359. The Great Sahara

Where: Merzouga, Morocco
When: March 29-30, 2011
With: Rachel

When thinking of the Sahara, images of Lawrence of Arabia on camelback, wrapped in a scarf with miles and miles of dunes surrounding him, come to mind. It just conjures epic images of sand, oases, palm trees and thirst. And it deserves every bit of grandeur it evokes. It is the world's largest hot desert (about the same size as the continental US), takes up the majority of Northern Africa, and would probably be one of the most iconic sites I've ever seen in my life. 

Of all the places we had on the itinerary for Morocco, this is the one I was most looking forward to. However, after a long drive from the city of Fes, through the Atlas Mountains, the mood on our bus was slightly deflated. We were all just a bit pooped as the day was coming to a close. But with the sun hanging low in the sky, the rocky scene around us suddenly started to shift, and we all took notice immediately.

First, a pack of camels, just casually roaming the field alongside the road. Not something I'm used to seeing. 

Then, I looked out the front of the bus and well, to be honest, didn't quite believe what I saw. I knew what lay ahead, but I guess I didn't expect it to look like this.

 I honestly had to rub my eyes. Like a giant mountain range rising in the distance, huge dunes of bright orange-red sand rose from the otherwise flat terrain.  It looks like we are here. I guess I didn't expect it to begin quite so suddenly. 

We pulled up to our hotel, the Hotel Kasbah Mohayut. With the backdrop of the dunes behind it, I already felt like we were on a movie set or transported back in time. Everything just seemed authentically Saharan, right down to the fact that the exterior walls of the hotel were actually made of mud and straw.

Once inside the (hopefully sturdy) walls of the hotel, we were greeted with Moroccan mint tea and cookies in the beautiful courtyard. The staff wore the traditional dress of the local Saharan tribes, making this experience feel even more authentic. 

The rest of the hotel felt like some Arabic subterranean hut. The rooms had no windows as per traditional homes in the area in an effort to keep them naturally cool in the hot summer months. 

Feeling refreshed from our tea and anxious to explore this magical sight, Lahoucine took us right out into the desert for a quick walk. We had a nice little frolic through the sand dunes in the fading light.

We also got to experience some of the local tribes that actually live in the dunes and try to make money off of unsuspecting tourists just like us. Whether selling junk jewelry or offering to take us on a tour of the dunes, Lahoucine quickly shooed them away from us. 

It didn't deter how beautiful the scene around us was. 

As we watched the sun dip behind a mountain, we headed back to the hotel for dinner. We will see you on the other side, old friend.

That night, we had a Moroccan feast under the stars in the open courtyard. The scene was gorgeous. After dinner, we went up to the roof of the hotel to lay on lounge chairs and marvel at the still and quiet night sky around us. There were thousands of stars to be seen as there's no cities or lights around for miles. It was crazy to look out towards the desert and see a black hole of nothingness. No indication of the vast mass of land we were standing on the edge of. 

It was very early to rise the next day as we were up before the sun. A pack of jeeps greeted us at the hotel, and we were off into the sand dunes with the moon still shining above us. 

While we didn't drive far out into the desert, the dunes that greeted us were high! And the sand was freezing! I thought the easiest way to climb up was barefoot, but didn't anticipate how cold my feet would be! That didn't stop us from burying into it to keep warm as we plopped at the top of a dune to await sunrise. 

As the light grew, we saw the path we'd just taken up the dunes. A lot harder than it looks!

Waiting for the sunrise!

We meet again, old friend. 

I mean, come on, this is like out of a movie. 

The sun rose up into the sky fairly quickly and its heat was intense from the get go. 

It was so iconic and beautiful all around. It really felt surreal. 

After a bit of fun in the sand, we got back in our jeeps. We drove to a new meeting point to leave behind the engines and find a more ancient mode of transportation. The more iconic mode: 

the camel. 

These burly guys were pretty nonplussed by our presence. They each allowed us to climb on board pretty easily, they rose as a group (they were all tied together) and off we went, like a caravan into the desert. 

As the sun quickly grew high in the sky, I was amazed by the shifting colors the dunes took on. They almost seemed alive, and in a way, they are. As the winds can move the sand around, the peaks will shift as well, rendering any amateur visitors completely lost without a stationary point in sight 

Even in the short distance we walked, we were glad to have a guide. The wind took away our footprints at a terrifyingly rapid pace, leaving no trace of our path back. 

The shifting sands. 

My favorite photo of the trip. So iconic. 

After we were well and proper into the desert (or so it felt) we hopped off our camels and climbed up a dune for a view. This one was much steeper than the one from the morning, and was so hard to climb! We sank in the loose sand up to our knees and were completely out of breath once we reached the top. One of the ladies on our trip tried to get us to throw her a line, but even that didn't make it any easier. 

However, the views from the top were worth it. It was just dunes, as far as the eye could see, in all directions. And with the sun approaching noon, there was no way to tell which way was home. It all looked the same, just miles of sand and shadows. 

The view from back at the bottom. That last bit at the top, where our footprints are no more,  was the toughest part to climb!

After that final climb, we were back on our camels and heading home. Before we knew it, we turned a corner, and we were out of the Sahara desert. 

When I think back on those 24 hours at the edge of the Sahara, it just feels so magical. I know I probably used the words "iconic" and "surreal" a nauseating amount, through this post, but they are the only words that come close to describing how it felt to be there. It was such a gorgeous place and experience, and definitely ended up being the highlight of my trip to Morocco.