Up early, early today as we needed to be in the Sahara for sunset and it’s a wee way- left by 6.15am!! Drove for 9 hours with a nice stop for an included lunch in a hotel and a few “pee pee” stops as Abdula calls them- he is so funny!
Drove through the Atlas mountains where the temp went down to 8 C, it had huge plateaus and equally huge mountain ranges- some barren and rocky others in an oasis, all lush and green. Its pretty amazing to the eye. We ended up taking over 400 photos today so there was plenty to see!
We stopped on the way in a little shanty town, where they were cooking food in taugenes, but also goats and cows with their throats cut, hanging up in the halal way- eeuu, they look better when they are skinned and just meat!!! There were flies for Africa and we certainly would never eat anything there but a cool experience to see
There is an excited fervour in the air as we neared Erfoud as the Moroccans beloved King Mohammed was about half an hour behind us. All the men were dressed in their best, wearing their fez’s and children lined the streets with flags. It was so funny when I waved out of the bus window and all the kids started cheering and waving madly back- then I thought geez I hope they don’t think we are part of the official entourage as they knew he was due!!!!
We arrived at the hotel at 3pm and straight out to the 4 x 4 wheel jeeps. Of course we managed to get the “suicide driver’! who wanted to beat all the others and veered off the road and took off through the desert alone. One word for him- m.a.n.i.a.c.! We were like corks bobbing around as he hit ruts and bumps, then he would swerve it left and right at 100kms. Anyhow we got there in one piece and out to the camels. You had the choice to ride solo or together, so got one together and we were off with a handler with our beautiful gray camel with long, long eyelashes
Up the dunes and it was gorgeous watching the desert as the light changed and all the tracks in the sand looked freaky. When we got to the top, we dismounted and sat on the top of a ridge and watched the sun go down. Really great in the still and quiet. One of the handlers, a teenage boy came along and put the traditional dress on us and wound the scarves in the way they wear them. It actually cooled me down strangely- since it was covering your whole head. He obviously loved technology as he asked for our camera and video and took heaps of pics of us, then went and found a scarab beetle and showed us- reminded me of the ones in the movie ‘The Mummy” thank goodness these ones don’t eat you like those!
All the different shades and hues of the desert sky changed to an orange glow as the sun went down and after- it was quite eerie and surreal…… So this is one big tick off Graeme’s bucket list and he is well happy with the experience he came here for.
We travelled back in the 4x4’s albeit more slowly this time as Abdul had a word in the grumpy drivers ear, and back to the hotel. Had to go straight in for dinner, then showers to get all the dust off from the dessert. Funny, everyones showers are badly designed – the tile surround on the bath is lower than the bathtub so when the shower is on- it pours like a water fun park around the tiles and all over the floor, flooding the room. There was water running out of the front doors of some of the rooms! The hotel being made out of mud and straw like american style adobe- don’t think they should leave it or all the rooms will rot!!!!
The food is certainly a little different and we are under strict instructions not to eat or drink the coffee, tea (the water) or salad and cut fruit or fish- So we are all getting thinner lol! Apparently his last tour, Abdul had 20 of the group come down with diarrhoea so he is being very careful with us. The most unusual food we have had was a filo like pie that was very hard to cut and had meat and savoury spices inside and icing sugar and cinnamon on top- odd flavours in the same mouthful but a good experience to try
Drove through the Atlas mountains where the temp went down to 8 C, it had huge plateaus and equally huge mountain ranges- some barren and rocky others in an oasis, all lush and green. Its pretty amazing to the eye. We ended up taking over 400 photos today so there was plenty to see!
We stopped on the way in a little shanty town, where they were cooking food in taugenes, but also goats and cows with their throats cut, hanging up in the halal way- eeuu, they look better when they are skinned and just meat!!! There were flies for Africa and we certainly would never eat anything there but a cool experience to see
There is an excited fervour in the air as we neared Erfoud as the Moroccans beloved King Mohammed was about half an hour behind us. All the men were dressed in their best, wearing their fez’s and children lined the streets with flags. It was so funny when I waved out of the bus window and all the kids started cheering and waving madly back- then I thought geez I hope they don’t think we are part of the official entourage as they knew he was due!!!!
We arrived at the hotel at 3pm and straight out to the 4 x 4 wheel jeeps. Of course we managed to get the “suicide driver’! who wanted to beat all the others and veered off the road and took off through the desert alone. One word for him- m.a.n.i.a.c.! We were like corks bobbing around as he hit ruts and bumps, then he would swerve it left and right at 100kms. Anyhow we got there in one piece and out to the camels. You had the choice to ride solo or together, so got one together and we were off with a handler with our beautiful gray camel with long, long eyelashes
Up the dunes and it was gorgeous watching the desert as the light changed and all the tracks in the sand looked freaky. When we got to the top, we dismounted and sat on the top of a ridge and watched the sun go down. Really great in the still and quiet. One of the handlers, a teenage boy came along and put the traditional dress on us and wound the scarves in the way they wear them. It actually cooled me down strangely- since it was covering your whole head. He obviously loved technology as he asked for our camera and video and took heaps of pics of us, then went and found a scarab beetle and showed us- reminded me of the ones in the movie ‘The Mummy” thank goodness these ones don’t eat you like those!
All the different shades and hues of the desert sky changed to an orange glow as the sun went down and after- it was quite eerie and surreal…… So this is one big tick off Graeme’s bucket list and he is well happy with the experience he came here for.
We travelled back in the 4x4’s albeit more slowly this time as Abdul had a word in the grumpy drivers ear, and back to the hotel. Had to go straight in for dinner, then showers to get all the dust off from the dessert. Funny, everyones showers are badly designed – the tile surround on the bath is lower than the bathtub so when the shower is on- it pours like a water fun park around the tiles and all over the floor, flooding the room. There was water running out of the front doors of some of the rooms! The hotel being made out of mud and straw like american style adobe- don’t think they should leave it or all the rooms will rot!!!!
The food is certainly a little different and we are under strict instructions not to eat or drink the coffee, tea (the water) or salad and cut fruit or fish- So we are all getting thinner lol! Apparently his last tour, Abdul had 20 of the group come down with diarrhoea so he is being very careful with us. The most unusual food we have had was a filo like pie that was very hard to cut and had meat and savoury spices inside and icing sugar and cinnamon on top- odd flavours in the same mouthful but a good experience to try
2 comments:
What beautiful photos.... love the shadow pic of teh camel trail.... love it! Now what is that movie really old where they wear those head pieces... LAurence of Arabia or something.... looks like a movie set from that film! and Denise of course you look like the leading lady in that devine head piece, weird it cooled you down... wonder if it will take off in HAmmers this summer?
yeah we watched the movie before we left and it is pretty life like! in that shadow pic we are the camel behind the man walking. We have a few of those photos that look cool!!
Hmm cant see the headscarves taking off except on large loud women who wear caftans and carry around martini's!
Post a Comment