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Living with nomadic families in Mongolia is an immersive experience where you stay in a traditional ger (yurt) and help with daily chores, such as herding livestock, milking cows, and making dairy products......
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00:07I've always been fascinated by nomads, constantly on the move, surviving in some of the world's
00:21most remote wildernesses, and living cheek by jowl with nature.
00:28It's always seemed a wildly romantic existence, it's the most magical place, but it's no easy
00:36life.
00:37It's the sort of cold that makes you feel physically sick.
00:41And in today's modern world, they're under increasing pressure.
00:52I'm going to live with three groups of nomads.
00:56In Siberia, Nepal, and now in Mongolia, with a family of herders who are adapting to the
01:0921st century deep in the Gobi Desert.
01:12Clearly, this is a way of life that is very, very precious.
01:18But life here is still dominated by the power of nature, as storms and predators constantly
01:25threaten their nomadic way of life.
01:27I can't stand here and say, don't kill that wolf, it's not my place to.
01:51Mongolia's wild and untamed Gobi is the largest desert in Asia.
01:57It just looks like the sort of bleakest, emptiest landscape.
02:03And the idea of living here and making a living here is hard to imagine.
02:12Yet it's been home to families of nomads for centuries.
02:15I'm on my way to stay with one of them.
02:20It's just going to be really eye-opening, I think, to discover this partnership between
02:26them and their livestock and this landscape that has allowed them to thrive for this long.
02:32But Mongolia's nomads have had a chequered history.
02:35In 1924, the country fell under communist rule.
02:39For nearly 70 years, nomadism was banned and the herds were collectivised.
02:50But with the arrival of democracy in the 1990s, an incredible one-third of Mongolia's population
02:57chose to return to their nomadic roots.
03:03Today, it's believed that 30% of Mongolians are nomads.
03:08But once again, their way of life is under threat.
03:11The country is going through an economic boom fuelled by mining,
03:15which is tempting nomads towards a more prosperous and settled way of life.
03:21There is something very romantic about the idea of nomadism.
03:25Often it isn't romantic when you see the reality of it.
03:28It is an incredibly hard life.
03:36It's a 600-kilometre journey from Ulaanbaatar, Mongolia's capital,
03:41to the southern half of the vast Gobi Desert and deep into the Three Beauties mountain range.
03:55I want to know what's keeping nomads here.
03:59The family I'm staying with move four times a year with the seasons.
04:04At two and a half thousand metres above sea level, this is their spring camp.
04:12We're here to improve.
04:14For more, this is your friend.
04:17For more, this is your friend.
04:20I'm Kate.
04:23Kate, hello.
04:25Kate, hello?
04:26How are you?
04:26For you.
04:27For you.
04:27For you and?
04:29For you.
04:37And?
04:38Thank you so much for being here today.
04:44Chimid is 78 and the head of a large family.
04:47She has 10 children.
04:49Her youngest daughter, Ordna, lives with her.
04:53Can I have a look around?
04:55Will you show me around?
04:57OK.
04:59What is happening?
05:00Ordna is married to Serigo,
05:02and Chimid's youngest son, Batsock,
05:05is staying with them to help with the busy Kashmir wool harvest.
05:12Didn't they make the most terrible noise?
05:16Oh, look at these.
05:19The family own an impressive 200 goats,
05:22150 sheep, and over 100 yaks and horses.
05:26So these Kashmir goats?
05:28Yes, they are.
05:34They're hungry.
05:39They're hungry.
05:40They're hungry.
05:41They're hungry.
05:42They're hungry.
05:42They're hungry.
05:42You can just see some lovely black and brown and white dots on the hillside.
05:50And that's all the adults coming in.
05:53So all these little ones are going to get a feed in a minute.
05:58So it will get very noisy.
06:07The animals are like the family's bank account.
06:10Their meat and milk providing food,
06:13and their wool an income.
06:14In Mongolia, they're key to nomadic success or failure.
06:28Are there many wolves in this area?
