East Hulun Buir Grassland in Hailar City, Hulun Buir City of Inner Mongolia Autonomous Region: The beauty of harmony
This fertile land is adorned with hundreds of silver chains and numerous pearls. The rivers and lakes originating from the Greater Xing'an Mountain that ranges across eastern Inner Mongolia and Heilongjiang Province. Rivers in Hulun Buir share one feature. They all dash down the mountains when they get to the flat terrain; they become mild and take their time meandering through the meadows.
The Mergel Gol River is said to have ''the most bends on earth'', but the Yimin River, which runs from Ewenki Banner into the city of Hailar, has even more bends. Yimin River forms a pattern of tortuous ribbons. The flat terrain enables the rivers to linger on as long as they wish, nurturing the land on both banks and supporting the numerous flocks and herds of Hulun Buir.
The Hulun Nur (Nur means lake in Monglian), on the Orxon Gol River, is the fifth largest freshwater lake in China. Covering 2,339 sq kilometers, the lake is also referred to by the Mongols as a ''Dalai'' (sea). Also on the Orxon Gol River but upstream in the south is Buir Nur, the boundary lake between China and Mongolia. When spring comes, shoals of fish in the Buir Nur will swim downstream along the Orxon Gol River to lay their eggs in the Hulun Nur. Between the two lakes is the Dalai Lake Nature Reserve.
The Ergun River in Chen Barag Banner flows north, forming part of the boundary between China and Russia. On the way, the 700-kilometer-long watercourse is joined by other smaller ones flowing across the Hulun Buir Grassland, and plunges through deep valleys and past precipitous cliffs in the Greater Xing'an Mountains, before joining the Heilong River and emptying into the sea. Rich water resources have brought vitality and vigor to Hunlun Buir, and more than 600 kinds of high grassland plants, make it one of the richest grasslands in the world.
In spring, thousands of white swans hover in the sky here; in summer, flocks of cranes, egrets and storks gather; and in autumn wild geese fly over in tight formations to their havens in the south. Summer is the most spectaculars season on the grassland. Green waves of grass wave in the wind, larks sing by the waters, and blue butterflies dance on the petals of the flowers, form a peaceful and harmonious scene in which horses and sheep graze serenely.
However, the legends about the prairie are alive in the memories of local people. Hulun Buir, the cradle of the Mongols, was also a realm of the Xianbei people in the 4th -6th centuries. Ancient spearheads and the ruins of the fief of one brother of Genghis Khan, who founded the Yuan Dynasty in the 13th century, all tell stories of war.
The traditional ceremony of building Aobao (cairns) and the Nadam fair held in Xin Barag Left Banner and Xin Barag Right Banner, and the summer carnival and winter Nadam fair held in the Ewenki Autonomous Banner are all grand events on the grassland. Wrestling matches, sled, horse and camel races, and dairy and lamb delicacies will feast both the eyes and stomachs of everybody.
Brief introduction:
Hailar (海拉尔) Long known as the "Pearl of the Grasslands", Hailar acts as a gateway between China and Russia. The district has an estimated population of 256,000, and serves as a regional centre for commerce, trade, and transportation. Hailar was founded as a Chinese fort in 1734. It is now a centre of agricultural production on the Chinese Eastern RR. Hailar has no less than 4 shopping malls - Friendship, Yishidan, Huahui and Busen- which are similar to Western ones in their scope and variety, if not quite as good.
Manzhouli (满洲里) It is the China’s busiest land port of entry and shares a border 54km to north with Russia. It has an area of 696.3 square kilometers and a population of more than 300,000 (in 2010). Manzhouli is located in the western part of the Hulunbuir prefecture-level city. Lake Hulun to its immediate south is the China's fifth largest freshwater lake with an area of 2,600 square km and an average depth of just 5 meters.
Ershan (阿尔山) Ershan city lies at the foot of the middle reaches of Great Khingan Range and borders the Hulun Buir Grassland to the east. With mineral springs dotting the blue-green Aershan Mountain of the city, the pastoral vistas of Aershan draw large numbers of tourists who come to escape from the hustle and bustle of metropolis life. The Aershan Mountain is rich in diversified landforms, especially volcanoes and hot springs. The winding Halaha River flows through the grassland of Aershan Mountain.
Ershan is home to just 10,000 people. In reality it feels more like 100 people and it comes as a shock that the streets are quiet: unwalked by feet and undriven by traffic. The jumble of buildings that line the main street are a strange architectural mishmash with turrets, towers and grand balconies in enough pastel shades to rival the wild flower-covered hills surrounding them. Behind the main street are a row of the more familiar mini high-rise apartments and also the humble single-storied dwellings usually home to farmers, but here filled with woodcutters and bicycle repairers. Aershan comes alive in the winter as a skiing and hot spring resort; although the only evidence of this lay in the occasional run-down chair lifts that strode up the mountain.