“Desert Dreams” The lines and waves of the Sharqiya Sands Desert blur as the rising wind whips the sand up into the setting sun.
“The desert never leaves you.”
My driver, who had declared his love of the desert as we were driving into it, said this with awe in his voice.
I agree with him. I too, love the desert: there is something mystical about the way seas of sand drape and fold into the distance. The shimmering light is mesmerising; the dry heat wraps you in a blanket of support and warmth; and the soft sands and sensuously billowing dunes invite you to lie down in them. There is a poetry in this landscape which is both timeless and ever-changing. It gets into your bones – into your soul.
It also gets into your hair and your teeth and your eyes!
The winds had picked up, and even with my tightly-wrapped Bedouin headscarf, the sand was biting into my hands and eyes. “You’ll be finding bits of it, years from now!” my driver continued with a soft laugh.
We were in the Sharqiya Sands – also called the Wahiba Sands after the Bani Wahiba tribe who are the predominant Bedouin residents there. This desert stretches across 200 kilometres (125 miles) of loosely-populated space between Oman’sEastern Hajar Mountains and the Arabian Sea. The area is less than three hours from Muscat – the country’s capital – and is often referred to as “Oman’s adventure playground”.
On our way in, we stopped at the nearest town to have the tyre pressure reduced in our modern four-wheel drive before driving off the bitumen and into the uncharted sands.
I say ‘uncharted’ because it is: GoogleMaps is no help here. Our guide/driver from NTT Tours knew where he was going, but there were no roads, signposts, or markers. Just sand. Even the tread-marks of previous vehicles were not good indicators, as they could have been from campers who were heading into the wilds. We, however, were over-nighting at the evocatively-named 1000 Nights Sharqiya Sands Camp, which the driver somehow found. While it may sound as if I am being overly dramatic, a family who were self-driving chose wait until we were ready to leave the next day, and to follow us out of the desert and back to the closest town: they were concerned about getting lost or stranded!
The resort is in a magic location, nestled at the foot of a large dune. In the afternoon, we drove high into the hills to watch the sunset. The next morning, I set off well before sunrise to climb the soft sand behind the resort to wait for daybreak.
Join me for some desert landscapes:
Toyota Four-Wheel Drive With four-wheel drive and reduced tyre air pressure, a modern, air-conditioned and comfortable vehicle can take you almost anywhere! We drove high into the undulating dunes to wait for the sunset.
Afternoon Sands The waves and ripples of sand – amber-tinted by the afternoon sun – stretch out into the distance.
Waves and Dunes The dunes rise up to 100 meters (330 feet) high, …
Patterns in the Sand … with ripples and waves of sand running between them.
Curves and Waves The seductive curves stretch out before me …
Late Sun on the Sands … as the sun goes down.
Wind and Waves Afternoon light emphasises the shadows carved out of the sands …
Almost Abstract: Patterns in the Sand … by the rising winds.
Sunset Sands The sun drops further in the sky …
Almost Abstract: Parallel Waves … and all around me the patterns shift and flow.
Predawn Footprints on the Dunes I set my alarm very early the next morning, and set off with a head lamp and my cameras to climb the dune behind the resort. It wasn’t as dark as I’d expected, but I’d forgotten how hard it can be to climb through sand. On the steeper sections, I was on all fours like a bear, trying not to sink too deeply, and using my hands to keep from tumbling backwards. Finally, I reached the top and an undulating vista stretched out before (and behind!) me.
Rippled Dune Rising
Almost Abstract: Ripples and Waves
Constant Motion Wind whips at the edges of the dunes where they fall in corrugated stripes into the valleys between them.
Sunrise over the Sharqiyah Desert Finally, the sun creeps over the horizon.
Morning on the Desert It turns out I am not alone; …
Morning on the Dunes … a small group watches the morning break from a distant dune …
Footprints … and tracks all around me show where small creatures have been.
Sunrise over the Camp As the sun rises, I can see my resort below. It was time to head back and have breakfast – after I brush the sand out of my teeth!
Fortunately, sliding down the dunes in daylight is easier than climbing up them in the dark.
Unfortunately, the rising sun also shone light on a disappointing amount of litter, thoughtlessly dropped by travellers and tossed by the wind. I filled a chip bag I found half-submerged with refuse I collected on my walk back to camp.