06:32Oh, dear.
06:34I'm not allowed any more goats at home.
06:36But I might have to make an exception.
06:40How beautiful.
06:42They all live in this communal tent known as a gare.
06:46It's their kitchen, living room, and bedroom.
06:50Hotel.
06:56Has this always been your home?
06:58No, no, no.
07:01Home didn't do anything for anywhere.
07:07I didn't feel like they could!
07:10I just want to eat.
07:13It's always thesh of my hands.
07:15People were born in grandkids when they lived at home.
07:18Usually I lost my heart every time.
07:20To always do a strategy and theudaic consequence card does.
07:21working on a state farm with her husband,
07:24who died two years ago.
07:27Their return to nomadism in the 1990s
07:30revived a long heritage.
07:33And Chimid proudly displays her family's heirlooms
07:36in the roof of the Gare.
07:57It's beautiful.
08:02This is my wedding ring.
08:10It's my wedding ring.
08:16This ring belonged to my husband's grandmother.
08:21And inside there is engraved the word 12th.
08:28And she was married on the 12th of September.
08:33My parents also got married on the 12th of September.
08:38And me and my husband got married on the 12th of September.
08:42So three generations got married on the same day.
08:45So it's very special.
08:47Here we go.
09:08Life is fragile out here in the Gobi.
09:12It's vital to keep their animals safe,
09:15especially at this time with the new ones
09:17newborns like this gorgeous two-day-old foal the first of the year if those
09:26family heirlooms remind them of their past this new foal is a potent symbol
09:31of their future
09:47the most magical place the film crew and I are camping a few hundred meters up
09:56the valley from the family
10:01clearly this is a way of life that is is very precious and they're here with
10:09dignity they're not living in abject poverty there just seems to be a huge
10:16amount of sort of well I think pride is the only word I can think of really in
10:23looking in the way that they live this life
10:50it's ten to six
10:55first morning waking up in the Gobi
11:01there we are morning everyone
11:07I can't do this
11:11there's not a sound it's so quiet
11:15I haven't even washed my face for you I'm so sorry
11:19meeting the family yesterday which is always quite nerve-wracking
11:24because it's a big leap
11:30you're kind of just stepping into their lives and hoping that they might take you in
11:36and and that's a big ask but it was just a really lovely lovely start
11:55every morning begins with rounding up the animals the relationship between man and
12:01beast is the bedrock of nomadism and goes back millennia
12:15but Chimid and her family enjoy some of life's modern amenities too
12:29most nomads in Mongolia are embracing modernity why not if it makes a tough life that little
12:35bit easier whether it be a solar panel or a four by four to help fetch the water from the
12:41local well
12:44from their current camp it's an eight kilometer round trip every three days
12:48and before you have the car so maybe when you were a child how would you have
12:56collected the water then
13:19so here's the well here
13:22so here's the well here
13:23I don't know
13:23but I think
13:34I can't move it on my own
13:35I'm sorry
13:36I can't move it on my own
14:14The adult goats and sheep are separated from their young so they can graze on the surrounding
14:20mountains. The 4x4 was perfect for fetching water but to follow the herd nothing beats a horse.
14:33This is the most extraordinary saddle. I feel very perched up, very uprised and rather elegant but only when I'm
14:40standing still.
14:41So you want me to keep the range short?
14:43OK, yeah. And feet forward. Right. If I can walk by the end of the day it'll be a miracle.
14:59OK.
15:06Mongolians are famed for their horsemanship and like Ordner most learn to ride from the age of 4.
15:12Back in the 12th century it was horse power that helped Mongol warlord Genghis Khan create one of the largest
15:19empires the world has ever known.
15:22Horse is, uh, mur. Yama? Yama, goat. Goat.
15:33Hon, sheep. Hon.
15:38Today we're using horses to help keep an eye on the livestock and to protect them from predators.
15:44Foxes, wolves and snow leopards that roam these bleak mountains.
