This is the nearest grassland to Hohhot and the earliest grassland to have been developed for tourists in Inner Mongolia. It is 1,000 square kilometers (400 square miles) and at an altitude of 1,700 meters (5,600 feet).
This plateau grassland has a chain of hills around it. In the Mongolian language, Xilamuren means “yellow water”. Unfortunately, tourism and changing weather patterns is changing the grasslands. There are other grasslands but they are farther away.
This was a memorable part of our trip. We enjoyed a traditional welcome ceremony where we were handed a blue scarf and given a cup of baiju.
We stayed in another yurt, though we know it is not traditional.
We drank kumiss which is a fermented drink made from animal milk. This one was from camel milk. It was very delicious and smooth.
In Mongolia, there are the Three Games of Men: “Horse Racing”, “Wrestling” and “Archery”. We saw a show that gave the history of Mongolian people and demonstrated these three games. Mongolians are known for their horse riding capabilities and ability to shift sides and other tricks. They told the story of tribes and eventually being unified into one Mongol group.
Aobao (敖包)
The aobao is the Mongolian stone piles or heaps for worship. Local people always sacrifice food goods and alcohol to the gods at the Aobao to pray for good weather, harvest and fortune.
At night we celebrated at a feast. We wore Mongolian dress and were served some really great food while being entertained.
We went horse riding to a herdsmen’s home through the grassland.
