What is Naadam festival?
Naadam means games in Mongolian. Some places in Mongolia call this festival "Eriin Gurvan Naadam", which means "3 Men's Games" festival. The games include: Mongolian wrestling, horse racing, archery, held all over Mongolia in mid-summer. Nowadays, women are also allowed to participate in archery and horse racing, but are not allowed to compete in Mongolian wrestling.
When participating in the competition, contestants will have to wear traditional Mongolian costumes. Before each competition, there is a cavalry parade, in addition to dancing and drinking activities.
The festival is held every July and lasts for several days across Mongolia, most vibrantly in the capital Ulaanbataar, but also very lively and colorful in the countryside.
Horse racing
Mongolia is known as the country born from horses. The native horses here are very strong and brave since the time of Genghis Khan. They have superior physical strength compared to humans, adapt well to extreme temperatures and are good at finding their own food. In Mongolia, every child growing up in the countryside learns to ride a horse from the age of 3. The cultural significance of horse racing at the Naadam festival is to honor historical values. There is also an ancient Mongolian legend that says you can change your luck by touching the dust and sweat of a horse when participating in horse racing at the Naadam festival.
Mongolian wrestling
Wrestling is a traditional sport in Mongolia. Matches are broadcast on national television and every Mongolian family hopes that their son will become a famous wrestler. Cave paintings in the capital city of Bayankhongor, dating back to the Neolithic period, depict two men wrestling, surrounded by cheering spectators. Historically, Genghis Khan used wrestling to keep his soldiers in good shape for battle.
Another common feature of Mongolian wrestling is that there are no weight classes. It is quite normal for a wrestler to compete against an opponent twice his size in Mongolia. When competing, each wrestler must wear a four-sided headdress, an off-the-shoulder shirt and shorts. When wrestling at the Naadam festival, the wrestler will wear a traditional cloak and shoes.
Archery
Archery has always played an important role in the lives of the Mongols. Nomads have always been very good at using bows and arrows for hunting. The Mongol warriors used them as weapons and made their enemies afraid.
Archery competitions are held at the Naadam festival for archers: men, women and children. In each category, the competitors will use different bows and arrows and the distance to the target will also be different. Before the competition, the competitors will also have to participate in a test to test their strength, vision and concentration. Like wrestling, the archers must wear traditional costumes when competing.
The game "shoot the heel bone"
Walking around the Naadam festival, you can see groups of 6 to 8 men flicking 30 marble stones like dominoes on a smooth wooden surface towards a sheep bone target. This is the traditional Mongolian game of “heel bone shooting” and is considered by many to be the 4th main sport of the festival. The game has a long history, when Mongolians revered certain parts of the bones of livestock and used them in religious ceremonies and traditional festivals.
What other interesting things are there at the Naadam festival?
The Naadam Festival is more than just sports. It is the biggest event in Mongolian culture and features huge parades, concerts and theatre performances.
The festival begins with the famous Nine White Banners, a tradition that dates back to the time of Genghis Khan and was revived in the 1990s to celebrate the country's return to democracy. Each banner is made from the tail hair of 1,000 horses from each province and is considered a symbol of strength. There is also a traditional costume festival called Deeltei Mongol; a horse head festival called Morin Khuur; and nightly performances of Uchirtai Gurvan Tolgoi, a traditional Mongolian opera. At Naadam, visitors can also listen to jazz music and participate in many other interesting forms of entertainment.
Cuisine at the Naadam festival
The cuisine at the Naadam festival is rich and diverse. At this interesting cultural event, thousands of nomads gather here to party. The favorite dishes of the people here are: khuushuur (a type of meat-filled roll), crispy fried dumplings, airag yogurt, fermented mare milk...
How can you get to the Naadam festival?
In 2019, the Naadam festival takes place between July 11 and 15. Many travel companies now offer tours and itineraries that include the festival and explore more of Mongolia.
Vietnam does not have direct flights to the capital of Mongolia, Ulaanbaatar. Travelers can choose a transit flight in Beijing (China) with Air China. In addition, visitors can also choose other transit flights such as Cathay Pacific (in Hong Kong), United Airlines (in Hong Kong) or Vietnam Airlines (in Tokyo). However, for the second half of the journey, from the transit points to Ulaanbaatar, visitors will have to change to Mongolia's national airline, MIAT. The shortest flight lasts about 10 hours. Travel companies in Vietnam often organize Beijing - Mongolia tours with prices ranging from 50 million to 70 million VND/person.
The procedure for applying for a visa to Mongolia is quite simple, visitors only need to fill out a visa application form, passport, ID card, 2 4x6 photos. However, visitors also need an invitation letter from a Mongolian citizen, organization or travel company. Therefore, visitors can go through reputable travel companies such as Saigontourist, Vietravel, Tugo... to guarantee their visa application easier.