15:49Mountain. Mountain. Mountain. Mountain. Mountain.
15:55So Yama is goat. Goat. So what is Yama? Yama. Goat. Goat, you see? Yeah, so we've been teaching each
16:05other.
16:06And on. Ship. We're getting good.
16:13And mur. Horse.
16:17So, uh, yeah, so I've had a little language lesson. I'm practically local.
16:23Right. Oh my goodness.
16:25Ordner spends much of the day watching the flock, but also finds time to do her beautiful and intricate sewing.
16:32Did Chimid teach you to sew?
16:39So do, uh, the men sew as well? Will your husband sew?
16:50Actually, my husband, he's better than me. He's good. He has a sewing machine.
16:59So is it always your job to come out with the sheep?
17:11I haven't met your son yet. Does he not live with you and Chimid?
17:19I haven't met my son yet. He has a sewing machine.
17:24I haven't met my son yet.
17:26I haven't met my son yet.
17:28I haven't met my son yet.
17:28Mm-hmm.
17:30So who looks after them in Daraan Zagba?
17:32I haven't met my son yet.
17:36Ordner's children, aged 15 and 13, only come home during holidays and for special occasions.
17:43So did you do the same?
17:48No.
17:51Mm-hmm.
17:53Under the old Communist system, a strict education policy helped achieve one of the highest literacy rates in the world.
18:03It continues today, but to get an education, children must still go to the local towns
18:10and cities.
18:11And as those cities grow, young people are being drawn to the modern world and away from
18:17their nomadic culture.
18:30And your children, Audna, will they be nomads?
18:35The world is a good thing, the world is a good thing.
18:41I think it's a really nice thing.
18:51If you want to get to know what you're doing, it's not a good thing.
19:01It's been a long time for a long time.
19:03It's been a long time for a long time.
19:14I suppose what I'm gradually unpicking about this way of life is,
19:18you know, Ordna went to school,
19:20but she's chosen to live this life.
19:23You know, no one's stopping anybody progressing,
19:25but I think they are aware that their knowledge is meaningful,
19:31that it does allow them to survive,
19:34and it allows them to live a life that they choose.
19:38They want to live this life.
19:40They have an option to be somewhere else,
19:43and yet they want to be here.
20:02Today is a big occasion in the nomads' calendar.
20:09All of Chimid's sons, daughters, and grandchildren have come together.
20:16Every year, the family unites to castrate the young male animals.
20:23Did you learn from your father how to do the castration?
20:29We're a little Thomas by playing at them.
20:36Who lives there?
20:37I sleep the chick of his mom today.
20:43Why do we keep eating?!
20:52Hey, sweetie.
20:57Yeah!
20:59It's for you.
21:00Ha!
21:07Yeah.
21:09There. Now I can come and sit the sludgy.
21:14First, it's the young stallions.
21:20How often do your family all get together?
21:24When do you see everybody?
21:52Next, the goats and lambs.
22:03All the smoke around here, as far as I can gather,
22:07is almost like a sort of healing smoke.
22:10Again, very much part of this ceremony.
22:18It's a lot easier than a horse.
22:35With a quick blessing, the lambs released.
22:38It may look harsh, but Batsock's doing it with real respect for his animals.
22:44Oh, dear. It's a rice of passage. Think of it that way.
22:53The iron-rich testicles are believed to have health-giving properties,
22:57but the real treat is to boil them in salted water with yellow rice to make a rich soup.
23:06There's a lot here. I think I've got more than my share.
23:12It looks like hundreds.
23:14I've got...
23:15So, these...
23:19You just do that? Really?
23:21Oh!
23:24OK, now you've done it. I'm going to have to do it.
23:27Mine's bigger than yours.
23:30This one?
23:31Like that?
23:37Don't make me laugh.
23:38It'll be a disaster.
23:39OK, ready?
23:40Mmm.
23:46Actually, that's quite good.
23:49It's not chewy at all. It's very soft and rather delicious.
