 |
| The mountain in the background is Black Heart with Blue Lake at it's slopes. |
 |
| The man, The myth, The legend |
Black Heart’s Blue Lake refers to the spot where the
tribes of Mongolia elected Chinggis Khaan as their leader in 1189. While it is difficult to archeologically
pinpoint the location of such a historic event, there are certain documents
that Mongolians use to chronicle Chinggis’ history. These documents reference a
mountain that is called Black Heart with a lake beneath it called Blue Lake.
Oral traditions and names of locations have led Mongolians to the belief with
some level of accuracy that this historic location is at a scenic lake in
western Khentii province, approximately 4 hours from where Sally and I live.
Khentii is recognized as one of the most historical
provinces in Mongolia, because of its link to Chinggis Khaan’s homeland. Dadal
soum (Reference the earlier Momgolia posts)
is the recognized birthplace, Хөх
Нуур
(most Mongolians just call it blue lake
for short) is the recognized place of coronation, and a mountain in the
remote reaches of northern Khentii is recognized as his “burial” site (the exact location of the tomb is still
unknown).
 |
| Chinggis' Totem |
Traveling to Blue Lake has been a goal of mine for
several months, so working with CPs, I arranged a mekr (15 passenger van) to take a group of people to the historic site
last Saturday. We left early in the morning on Saturday and made the bumpy
journey over bad roads. There were 13 of us not including the driver: 9 PCVs,
and 4 teachers from my school.
As we left the paved road for 45kms of good old
Mongolian dirt track, it became apparent why so many Mongolians speak so highly
of the location. Grassy plains and bald rolling hills gave way to tree covered
meadows and forested tracks. For us, who are so accustomed to open land, the
trees were a pleasant change. Soon we found ourselves at the lake which was
surrounded by ger camps and forest. On one side of the lake, the slopes of a
large mountain met the water in a thin line of trees and boulders. Opposite of
the mountain on a flat shoreline, the Mongolians had erected totems of a sort
to Chinggis Khaan and his decedents. The
wooden carvings created a half-circle that faced away from the lake. All of the
“recognized” children of Khaan looked toward a larger totem of the fonder of
their dynasty. Flanked on either side of Chinggis Khaan were totems of his two
“recognized” queens. Surrounding the kings and queens of Mongolia is a sparse
forest of trees. The trees were a mix of larch and aspen, both of which were
changing colors as Mongolian fall set in.
 |
| Some of the Kings of Mongolia |
We only stayed at the lake for about four hours.
During that time we wandered the forest surrounding the lake and found a
geocache on Black Heart’s slopes. I had planned to do some mountain climbing,
but Black Heart is a sacred mountain, so women are not allowed to summit it (consult a post from May titled “Foreign
Language Competition and Birthday Stuff”). The sexism of these traditions
sometimes takes the fun out of summiting a mountain, and I had no desire to do
so if my wife and friends could not make the ascent as well.
 |
| Sally and I |
 |
| This is the first time that all of the PCVs of Khentii were able to get together, there are 6 of us who are starting our second year, and 2 new volunteers. |
As the wind changed and a cold Siberian breeze began
to set in, we climbed back into the mekr and headed home feeling both
revitalized on fresh air and exhausted from wind exposure. Overall, it was a
very successful trip and a great opportunity for the PCVs of Khentii province
to experience a celebrated site.
~Caleb
No comments:
Post a Comment