At 6:45 we left the hotel after breakfast for the long drive across the Atlas Mountains into the Sahara. At our first rest stop in the Atlas Mountains. We saw some snow! There are also monkey that live in the mountains in caves, and we think most of them were in their homes. We didn’t see any.
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| Just a light dusting. Apparently the snow got so bad the night after we came through |
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| Quick selfie! I was so glad this was just a rest stop. |
We drove through a few towns lots of farm land and high desert. We passed some sheep herders as well, through some gorge and out to the other side of the mountain.
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| Goats! |
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| Pretty rocks |
One area in a valley had lots of burned palm trees. One way to stop diseases that the trees have is to burn the outside. However last year the fire got a little out of control and burned more than intended. I’m sure the palms will recover though. These palm trees do not grow coconuts but dates instead. They are harvested in October and take about 3 months to process before being ready to eat.
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| The river creates lots of water for the viggages to feed themselves |
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| Palm trees! |
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| This is the area that the fire affected. |
We also passed through a few villages and stopped in one for lunch. There are lots of rural areas with poverty and some with high amounts of trash. Some of these areas didn’t have electricity or running water until the last 20-15 years or so. Even less villages just recently got trash services. With nowhere to put their trash, it has been left for nature to take care of.
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| buffet |
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| lunch by the pool |
After lunch we continued on our journey and soon saw our first glimpses of sand dunes. We stopped at a shop before our hotel for some scarfs to make turbans for the desert. They help protect your head and face from heat, sun, and sand.
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| First glimpse! |
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Desert Ready!
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We arrived at our hotel at about 4:45 making our journey a total of 10 hours. Some of that time was spent stopping for bathrooms, photos, or lunch. We had about 45 minutes to settle into our rooms before meeting up for a camel ride and to watch the sunset. Weather could have been worse, but it was very windy and clouds had started to roll in. The sunset wasn’t super spectacular but there was a nice glow to the orange sand. The sand itself was super fine and felt nice on the feet. Before leaving the hotel for the ride, Hicham taught us how to wrap a turban with our newly purchased scarfs. I am happy to say I now feel confident with my turban wrapping abilities, helping others in our group get thiers tight.
Our single hump camels arrived and we started the process of getting on. Hicham assured us that these animals are treated well, being used for only one ride per day, given lots of water and spaces to walk. The 4 of us were happy to hear as I have seen some very questionable camel ride tours that really seem to exploit the animals. You sit on the hump, making it a big stretch to get your leg up and over it. When it stands up, it’s back legs start then it’s front so it throws you around a little. I had to hold on tight to the handles on the saddle to not fall off. Once up and on the camel it wasn’t that much different from a horse. Camels are a bit slow when they walk.
It’s mating season for them and while there were no females in our group they were all very vocal. I think George Lucas must have been inspired by them because their noises reminded me of different creatures in Star Wars.
About 20 minutes later we were at a large dune for some photos.
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| Waiting by the pool |
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| The camel that carried me |
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| We are in the sahara! |
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| selfie! |
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| The camels arrived |
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| desert bug |
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| stacy! |
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| POV |
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| There goes Tracey! |
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| Silly photo |
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| Stacy and her camel |
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| Tracey and her camel. It would have come home with us but there wasn't enough room in the carry on luggage |
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| OOps!!! |
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| head stretches |
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| I'm so proud of this photo |
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| Its so pretty! |
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| waiting for us to be done |
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| wow! |
After the sun set we boarded our camels and headed back to the hotel. We had a traditional Berber pizza. It’s like a large flatbread with a layer of minced meat inside. We finished the evening with some drums from the hotel staff then off to bed again.
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| With Hicham |
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| Hicham and the staff playing for us |
Wishing for the best on your adventures,
Cienna
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