23:52Oh, my goodness, my poor little lambs at home.
23:55They've got very fine testicles at the moment.
23:58I wasn't going to castrate them this year and now.
24:00Maybe I will.
24:02OK.
24:03No, no, no. You must give everyone else.
24:06Go.
24:06Stay already.
24:08I have nothing to cover.
24:11I have nothing to cover.
24:12Go, don't.
24:13Nah.
24:14It's good.
24:15Bye.
24:15Bye.
24:17Bye.
24:18Bye.
24:19Bye.
24:22Bye.
24:46Today, I'm going 15 kilometers down the valley to visit Ordna's sister, Surin.
24:54She and her husband, Sengal, are still in their winter quarters, in a sheltered spot on the edge of the
25:00mountains.
25:01Tomorrow, they're moving to their spring camp.
25:09Hi, Surin.
25:12How are you?
25:15How are you?
25:18Like most nomads in the Gobi, Surin and Sengal move to the same spring camp every year.
25:24It's deep in the mountains and at this time should be full of fresh grass.
25:30Looking around, there are animals everywhere.
25:33It must be quite hard herding them around here.
25:37It looks like they can go right up into the mountains.
25:40You must be very fit.
25:41It's a little bit.
25:43It's a little bit.
25:44It's a little bit.
25:46It's a little bit.
25:47It's a little bit.
25:47It's a little bit.
25:50It's a little bit.
25:51It's a little bit.
25:52OK.
25:54OK.
25:57Hello, dog.
25:58Hello.
25:59Hello.
25:59You all seem very relaxed for a family who is about to pack up your whole house and move.
26:10How do you decide when to move from this, your winter quarters, to your spring and summer quarters?
26:19Yes.
26:21Yes.
26:23Yes.
26:32Yes.
26:35Yes.
26:37Yes.
26:37Yes.
26:39If you didn't move, would you feel that you'd lost some very important part of your identity?
26:47Yes.
26:52Yes, sirs, do you need more clarity for finding music?
26:58Yes, sirs.
27:00Yes, sirs..
27:02No, sirs, let me...
27:02Yes, sirs.
27:04Ah, yes.
27:04Oh, thank you.
27:12We're all sleeping in Surin's gear tonight the crew and I Surin and her family all squashed together
27:40I just think sleeping is something that should be kind of quite a private thing you know you've sort of
27:45been with people all day I wasn't really looking forward to it but well to put it very simply I
27:57slept incredibly well it was lovely and warm everyone was very well behaved there was no nasty smells or noises
28:05keep anyone awake and what a beautiful morning
28:21with a busy day ahead everyone's lending a hand Surin's brother-in-law Serigo has brought his truck
28:48the gares an amazingly simple structure with a canvas outer to protect against the wind and the rain a warm
28:55felted sheep's wool liner and a wooden frame to hold it all up
28:59so what next
29:09isn't it funny men always have to pet the car always
29:20last on the truck are the youngest animals that can't make the arduous journey on foot
29:34there is something lovely about that ability to be able to up sticks and go whenever you feel like it
29:42as long obviously as it's the day of the dog the cock or the horse I think
29:49it's taken less than four hours to pack the entirety of Surin and Senghal's home
29:56once a herd of yaks would have carried it over the mountains
29:59today it all fits onto Serigo's truck
30:02but their most valuable possession
30:05the herd is still driven the traditional way
30:09by horse
30:19this is a wonderful experience
30:23but it wasn't this romantic view that brought so many nomads back to this way of life
30:28after communism collapsed in the 1990s
30:33high inflation and food shortages made life in towns and settlements unbearable
30:38so families like Syrians chose to return to nomadism in the desert
30:46after four hours heading steadily uphill finally fresh mountain pasture
31:01it's been a day-long 10 kilometer ride over the mountains to get to the spring camp
31:19home made gares like this one are found across Asia
31:30it faces south so it gets the warmth of the sun and is away from the prevailing bad weather
31:37a gares is often given to a young couple when they get married
31:41and they'll use it for the rest of their life
31:45are you happy with your new with your new home with your new spot
31:56I could I could live with this view I have to say
32:24the next day back at Chimids there's sad news
32:29the next day back at Chimids there's sad news
32:29under cover of darkness wolves have killed the beautiful young foal
32:41do you lose a lot of your livestock to wolves
33:11if you find where the wolf is what would you find where the wolf is what would the wolf
33:42Batsok also believes that predators bring some benefit.
