Twelve-year-old Bazarbai is unlike other Nomad boys his age. He dreams of leaving behind the green pastures of his native Western Mongolian province, lured instead by the call of the urban jungle: Ulan Bator. But Bazarbai's father has his own aspirations: One day, the young boy will make him proud by following the famed eagle hunter's own footsteps. When Bazarbai's brother, Khan, is forced to leave home for Ulan Bator, Bazarbai feels deeply hurt and betrayed; he should have been the one sent into the big city. In an attempt to cheer him up, Bazarbai's father takes him to the great Eagle Festival; but the young boy is inconsolable.