[…] sensually seductive place, with the sands ebbing and flowing over the dunes into the distance (see: Sand Songs and Desert Dreams). But, don’t be fooled! Once that sun rises over the horizon, the temperatures will skyrocket […]ReplyCancel
[…] towards the green date palms after two days in the magical Sharqiya Sands Desert (see: Sand Songs and Desert Dreams and Life in the Desert), it was easy for me to conjure up romantic notions of starry nights, […]ReplyCancel
The Prayer-Flag Hanger For centuries, Boudhanath Stupa has been an important pilgrimage site for Tibetan Buddhists. So, prayer flags hung there are particularly auspicious; but they don’t hang themselves!
Dancing on the wind, dispersing prayers, mantras, and general good will across the landscape, strings of prayer flags hang to the four corners of Boudhanath Stupa.
Somewhere, amongst them, were mine!
Prayer flags are said to date back to the battle flags used by the Gautama Buddha in the fight against the asuras – malevolent divine beings considered by Indian mythology to be enemies of the gods. Ubiquitous in the Tibetan Buddhist world (e.g.: Prayers on the Wind: Bhutan), prayer flags come in different styles and shapes, but the most commonly seen are the Lungta (wind horse) flags. These colourful squares of cloth are woodblock-printed with sacred images, sutras and mantras, and hung horizontally in sets of five. The five fabric colours represent the five elements and the Five Pure Lights: blue is for the sky and space, white stands for the air and wind, red is fire, green depicts water, and yellow symbolises earth. Keeping these five elements balanced is thought to produce health and harmony.
Prayer flags are believed to release peace, compassion, strength, and wisdom into the very air, bringing benefit to everyone. They can also include prayers for a long life of good fortune on behalf of the person who supplies them.
What could be more auspicious, then, than adding one’s prayers to all of those fluttering under the careful watch of the Buddha’s eyes at the Boudhanath Stupa in the heart of Kathmandu!
We then watched in fascination as the designated prayer-flag-hanger tied lengths of flags together, climbed to the top of the 36 metre (118 ft) dome, secured one end of the bundled flags to the gilded spire, let the bundles unravel to the lower landings, and then secured the other ends to the outer corners of the complex.
That accomplished, our prayers were free to mingle with all the other positive vibes dancing across the Kathmandu Valley and beyond, to all the pervading space in the six worldly realms.
Prayers Flags and the Eyes of the Buddha My accommodation was a short walk from the magnificent stupa, so I took every opportunity to visit it at different times of day. (iPhone6)
The Stupa One of the largest Buddhist stupas in the world, this iconic structure stands tall over the surrounding skyline. It was badly damaged by the horrific April 2015 Nepal Earthquake, but the site is of such importance that repairs (costing 230 million Nepalese Rupees – about $USD 2,000,000) were begun almost immediately.
Flags on Boudhanath The all-seeing eyes face in four directions, and – like the eyes in a painting – follow your progression around the temple.
Bundled Prayer Flags Flags come in numerous different sizes, but the order of the colours (blue, white, red, green and yellow) is invariable. Wooden block printing is the preferred means of printing the patterns, but some are now screen printed.
Plane over Boudhanath The thirteen tiers that form the pyramid at the top of the stupa symbolise the thirteen steps of initiation leading to enlightenment. The lacy gilded canopy atop the steps stands for the air, and the spire is the fifth element in Buddhist philosophy: space or “ether”. We are near a flight path, and regular jets use that space to fly over us and out of the valley.
Flags on the Landing Before anyone begins the long climb up the restricted area to the top of the stupa, the ends of each flag section have to be tied together.
Angfula and the Prayer Flags Our guide keeps an eye on the whole process.
Ang on the Landing Lime powder is mixed with water to make a lime wash, which is carried up to the top, and poured down over the dome periodically.
Flags Dropping Down Saffron water is then thrown over the whitewash by a worker skilled in making the arches, creating a decorative lotus petal pattern.
Unfurling Flags
Guiding the Flags The whole process of affixing the flags is quite labour-intensive; …
Flags on the Stupa … each string has to be guided across each landing ….
At the Edge of the Stupa … and out to the perimeters of the stupa …
Affixing the Flags … where they are carefully tied on.
Flags at the Corner
On the Landing With a diameter exceeding 100 metes (328 feet), the stupa is huge. Outside the base, the shops and restaurants are almost as fascinating as the stupa itself. The nine levels of the stupa represent the mythical Mt. Meru, centre of the Tibetan Buddhist cosmos.