34:08Batsok also believes that predators bring some benefits.
34:15I don't know what I'd do if I was in his situation. I simply don't know.
34:20He's the one that lives here. He's the one whose livestock are being killed.
34:25I can't stand here and say, don't kill that wolf. It's not my place to.
34:31I can't stand here.
34:52I can't stand here.
34:57Ordner and Chimid are taking me to their local stupa or shrine.
35:01It's four kilometres up the valley from their camp, just below a holy mountain.
35:08It's a Buddhist place of worship.
35:12During communist rule, Buddhism was banned and many temples were destroyed.
35:17But with its collapse, Buddhist traditions returned,
35:20and now Ordner and Chimid can practise their beliefs openly.
35:32As we turn the wheel, our prayers drift out on the wind and to the corners of the earth.
35:41We turn the wheel, our prayers drift out on the wind and to the wind and to the wind and
35:48to the wind.
35:48We turn the wheel, our prayers drift out on the wind.
35:57But Republicans will make the noise of the time that we want.
36:04We jaan goo basis that's what you think of the woeundo.
36:08Even to the way.
36:13We will not judge these folks as soon as soon as soon as Suu étant будamed in the long field.
36:16You have no way to the argument.
36:19If you are prepared for removal of these folks, or maybe two people are ready for your work.
36:20To use it to pick one and perform the rules.
36:21the youth will strike for Cumidians from the bill as such and powerful.
36:21Ultimately it gets simplified.
36:23This is a very smoothory collection.
36:36Chimid's eldest daughter's camp is just 500 meters down the valley.
36:47Sitzige has asked me to help comb her Kashmir goats.
36:56After China, Mongolia is the world's largest producer of Kashmir.
37:02It comes from grooming out the goat's winter hair.
37:05For nomads like Titzige, it's an important cash crop.
37:16So do you just do this once a year?
37:31A kilo of raw Kashmir sells for around 70,000 tukriks, or £25.
37:38With her flock of 250 goats, Sitzige can earn up to £4,500 a year.
37:46Tell you what, in another few days you're going to have to do this to my hair as well.
37:59As we comb the goats, the weather outside turns.
38:05I'm going to have to do this.
38:07I'm going to have to do this.
38:08I'm going to have to do this.
38:09I'm going to have to do this.
38:13During spring in the Gobi, Mongolians talk of having four seasons in one day.
38:19Turning from a blue sky to a snowstorm in minutes.
38:26But this blizzard's nothing compared to the harsh winters, when fierce storms known as Suds often sweep in, decimating herds.
38:37In 2010, a severe storm was estimated to have killed a staggering 8.5 million animals.
38:45Thousands of herding families were forced to abandon their way of life.
38:52Sitzige may earn good money from her cashmere, but one bad winter could wipe her out.
39:00Do you hope that this way of life will continue, say, for your grandchildren's generation?
39:10Sitzige may earn good money from her children.
39:45Well, this is the view that's greeted me from my tent flat this morning.
39:54Basically, it's a whiteout.
39:58So, I'm all wrapped up in every layer of clothing I possess.
40:04Last night, it was a pretty wild night.
40:08And at around 3.30, the dogs were going absolutely mad,
40:14which made me think, I wonder if that means that there's a lot of wolf activity.
40:21I just wonder, with all the commotion that was going on last night,
40:25whether they did come back.
40:30Batshock decided to leave the foal carcass out for the wolves.
40:33With cubs to feed, the chance of them returning was high.
