Camelling around in the Sahara
Trip Start
Oct 17, 2006
1
58
Trip End
Jul 08, 2007
Merzouga, Morocco
Thursday, April 19, 2007
The hotel owner I found myself in tried desperately to get me to do an overpriced 20 hour tour starting that afternoon, and although I got him down to around 670 Dirhams, I wanted to check out some different companies.
A quick 2 minute walk outside though, and I soon came to the conclusion that it was more bother than it seemed. Especially as it was around 5pm, and I needed to start asap if I wanted to depart that day!
So I eventually decided to cough up the money and just enjoy it. And Im glad I did!! Although there are very few black people in Morroco (despite the fact its in Africa), I found myself with a guide who looked like Eddie Murphy starring as that King in Coming To America. Unfortunately he didnt speak any English, and we were the only ones!! But what could I do......
So off we set over the sand dunes, me on a camel, and him walking at a leisurely pace in front. As we got further and further into the middle of the Sand Dunes (although there is dessert almost everywhere, Merzouga is famous for having these golden sand dunes, which look utterly amazing and out of this world), the sun started setting, and I was just amazed at the beauty of the place.
Just as it was getting very dark, we finally made it to the camp ground - luckily it was already set up. Nope, noone here, just us 2! It was kinda scary, as I was in the middle of nowhere (it seemed) with a dude who I couldnt communicate with. But naturally there were no problems, and after he cooked up a fairly decent Tagine (the local soup), he went to bed and I sat up walking amongst the sand dunes on my own, just loving the tranquility of the place.
Next day, I woke up and watched the sunrise, and just stood there admiring the beauty of the place. Its hard to put it into words, but there just arent many places in the world as quiet, peaceful, beautiful, and "out of this world" as this place. Anyway, we set off back out of the sand dunes, and several hours later arrived at a tiny Berber village (ie about 4 houses spread out over nothingness) with the mountains marking the border with Algiers off in the distance. Eventually, they cooked us up some couscous, and we slowly plodded our way back to the hotel (neither my guide or the camel seemed to be in any sort of rush, which I imagine is the only way to be in the dessert). Thankfully, the dessert is quite bareable in the afternoons and mornings in April, which is apparently one of the best times to visit!!
Anyway, once we returned and the tour was over, I resisted the temptation to spend a night in the hotel itself, and began the long, ardous journey to Marrakesh.........