Guiding the Prayer Flags The whole process of attaching the long strands is repeated, over and over, as fresh flags are continually added.
Flags on the Wind The wind horse, in picture or in words, is the central element of a Lungta flag.
Flags on the Wire The outside corners of the flag are guarded by symbols or drawings of the four great animals: Garuda, dragon, tiger, and snow lion, and the texts are usually a collection of mantras or a short sutra.
Flags to the Gilded Spire More than 30kg of gold were used to repair the badly-damaged golden spire.
Flags to the Spire of Boudhanath The Spring skies darken overhead, as the eyes of the stupa keep watch.
Boudhanath under Storm Clouds The crowds at the base thin, as people start to head home, …
Overloaded! … grabbing any public-transport they can find before the rains get serious.
The air was full of prayers and rain as I dodged rubble and puddles walking back to my hotel.
The beauty of staying so close was that I was able to visit repeatedly, checking out the different moods and activities happening at different times of day (e.g.: Light a Candle).
Each visit, I looked up – up to the flags fluttering overhead, sending good will into the atmosphere.
Auṃ Maṇi Bêmê Hūṃ – ཨོཾ་མ་ཎི་པ་དྨེ་ཧཱུྃ – “The jewel is in the lotus.”
Hamar Man The Hamar people of Ethiopia’s Omo Valley carry themselves with a regal bearing, and meet strangers with a clear and direct gaze.
It is hot, and arid, and a long way from anywhere.
The harsh environment is at least part of the reason why the 16+ ethnic groups who live in the far reaches of Ethiopia’s Omo Valley, near the border with South Sudan, have been left alone to maintain their traditional lifestyles and cultural practices.
One writer has called the Omo Valley a “cultural melting pot”, but this is misleading. They have not blended or melted: their cultures have stayed as sharply differentiated from ours – and from those of each other – as shards of coloured glass. While they are predominantly pastoralists, or agro-pastoralists, who value their livestock (mostly cattle, goats and sheep) above all else, each tribe has their individual traditions, clothing styles, and customs. More importantly, each ethnic group has its own defined territory in the Southern Nations, Nationalities, and Peoples Region (SNNPR) of Ethiopia and speaks its own language – with linguistic roots in one of three distinct language families.
The Hamar are among the most recognisable of these tribal groups: as I’ve said previously (A Visit to a Hamar Village), they are a tall and good-looking people. The women decorate their hair with ochre-butter, and wear shell-beaded goat-skin bibs for special occasions; the men wear distinctive feathered clay caps, and carry their small wooden stools/pillows with them as they go about their business – often with an AK47 slung over one shoulder; and all: men, women and children, wear multiple strands of colourful beads.
I visited the Hamar people on a number of occasions with photographer Ben McRae, as part of a small-group Piper Mackay Photo-Tour. These environmental portraits are from a village near the market town of Turmi where we participated in the “pay-per-click” photo-tourism common in the Omo Valley: the tribes here trade on their distinctive appearances to supplement their incomes.
In theory, this is a win-win system: we visitors pay for the privilege of making photographs. In practice, I found it extremely transactional: it was hard to have natural interactions with the local people when they were making sure we didn’t ‘sneak’ any unpaid shots of cows or fences. I felt like I was collecting ‘head shots’ rather than making connections or gaining any real insight into people’s lives.
But, I tried.
Come meet some Hamar people.
Mother and Child The family compound of round, woven houses is surrounded by a simple wooden fence. The mothers – in their blankets and beads – are proud to show off their babies. Naturally, we pay extra for the children in the photos!
Hamar Woman The metal necklaces on this woman tell us she is married; men can have as many wives as they can afford – payed for in goats, cattle and guns.
A First Wife This woman wears a burkule or binyere: a leather and metal necklace with a large cylindrical detail on the front. This indicates she is her husband’s “first wife”: a position of status in the community.
First Wife and Child Infants and toddlers are everywhere. Up until recent times, children with perceived physical abnormalities were judged to be Mingi, or ritually impure, and were killed or abandoned to die.
Young Woman with Attitude These women seem to have such confidence, …
Young Hamar Woman … and face the camera win an insouciance that is enviable!
Young Hamar Man Traditional hairstyles take a variety of forms, …
Man with a Watch and a Stick … but it is the outfits …
Tommy Hilfiger and Beads … that truly give pause.
