milk
That's airag, it's rich in vitamins and it's a good treat
it cleans your body
Mongols have always drunk it, from spring till autumn
and the one you're gonna drink, it's the first this year
and this is thanks to our horses
I'd like you to drink it to honour my stallion
-OK. I understand
-Thank you
-It makes me happy to know you have pictures of my stallion in gallop
there will be a trace left of him and I thank you for that
-I'm glad you're here with me to share a moment like this... really glad
Since they chose to share together life in the steppes Batbayar and Dagimaa accepted a difficult life at the mercy of hostile environment
the major threat for the animals are zuud, extreme climatic events, which happen more and mroe often and dangerous
they provoke floods, heavy blizzards and droughts that decimate sometimes all the animals of the inexperienced breeders
ten million animals died in this way in three winters in the beginning of 2000s
and every time it's thousands of nomadic families, who lost everything, have to go to the city and make the shantytowns around Ulaanbaatar grow
that's why the most venerated divinity in Mongolia is Tengger, a symbol of power of nature.