40:39So, it was an opportunity for us to put out a night-vision camera
40:43to see if we could catch the wolves in action.
40:46I just wanted to show you what the camera found.
40:55Do you want to come and see?
40:57So, you can see this is the foal here.
41:00You can hear the dogs.
41:05But watch what happens.
41:06Right, you can see it at home.
41:16Then you will come out a letter.
41:24You can to while물, what are you going to do or do that?
41:27You can see it in a
41:28big place.
41:28You must call the bookworm.
41:30As for their children.
41:33His children were bound to join me.
41:37As for their children...
41:40...the children who lived.
41:43They knew they knew they could join me.
41:44What do you mean?
41:45Come on.
41:51There's a lot of children.
41:53There's a lot of children.
42:23In the spring, everybody does say the weather is unpredictable or predictably
42:30unpredictable, I suppose. And yesterday was a day of blizzards and dust storms and freezing
42:37temperatures, and you literally couldn't wear enough clothes. And we're woken up this
42:41morning to the most beautiful sunshine. And all of us, we're all in kind of spring clean
42:51mode. Lots of shaking out of sleeping bags and washing of hair, which is a completely
42:56pointless exercise, because in about two minutes, I'm going to be down the hill with Ordna sorting
43:01out her sheep and covered in dust again. But, you know, a girl's got to try.
43:12We're heading off to the local town of Dalan Zaggad to sell some of the family's cashmere.
43:23It's a three-hour drive through the mountains, and spirits are high.
43:40I have a feeling this is going to be a dangerous day, going to the big city with two nomads.
43:49The last time they were in town was over three months ago.
43:52So before you had a car, would you go by horse to the town to sell the cashmere?
44:22Dalan Zaggad is the provincial capital with a population of 18,000. Like many urban areas
44:29in Mongolia, it's growing rapidly, as the younger generation is tempted by modern city life.
44:37But it's also home to former nomads, whose livelihoods were ruined by the storms in 2010.
44:51Ordna and Sarago are meeting a cashmere trader by the side of the road.
44:56That's the same.
44:57We're going to be right.
44:59We're going to be right back.
45:01We're going to be right back.
45:03We're going to be right back.
45:05Mongolian cashmere is said to be the finest in the world.
45:09The combed hair will be processed into the fine and highly prized yarn in the capital, Ulaanbaatar.
45:19That's two hundred and fifty pounds for ten kilos of goat hair
45:27Since the end of communism the production of cashmere has grown to become mongolia's second largest industry
45:37Ordner and Serago take me to the local supermarket to spend some of their hard-earned cash
45:46I'm going to put them on a button on me
45:52Turn it down on the other
45:55This is all
46:02Cargap smart touch
46:11for me it's a very interesting idea that you can hang on to your nomadism and your culture
46:17and your traditions which they most certainly have but equally you know they go to the supermarket
46:23and they buy a shed load of sweets i think it's sort of rather pragmatic nomadism
46:37mongolia's economy is booming and not because of cashmere large mineral deposits have been found
46:43beneath the goby and mining has become the country's biggest industry it's estimated that it will grow by
46:5030 percent over the next few years this newfound wealth is having a negative impact on mongolia's
46:57nomads do you think that uh more and more people will be tempted away from nomadic life
47:05and go into mining and into industry and move to the cities
47:10world
47:12originally
47:15forest
47:15uh
47:27uh
47:39you know
47:40It's hardly surprising that young people are being tempted away when the mining sector
47:47pays up to $2,000 a month, 13 times what most herders can make.
48:10But this family has a large and valuable herd. As well as goats and sheep, they are the proud
48:16owners of a fine collection of horses and yaks. Yaks are supremely adapted to life in this
48:32harsh landscape. They used to carry the family's possessions when they moved camp, but with
48:374x4s and trucks doing the hard work now, yaks are kept as a symbol of pride and prestige,
48:43as well as for their milk and wool. That's fantastic. Just magnificent scenery. There is nothing
48:53cooler than a yak. In two days' time, there's a yak festival in a neighbouring valley, and
49:00the whole herd will be on show. You look out at these seemingly barren hills and think,
49:11how on earth do you keep livestock alive? You know, these animals are as canny as their
49:18owners when it comes to making a living out of this landscape. It's lovely to watch.