Layered Beads and a Close Shave Patterned head-shaving is popular, and if I were to go back to the region, I’d take spare razor blades, as they are highly valued.
Blanket and Attitude
Traditional Goatskin Smock
Woman Carving a Gourd Everyone has something to do: this married woman in a traditional goatskin smock is preparing a gourd which will probably be used to contain coffee.
Child with a Child As is the case in many traditional communities, children often care for their younger siblings.
Young Girl in Profile This adorable young girl was raking in the cash; …
Young Hamar Girl … she has an infectious smile, and we all wanted her picture!
Hamar Man in Profile I’m in awe of those chiselled cheekbones! It’s hard to know where the sculpted hair stops and the feathered clay cap begins; …
Man’s Cap … traditionally, men wear painted clay caps which are decorated with precious feathers and other ornaments.
First Wife A ‘first’ and chosen wife, in her heavy – and heavily symbolic neck adornments – …
Hamar Woman … shows us her goatskin clothes: richly decorated with colourful beads …
In Full Dress … and cowry shells – which symbolise womanhood, fertility, birth, and wealth.
Uncompromising Young Woman These women have strength! They look into the camera with no compromise.
Those Eyes! This young girl (whose picture I have shared before), on the other hand, had such large, emotive eyes, she made me think of those dreadful velvet paintings of large-eyed-children with teardrops that were so popular in my youth.
I’ve left a lot of ‘background’ in my shots because I want to convey some of the dusty, hot environment in which these people live.
But, I don’t for a moment pretend I understand how they do it! I can only hope I left more than I took.
[…] where our base was in Turmi. Over the next days, we visited Hamar (e.g.: Visit to a Hamar Village, Face in a Hamar Village; Hamar Village Portraits; and Morning Portraits), Daasanach (see: A Visit to the Daasanach) and […]ReplyCancel
Man in a Red Turban India is a feast of colours and impressions. Everywhere you go, people in brightly dyed fabrics sit in contrast against roughly painted or wash-tinted walls – as if they are just waiting for random street-photographers to appreciate them.
I just love the photogenic faces of India!
So much of Indian life happens in the streets and public spaces. As a foreigner, wandering around – either alone, or in the company of a guide or group – I have always found that my cameras and I are welcomed into that street life. I meet the eyes of strangers, and they acknowledge me and my desire to make their picture; sometimes they want to see the result on the digital display on the back of the camera, but most of the time, we just exchange a laugh and a thumbs-up, or a namaste of thanks. Some people indicate they are reluctant or unwilling to be photographed – a sentiment I completely understand, and naturally, respect – but in India, that doesn’t happen that often.
It has been ages since I’ve spent time in India. My last small-group visit, with photographer Karl Grobl from Jim Cline Photo Tours, and local guide DV Singh Jagat, included the annual autumn Camel Fair in the Northern Indian town of Pushkar (see: Faces at the Camel Fair, and Among the Camels and Horses). Pushkar Lake has attracted pilgrims at least as far back as the 2nd Century BC. Today, the lake is registered as sacred, and is ringed by Hindu temples, Sikh gurdwaras, and 52 bathing ghats.
The start of the Camel Fair and the Hindu observance of Prabodhini Ekadashi are determined by the Hindu calendar, taking place on the 11th lunar day of Kartik – which usually coincided with November on the Gregorian calendar. The town and the adjacent fair grounds are filled with crowds of religious pilgrims, animal-traders, entertainers, touts, merchants, and international tourists (see: Street Scenes in Pushkar).
Most of the international tourists are like me: travelling alone or in small groups with big cameras, and are there for the life and the colour.
Seated Sadu The life of a Hindu aesthetic is relatively simple: what you see here is probably everything this man owns: blankets to sit on and wrap in, a kumbh – or pot – for collecting sacred waters, a copy of the Rama Gita or some other holy text, and a small bag for other assorted toiletries, etc.
People on the Ghats Today is Prabodhini Ekadashi – “awakening eleventh” – the day that Vishnu woke up from his four-month sleep over Chaturmas. Ritual observances include chanting, fasting, and bathing in Lake Pushkar.
Woman in the Crowd The streets are busy with pilgrims heading to the ghats and temples.
Salesman in a Kumbh Shop During the Pushkar Fair period, a ritual bath in the lake is said to lead to salvation. Hindu faithful also carry water home with them: often buying special containers, or kumbh, for the purpose.
