Aksakal, a widower, is a rail track repairman who has been working on the barren and remote Kazakh steppes for the better part of his life. Though often nostalgic for the freedom of riding his horses across the wide-open landscape, he diligently works at his job and lovingly takes care of his daughter, Sauleshka. One day, a Frenchman called Etienne loses his wallet and skips off the train with no money, flustered and determined to catch the next train out. But things change as he accommodates to the rhythms of life with Aksakal and his daughter ...