Travelogue: Morocco [2006] – part 3 {the Sahara}

See Part 1 and Part 2

Monday 26 June

The plan was to wake up and watch sunrise but I must have missed it by a few minutes. However, the sky was still very pale which contrasted greatly against the still dark faces of rock. Stark yet beautiful. Serenity in harshness.

After a couple of hours sleep, the scenery had changed dramatically. With the sun shining brightly, the gorges had taken a golden-red hue. A shepherd guided his flock of goats which drank from the stream, soon disappearing behind the curves of rock as they moved on. After the obligatory photos it was time for us to move on too.

In broad day-light we could now appreciate the splendour of the villages set among the vivid greenery of the palm trees as we took the road back. It all looked so exotic and tranquil as if the scene had just leapt out from a book. Passing through Tirnerhir we were now on our way to Erfoud to start our adventure in the desert! Zak’s car somehow survived the first signs of the desert, with both Zak and Mayma realising their dream of driving in these particular conditions, and soon after we reached our destination.

Once in Erfoud, we visited a friend of Zakaria, a retired athlete, now working in the service of the King. Here we got to experience more of the excellent Moroccan hospitality, as we were not only all welcomed into their home but had a wonderful meal consisting of lamb and this unusual cactus-like vegetable prepared for us, definitely one of the most delicious meals I had during my stay in Morocco. We also got to meet his adorable two year old son Mohammed, who at first was rather shy but then gained confidence and tugged at my tshirt to have his photo taken, and of course I happily obliged 🙂 After a few relaxing hours in this household and preparations for our overnight desert stay, we set off to find our 4×4 jeep waiting for us. The great adventure was set to begin!

Following a bit of off-roading on the outer reaches of the desert, we stopped at an isolated tent where we were offered tea (in its warmth, ironically refreshing). From there we continued driving across the sand in what was becoming the desert proper, with the sand spraying at the sides and sometimes clambering along dunes – incredibly fun! We also stopped to see a salt lake with huge sand dunes as its backdrop. It was a pity that the air was somewhat hazy, mainly due to the wind, but it was still very impressive. We soon approached Merzouga which had been the site of recent floods and the destruction was still rather evident. It is hard to imagine areas in the desert being pounded by rain but indeed it is not such an infrequent occurrence. Some minutes later we arrived to the site where our new mode of transport for the next few hours awaited us: camels!

We climbed up the backs of those sturdy creatures, and led by our trustworthy guide Said, we charged on at full speed ahead. Well, not really, actually rather slowly, and a bit painfully at first. This was not my first time on a camel so I was used to the jerky movement especially when the camel staggers up. However, last time I had only spent about 10 minutes on one; this was most definitely not the case this time – must have been 3 hours at least. But mark my words, taking a camel trek is the definitive way of seeing the Sahara. Riding up and down the dunes (somewhat uncomfortable for a certain body area), watching the stunning landscape of orange sand and sky, felt almost surreal. It felt as if being in a film and with our turbans, necessary to protect your face from the wind and sand, we must have looked quite the part. The dunes were spectacular and stretched to what seemed infinity. Another astonishing thing which never fails to amaze me is the guides’ knowledge of the desert – how they manage to find their way with apparently no landmark whatsoever, and the dunes subject to change, is incredible.

Sometimes we were silent, awed by the sheer wonder of it all (and perhaps contemplating and soul-searching). At other times we entertained ourselves by singing – we were one crazy quartet and most probably we drove Said crazy too! I was rather surprised that my mobile connection was actually working in the midst of the desert when I received a message from my dad telling me that Italy had won a World Cup match (yes, I was made a tad happier). The only thing that slightly spoiled my pleasure was that I got some grains of sand in one eye which irritated it greatly. My sunglasses had decided to break just the night before – just before our desert trip, ergh, perfect timing. Still, I sure didn’t wish to be anywhere else but there.

We watched sunset from our camels and some time later, we reached an oasis and our camp for the night. While settling down, I was surprised to see a cat roaming around. I went to investigate and as a result made friends with Derek, a young film-maker from Canada who was travelling solo in Morocco after a month in Europe. The night was spent playing djembes and other percussion instruments together with our guides, eating a delicious tagine and star gazing, trying to figure out different constellations. There was no moon that night so the stars shone brightly in their millions, with hazes of galaxies glimmering in the darkness. It was just so beautiful. Every day brought with it another more wondrous sight that I felt like I almost had to pinch myself! Somehow, with a million thoughts running in my head, I tried to sleep. Bravely or stupidly, covered by our warm, thick blankets, we decided to sleep under the stars, not bothering to enter our tents. God knows what insects may have been crawling beneath our mattresses!

Tuesday 27 June

At around 5 am I woke up, determined not to miss sun-rise this time. I woke up Derek, who was supposed to wake me up, and together climbed up a dune, as the others decided to sleep on. A couple was somehow making its way up on the enormous dune nearby, which dwarfed the one we had sometimes struggled to climb. Some minutes later after arriving on top of the dune, as we watched the sky grow paler and paler, our early rise was made totally worthwhile when we saw the sun slowly, but majestically, gliding upwards from the horizon, spreading its white light causing the scenery to change every few seconds. Indeed, another thankful moment.

Some time later, once the others had woken up, us girls frolicked around in the sand dunes and had one of our photo sessions. Thankfully my camera was still working even though its lens was suffering, like my eye still was, from the sand. At around 8 o’clock we were all set to leave the camp, just before it got unbearably hot to travel. So after saying bye to Derek, who was to spend another night in the desert and do some proper filming, we were back on our camels. Although I think we took the same route, this time the journey felt shorter and in a couple of hours we were back in Merzouga, thus ending our magnificent Saharan adventure.