Prayer Beads and a Blazer I can’t help but wonder how far some of the pilgrims have walked carrying their kumbhs.
Sadhus on the Road The different styles of sadhu are fascinating to watch as they make their way into town.
Sadhu Portrait
Cooking Street Food The streets are lined with fresh food …
Sequinned Textiles … and colourful goods.
Colourful Dupatta Women in red headscarves check out the jewellery on offer in stalls alongside the road.
Pilgrim Women Friends find places to sit and rest on their walk into town.
Older Woman in Blue
Woman with a Young Boy
Woman in Pink and Red
Selling Vegetables Roadside vendors clump into groups, where the conversation is as important the sale.
Mannequins The shop-front mannequins seem strangely out of place.
Street Colours The streets are full of colour as pilgrims make their way …
Child in the Crowd … through the crowded streets …
Outside Gau Ghat … and into Pushkar’s most important bathing ghat.
Woman with a Head Load Even though the pilgrims keep coming, …
A Moment’s Respite … there are moments of quiet reflection, …
Heat and Smiles … and there is always time for a smile.
Face amid the Saris Between the ghats and the fairgrounds, the crowds continue.
Old Sadhu
Women at Tea Shop I love masala chai! An open-air teashop just outside the fairgrounds provides me with a good opportunity to stop, …
Woman in a Pink Sari … chat with the women, …
Woman in a Marigold Sari … and raise a cup of chai.
Hot, sweet, rich, masala chai –
As hot as the streets, as rich as the colours, and as sweet as the welcoming smiles.
Yet again Ursula, it is wonderful to see your smiling face in my Inbox, reliving our great time together once more. Do hope you are well and thank you for the little walk here down memory lane. You are so amazing too. . . . the stories and the depth of your knowledge. Absolutely Amazing. Miss you Girlfriend. . . .ReplyCancel
A Camel and the Pyramids What could be more iconic? A camel in the heat-haze of the desert, a Bedouin tent, tumbled ruins, and pyramids on the horizon!
There are some sights – no matter how many times they have been shown in photos or on film – that you just have to see for yourself.
Sure, there are stock images online that are taken in better weather conditions and from better angles, and the hosts of travel programs get superior entry and access – but none of that can add up to the amazement and wonder that comes from a first-hand experience.
I’ve just returned from my first foray into the Middle East, where the evidence of human civilisation stretches back millennia. A different archaeological wonder lay around every corner as I walked around locations so laden with ancient historical stories that I felt as if I could hear them in the pulsating heat and smell them in the ubiquitous burning incense.
My first day included the short bus ride from my Cairo hotel to Al-Jīzah on the outskirts of the city. Nothing prepares you for that first sighting of the Great Pyramid of Pharaoh Khufu, rising some 147 meters (481 feet) from the Giza Plateau as it comes into view out of dusty bus windows. I caught my breath and swallowed hard.
Naturally, as we walked around the pyramids – jockeying for position with tourists from all over the globe and firmly refusing camel rides, postcards, and trinkets – we were told the stories of their construction. I’ll give you the short version: roughly 4,500 years ago (some time between 2575 and 2465 BC), they were built – not by slaves, as I was told in Grade 3 Social Studies, but by skilled under-employed farmers during the agricultural low season. Current thinking is that during the annual Nile floods, the populace could not work the lands, but could transport building materials on the rising flood waters, and could construct the massive pyramids and the funereal complexes that surrounded them. Egypt’s pharaohs were expected to become gods and return to their bodies after death, so everything they might need was interred with them, deep in secret rooms where robbers or enemies would presumably not find them.
Of course, we all know how that worked out.
But, raided though they might have been, the tombs themselves still stand: testaments to incredible design and engineering skills, superb logistic organisation, and wonderful artistic ingenuity. Thanks to the Rosetta Stone, which allowed scholars to decipher the hieroglyphs so intricately carved and painted on the interior walls, we have a rich understanding of the lives of the pharaohs and the processes involved in their embalming.
The largest tomb at Giza is the Pyramid of Khufu or Cheops – often called simply The Great Pyramid of Giza – is the oldest of the Seven Wonders of the Ancient World, and the only one to remain reasonably intact. The whole Giza site comes under UNESCO-World Heritage protection as Memphis (the first Capital of Ancient Egypt) and its Necropolis.
Join me for a glimpse.