49:42The family have invited me to go with them to the yak festival, but I need to be properly
49:51dressed. Ordner has made me a dell, a traditional Mongolian overcoat.
50:10It's amazing. She's very, very clever, your daughter. So do you think I look okay for the yak festival? Yeah?
50:20Sorry? I won't let your family down?
50:23What do you think? This mess. It's amazing. It's wonderful.
50:54It's the day of the much-anticipated Yak Festival.
51:10Just how Mongolia manages its transition to a modern global economy, yet maintains its rich nomadic heritage, is a difficult
51:19balancing act.
51:21But festivals like this, set up by the regional government to support nomads and to encourage tourism, are a step
51:29in the right direction.
51:31And they're a wonderful opportunity for nomadic families to come together.
51:36Do you speak English?
51:37I do speak English.
51:39I want to speak English.
51:41You are? I'm doing it very well.
51:43I'm studying English.
51:44Yeah.
51:44Do you understand?
51:45I understand completely.
51:48Very good.
51:57Over 300 yaks have been herded into the valley.
52:01The festivities begin with Yak Rodeo.
52:10Today is also a civilisation.
52:18There's two stars in the ring and he's trying to make a big change in the world.
52:22Here's a key business.
52:23Here's a key business.
52:26This is a key business.
52:26Here's a key business.
52:28Here's a key business.
52:50Next is a competition for all the family.
52:53What do you want me to do?
53:11The men must catch a yak and shear it while we make a rope from its wool.
53:34We're a little bit slow. I'm sorry I couldn't help more.
53:42And now, like any good Mongolian spring day, it's starting to snow.
53:54And in the grand tradition of all country fairs, there are prizes galore.
53:59This girl has won the best female yak. Woo-hoo!
54:08Chimid looks so delighted. Look how proud she looks.
54:16This whole festival is about restoring yak herding to this province
54:21and remembering how important these animals are to the nomadic families here.
54:29But most of all, I've just had a real sense of how nomadic families
54:35may live these very remote and often isolated lives,
54:38but it doesn't mean that there isn't a really strong sense of community
54:43and tradition and culture. And today has been all about that.
55:09With the festival over, my time with Chimid and her family has come to an end too.
55:17Oh, these look beautiful. What are they called?
55:20Boots. Boots. Boots.
55:23They're hard to do. They're hard to do.
55:29They're hard to do. They're hard to do.
55:30It seems like you've managed to partner in a very successful way
55:37tradition and modern life without affecting the sort of heart of nomadic life.
55:48They're hard to do. The good thing.
55:54They're hard to do. They're hard to do.
56:07Is it a good life?
56:28It's just been the most fantastic privilege to be here and I just wanted to say thank you.
57:26There's no doubt that nomads across the globe are under threat.
57:30And the odds are stacked against their extraordinary way of life.
57:34But here in Mongolia, at least, I'm cautiously optimistic.
57:39This is modern nomadism, with all its traditions, with all its cultures, absolutely intact.
57:48But these are people who are not shying away from the modern world at all.
57:54Chimid and her family have shown me that there's a place for nomads today.
57:58And I'm really hopeful that their descendants will be here in centuries to come.
58:03Thank you for everything.
58:04This is clearly not an easy choice of life.
58:08And I think that's what makes me admire them even more.
58:11They are nomads and they're fantastically proud of that.
58:15And they seem almost as much part of this landscape as the mountains and the birds of prey and the
58:22wolves.
58:33Well, he wanted a car, but the prize for getting a 147 had just been slashed.
58:37So did Ronnie the Rocket O'Sullivan go for it?
58:40Well, it's the Claire Boulding Show. Next.
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