Karakol Valley is located in the Altai Republic. Making our
way off from the чуйский тракт, the linking road between Mongolia and Russia, we allowed our horse and carriage a rest while we toured a museum German designed. The museum consisted of three traditional houses: German, Russian and Altai. As we walked between these houses, trying on traditional clothes on the way, we were able to notice the differences between them. One common factor to the Russian and German houses was the large brick stove, most of the time centered in the house, with the secondary purpose of heating and the primary of cooking. The Altai юрта also had this element, but reduced to a humble fire, however still centered in the house. Once the horses were bridled again we set off for the Денисова Пещера, luckily no more than a few days ride, or so it seemed.
The camp where we stayed, most of the time hosted archaeological teams, which was next to the cave. On Saturday morning Sergei, an archaeologist by day and a tour guide also by day, led us into the cave. Blind and afraid, he led us towards the lit excavated shaft where we could see the layered ages of civilization, with each one clearly marked. Sergei lead us deeper into the cave where we watched another archaeologist as he uncovered square meters of the cave divided down even further into smaller sections. The dirt is even further searched when it is transported via bucket across a rope which lead to a site further away where the dirt is sifted. Sergei also showed us some of the skulls and bones which had been found by the archaeologists in their camp. The walk out of the cave was enlightening. It inspired some of us to go look for our own artifacts. So it was that we made our way to Уч-Энмек a protected park in the Karakol Valley, a UNESCO World Heritage site. The rest of the day was spent walking around the area where some of us found artifacts from the Stone Age in a field near our иурт! In the evening, we were treated to a traditional Altai meal: intestines, кефир, thick soup and the occasional toasts were on the menu. Dazed from such an interesting dinner, we made our way to our beds to be lulled to sleep by the crashing thunder and flashes of lightning. It was humbling to think one would sleep through seasons alike in these cozy homes.
On Sunday, we went horse back riding! Experienced riders were given faster horses and novice riders were given special slower horses. The excursion took us up into the mountains where we were surprised to see cows and even some small houses and юрты. The horses had great personalities. One horse would eat every ten yards or so then would break into a trot to catch up with the group. The views were spectacular, and although it started to rain a bit, our horses came equipped with raincoats for us. We stayed dry and warm as we continued the ride. The ride lasted a little longer than we thought it would, about six hours, and although we were a little sore, it was a great experience. After refueling from the ride with milder traditional Altai блюда, we were offered a performance by an Altai throat singer and his son.
Their songs were epic stories recounting the heroic feats. When the father sung, the ambiance took a light tone, but as the son started singing there was a much graver tone and although we could not understand the words, the аил resonated with only his voice. The atmosphere changed as some of the audience was invited along to play instruments as the father sang! A good night.
Last day of our trip, Monday. Daniel a founder of the park, gave us a tour of some of the sites and he explained to us the many rituals and traditional beliefs of the Altai People. We saw the burial mounds/курган and some traditional homes. The tour as a whole was thought-provoking, perfectly preceding a seven hour or so drive back to the профилакторий.
Good.
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