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<p>When Harry Sweppenheiser saw the movie &#8220;The Eagle Huntress&#8221; at the Dietrich Theater&#8217;s Winter Film Festival in 2017, he was utterly charmed &#8212; by the images of a soaring eagle, the sweeping vistas of Mongolia, and the true story of teen-age Aisholpan Nurgaiv, whose father taught her to carry on the family tradition of training an eaglet.</p><p>&#8220;Every aspect is incredible,&#8221; he said. &#8220;The culture, the people, the country, the subject matter &#8212; it grabbed me.&#8221;</p><p>It all grabbed hold so firmly that Sweppenheiser, 72, of Monroe Township, decided he had to visit Mongolia, the least densely populated country in the world.</p><p>While he was there in September 2018, he was able to meet Aisholpan and her family and even hold her eagle, whose name translates to White Feathers.</p><p>&#8220;Unbelievable,&#8221; he said of how well the trip worked out.</p><p>At 10:30 a.m. Saturday at the Dietrich Theater in downtown Tunkhannock, Sweppenheiser will present &#8220;Discovering Mongolia With Harry,&#8221; sharing his memories, photos, and a movie he made about his two-week trip. Admission is free.</p><p>Sweppenheiser, who is retired after 29 years with Procter &amp; Gamble in Mehoopany, arranged his Asian adventure through Blue Silk Travel of Shaker Heights, Ohio, which was founded by Mongolia native Saranzaya Baatar and her husband, Jonathan Khoury.</p><p>&#8220;When I talked to the vice president, Jonathan, and told him I&#8217;d love to go to the eagle festival (where Aisholpan had won a prestigious competition), he said his wife&#8217;s family knows Aisholpan&#8217;s family.&#8221;</p><p>That set in motion the eventual highlight of the journey &#8212;the visit with Aisholpan&#8217;s family, who live as nomads for three quarters of the year.</p><p>&#8220;Saranzaya suggested we could meet them for lunch and her father said they&#8217;re so remote we might as well stay for two days,&#8221; Sweppenheiser said in a telephone interview, explaining the family welcomed nine visitors from Blue Silk Travel, including tour guide Maya Lkhagvasuren.</p><p>&#8220;Thank God for her,&#8221; Sweppenheiser said, explaining the guide studied in England and was adept at translating the host family&#8217;s Kazakh language into English.</p><p>Among the thrilling aspects of the trip, Sweppenheiser said, he had the chance &#8220;to ride a camel in the Gobi Desert and go horseback riding on the steppes. I&#8217;m still reeling.&#8221;</p><p>&#8220;I owe all this to the theater,&#8221; added Sweppenheiser, who may be the Dietrich&#8217;s most avid movie goer, with 1,188 films as of Wednesday. &#8220;You can sit here and travel the world.&#8221;</p><style>
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<div class="neCaption">Harry Sweppenheiser of Monroe Township, had a chance on his trip to Mongolia to become acquainted with the eagle that starred with its trainer, teen-age Aisholpan Nurgaiv, in the movie &#8216;The Eagle Huntress.&#8217; He will share tales of his trip at 10:30 a.m. Saturday at the Dietrich Theater in Tunkhannock. </div></div><div class="metaInfo"><photo0>https://www.timesleader.com/wp-content/uploads/2019/03/web1_Mongolia.CMYK_.jpg</photo0><caption0>Harry Sweppenheiser of Monroe Township, had a chance on his trip to Mongolia to become acquainted with the eagle that starred with its trainer, teen-age Aisholpan Nurgaiv, in the movie &#8216;The Eagle Huntress.&#8217; He will share tales of his trip at 10:30 a.m. Saturday at the Dietrich Theater in Tunkhannock. </caption0><photoCredit0>Submitted photo </photoCredit0></div><div class="neFile"><img class="neImage" src="https://www.timesleader.com/wp-content/uploads/2019/03/web1_mongolian.girl_-1.jpg">
<div class="neCaption">Aisholpan Nurgaiv and her eagle, whose name translates to White Feathers, were stars of the 2016 movie &#8216;The Eagle Huntress,&#8217; which inspired Harry Sweppenheiser to travel to Mongolia and meet the young woman and her family. </div></div><div class="metaInfo"><photo1>https://www.timesleader.com/wp-content/uploads/2019/03/web1_mongolian.girl_-1.jpg</photo1><caption1>Aisholpan Nurgaiv and her eagle, whose name translates to White Feathers, were stars of the 2016 movie &#8216;The Eagle Huntress,&#8217; which inspired Harry Sweppenheiser to travel to Mongolia and meet the young woman and her family. </caption1><photoCredit1>imdb.com </photoCredit1></div></div>
<div class="metaInfo"><bylineMeta><p>By Mary Therese Biebel</p><p>mbiebel@www.timesleader.com</p></bylineMeta></div><div class="metaInfo"><factboxMeta><p><strong>IF YOU GO </strong></p><p><strong>What: </strong>&#8216;Discovering Mongolia With Harry&#8217;</p><p><strong>When:</strong> 10:30 a.m. Saturday</p><p><strong>Where:</strong> Dietrich Theater, 60 East Tioga St., Tunkhannock</p><p><strong>Admission:</strong> Free</p><p><strong>Info:</strong> 570-996-1500</p></factboxMeta></div>

‘Discovering Mongolia with Harry’ to be presented at Dietrich Theater