Spring Tsagan Sar: White Month Holiday in the heart of Kalmykia
From 31 000₽ per person
Description
Type: Multi-day activity
* In Kalmykia, this holiday is called Tsagan Sar, in Buryatia – Sagaalgan, among the Tuvinians – Shagaa, among the Altai peoples – Chaga Bayram. The names are translated as "white month", as it is counted according to the lunar calendar.
The Tsagan Sar holiday dates back to the religious traditions of the Mongolian peoples. It is a symbol of the renewal of man and nature, openness and purity of thoughts, hope and good expectations. The name comes from the Mongolian words tsagaan — white and sar - month.
In 2011, the holiday was nominated for the UNESCO Intangible Cultural Heritage List.
The Kalmyks asked at the meeting: "Did the family members and livestock come out of the wintering safely?" The utterance of these words was accompanied by special gestures, depending on the gender and age of the people greeting each other. The younger one was holding out both hands to the older one. The elder handed him one right hand. The younger one wrapped his arms around her from both sides. Both bowed their heads in a small bow. The older one could extend both hands, in which case the two made exactly the same gestures, clasping each other's right hands. With this gesture, they could greet their peers. The woman was obliged to pull her sleeves down as much as possible in order to completely hide her hands in them.
attention:
In late autumn, winter, and early spring, due to the short daylight hours, visits to some of the tour sites listed in the program may occur at night.
The tour operator is not responsible for travel delays due to weather conditions, as well as traffic jams.
If the weather conditions on the route may threaten the safety of tourists (heavy snowfalls, low/high air temperatures, mudslides, heavy rains, floods, forest fires, smog, etc.),
in case of unforeseen circumstances, repairs of the facility, closed religious ceremonies, etc., the tour operator reserves the right to unilaterally change the program. Guided tours: replace some objects with others, and if replacement is not possible, exclude tour objects from the program.
Available languages
Group type
Age restrictions
Training level
Transfer
day 01
08.02.24 – Elista, exploring the city
Type of accommodation:Hotel
14:00 Check-in at the hotel on your own
14:50 Meeting with the guide in the hotel lobby
15:00 Lunch at the Kalmyk Cuisine No. 1 cafe
The format is a tasting of traditional national cuisine.
It offers the first introduction to the vibrant and rich cuisine of the region, which is famous for its fragrant and delicious dishes based on the freshest ingredients of local production. The tasting also allows you to determine the taste preferences of a certain group of tourists, taking into account its results, a further menu is formed as part of the tour program.
Benevolence from the soloists of the Zulturgan ensemble - Kalmyk songs
16:00 Guided tour of Elista and an external inspection of the Seven Days Pagoda and the Golden Gate "Altn Bosch".
1) "Seven Days Pagoda" - it was built in 2005. The name of the pagoda is associated with the seven Buddhas who came to our world. The pointed spire of the pagoda symbolizes the exit from samsara and the achievement of nirvana. A prayer drum with a diameter of 1.2 meters and a height of 1.8 meters is located in the building of the pagoda. The drum weighs 2 tons and has inscriptions of the mantra "Om mani padme hum" in Tibetan, Sanskrit and Kalmyk alphabet in Todo Bichig in gold letters and contains 75 million mantras.
2) Altn Bosch — The Golden Gate of Altn Bosch, made in the traditions of Buddhist architecture. The Golden Gate was installed in 1998. The height of the building is 15 meters. It is a symbol of the sacred threshold, through which a person is spiritually cleansed, gains confidence and strength.
3) Exodus and Return – memorial dedicated to the deportation of the Kalmyk people
4) The Stupa of Enlightenment, the Wish-fulfilling Stupa, is the only Stupa in Kalmykia that can be entered.
17:30 Visit to the Gallery of Kalmyk Artists and NHP masters,
18:00 Visit to the workshop of artists Alexander and Khalga Povaev
, a master class in painting for an additional fee upon reservation of the tour.
Free evening
Independent dinner
day 02
02/09.24 – Sights and museums, Master classes on preparation of ritual wrestlers
Type of accommodation:Hotel
Breakfast at the hotel
09:40 Meeting with the guide in the hotel lobby
10:00 N. Palmov National Museum of Local Lore
12:00 p.m. Hurul Shakyusn Xume is the epitome of Kalmyk architecture and Tibetan traditions. The temple is a twenty-meter two-story building with a superstructure in the form of a two-tiered pagoda. The building was twenty meters long and nineteen meters wide. The central place of the first floor of the Shakyusn-Xume is occupied by an altar and an almost four-meter statue of Shakyamuni Buddha, covered with gold. One of the basic rules of behavior in the temple is not to turn your back to the Buddha, moving in the direction of the Sun.
