Three Friends, two boys and a girl, roam the woods of the Kirgisian hinterland. They rollick about and play tricks on peasants. Finally they reach a marked-out railway route that stretches until the horizon and once was the course of "Silk Street". For the children, the trains rolling by mean dreams of freedom and a "better life". Meanwhile, aboard one of these trains minor dramas take place: A conductor worries about her young daughter, who is in bad company. Another conductor is lonely and hopes to find love and affection by going to bed with male passengers - although these affairs regularly end in tears. An artist who portrays people is at odds with his fate - he wants to paint only the things that are important to him personally. Little by little he starts conversations with other travellers. When a gang of thugs tries to provoke him, the painter reacts quick-witted. Thereupon the men brutally throw him out of the rolling train. On the side of the railway route he meets the three children. This encounter will change the life of one of the boys.