View from the Marriott Mena House It’s as if every period of history is represented! Once the site of an old hunting lodge set on 16 hectares of gardens, Mena House in Giza first opened to the public in 1886. Photographs of screen stars, presidents and princesses who have visited sit in a case in the elaborate drawing room of this oId stone palace, and I could well imagine Hercule Poirot sitting under the elaborate gas chandelier, looking out over the manicured lawns and the Great Pyramid.
Entering Giza It is barely eight o’clock on an October morning, but the sun is already high, the light is blinding, and the heat bounces off the stones, both old and new.
Exploring the Tomb of Pharaoh Khufu or Cheops With the Robbers’ Tunnel entrance – excavated by workers employed by the Caliph al Ma’mun, a ninth century Arab governor of Cairo – overhead, visitors clamber over the lower levels of the Great Pyramid of Giza.
Take my Portrait! All over the giant stones, each weighing 2.5 tonnes, …
Check out my Selfie! … people share pictures of their experience.
Walid Explains Our guide is passionate about his country’s history and culture, and enthusiastically explains how the pyramids were built.
Rough Stones The ancient stones were once covered by polished limestone casing stones which would have been smooth and gleaming, shining white in the sun.
Pyramid of Pharaoh Khafre The limestone capping remains on the top of the smaller Pyramid of Khafre, …
Pyramid of Pharaoh Khafre … giving us a good idea how glorious they all must have looked.
People in the Street As well as visitors from all around the world, there are locals, in traditional dress, walking around the site.
Dog at the Pyramid of Khafre The skinny dogs are dwarfed by the giant stones.
Camel-Back Official There is a visible security and police presence.
Leading the Animals Camels and ponies are available for hire.
In Front of the Pyramid of Khafre Tourism in Egypt is still in decline following the Arab Spring and the 2011 Egyptian Revolution, and many touts and guides are struggling to make a living.
Pyramids of Giza The Pyramid of Khafre and the smaller Pyramid of Menkaure float in the heat haze.
Camel at Giza Camels wait for riders …
Camels at Giza … while some get lucky. (iPhone6)
Cairo in the Heat Haze Behind us, the massed high-rises of Cairo disappear into the smog.
Camel and Khafre To me, the camels define the scene.
Mastaba of Seshemnefer IV from the Bus Not all of the tombs are for pharaohs; this one is for Seshemnefer IV, who was Head of the Royal Harem up until about 2340 BC.
Pyramid, Ponies, and Patterns
Perspective is Everything! Giza is home to the enigmatic sphinx.
Inscrutable With the body of a lion, the sphinx’s head was thought to be modelled on Pharaoh Kafre, but the monolith – carved from limestone bedrock – is giving up no secrets.
Giza and the Sphinx If you are not careful with your camera angles, the relatively small (20 m (66 ft) high) sculpture is dwarfed by the massive pyramids behind it.
What an extraordinary introduction to Egyptian mystery and history.
Walking among structures that have stood for so long was simply awe-inspiring.
[…] be over a thousand years younger than the magnificent Pyramids of the Old Kingdoms at Giza (see: Stories in Ancient Stone), but even the graffiti defacing them is older than the buildings I grew up […]ReplyCancel
[…] the mind-blowing pyramids at Giza (see: Stories in Ancient Stone) to the amazing tombs in the Valley of the Kings (see: The Writing on the Walls, and Take me to the […]ReplyCancel
- Performing the Ganga Aarti from Dasaswamedh Ghat, Varanasi
- Buddha Head from Shwedagon Pagoda, Myanmar
- Harry Clarke Window from Dingle, Ireland
- Novice Monk Shwe Yan Pyay Monastery, Myanmar
Packets of 10 for $AU50.
Or - pick any photo from my Flickr or Wanders blog photos.
.jpg)
.jpg)
.jpg)
But, I don’t for a moment pretend I understand how they do it! I can only hope I left more than I took.
As hot as the streets, as rich as the colours, and as sweet as the welcoming smiles.
Walking among structures that have stood for so long was simply awe-inspiring.
[…] sensually seductive place, with the sands ebbing and flowing over the dunes into the distance (see: Sand Songs and Desert Dreams). But, don’t be fooled! Once that sun rises over the horizon, the temperatures will skyrocket […]
[…] towards the green date palms after two days in the magical Sharqiya Sands Desert (see: Sand Songs and Desert Dreams and Life in the Desert), it was easy for me to conjure up romantic notions of starry nights, […]