13:00 Lunch at the Four Seasons cafe with a master class on cooking Kalmyk dishes:
1. Master class on making Kalmyk tea "Jomba", a favorite drink of the nomads.
2. Master class on cooking Kalmyk wrestlers
There are dishes that have a much deeper meaning than it might seem at first glance. An example of this is the ancient Kalmyk recipes. Bortsoki is an amazing dish that is easy to prepare, but it has an amazing history.
Tourists can take self-prepared bortsoks with them and take them as an offering to the Central Hurul on the day of the celebration of Tsagan Sar.
14:30. Excursion to the chess town "City Chess".
15:00. Visit to the interactive Museum of Nomadic Peoples of the Republic of Kalmykia -1.5 hours
Presentation of Todo Bichg, an old Kalmyk script created in 1648 by the Oirat scholar and educator Zaya Pandita. The name of this script literally translates as “clear writing”, because unlike other Mongolian writing systems, Todo-bichg is the most understandable and easy to read.
The Museum of Nomadic Peoples in G Elista is the only place in Russia where you can order a personalized amulet in the Old Kalmyk vertical script.
You can make a reservation. By your arrival, the master will prepare and hand you your personalized amulet.
Free evening.
Independent dinner
day 03
02/10/24 – The holiday of TSAGAN SAR begins according to the lunar calendar
Type of accommodation:Hotel
Breakfast at the hotel.
Putting on new outfits (some of the clothes must be new and white)
07:20 Meeting with the guide in the hotel lobby
07:30 Departure to the ethno-hoton "Ceren" -6 km. in the suburbs of Elista
08:00 The ceremony of opening the white road and prosperity in life and business on the territory of the ethnochoton "Ceren"
10:00 Yurt Tour:
1. Museum of the Kalmyk Cossacks
2. Khan's yurt with an area of 120 sq.m
. 3. Oirat Mongol yurt
In the "Tseren" ethnochoton, you can do a photo shoot in national costumes, there are authentic photo zones, climb the Cossack observation tower, swing on a Mongolian swing, shoot arrows, taste Koumiss and Chigyan, milk arak, Kalmyk milk tea, wrestlers, ride camels, ride horses
10:45 Departure to Elista
11:00 Central Hurul Golden Monastery of Shakyamuni Buddha
13:00 Festive lunch in a cafe in the city, Kalmyk cuisine, is included in the price.
14:30 Participation in the festive events of the city of Elista dedicated to Tsagan Sar
Concerts, events with immersion in the celebration of Tsagan Sar
A walk through the festive city. Participation in city events.
18:00 Visit to the B. Basangov National Drama Theater or the Republican Russian Drama and Comedy Theater of Kalmykia of the Republic of Kalmykia on request. For an additional fee.
Independent dinner
day 04
11.02.24
Type of accommodation:Hotel
Breakfast at the hotel. Room release.
Free time to visit souvenir shops and markets.
11:30 a.m. Transfer to the airport of the city of departure is self-paid
Details
Included
Excluded
Recommend to bring
Starting point
* the city of ElistaFinish point
* the city of ElistaHow to get
* Due to the temporary closure of Elista airport, it is necessary to take into account the additional costs of transfer from Volgograd (300 km) to Elista. The recommended arrival time is until 09:45 in Volgograd, the transfer from Volgograd departs at 10:00. Departure from Elista at 11-12 o'clock. Travel time is 4 hours, taking into account the time for arrival at the airport, we recommend that you purchase your flight after 17:30 For the city of Elista: Due to the temporary closure of the airport in Elista, additional transfer costs from Volgograd (300 km) must be taken into account.
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Туроператор по Калмыкии
Organizer
Первый туроператор Калмыкии
Приглашаем в Калмыкию — это край пустынь и степей между Кавказом и Каспием. Единственный регион в Европе с официальной религией буддизм. Путеводители по Калмыкии пишут, что это заповедный регион, где так легко проникнуться миролюбивыми идеями об единении всего живого, поймать «нирвану» и отдохнуть от кипучей жизни больших городов. В населенных пунктах вы увидите колоритные храмы, а за их пределами — бескрайние степи со стадами сайгаков.
