Second Day in the Sahara

When we woke up, it was quite cold, but the golden sky and the sunrise quickly made us forget our freezing hands and faces. The beauty of the morning was enough to warm us—at least mentally—until we could actually heat up with some coffee and tea. A good breakfast followed, and once we’d packed up our things, we set off for the day’s trekking.
We walked for 2–3 hours before stopping for lunch. Afterward, I was handed the rope of two camels and got to show off my immense talent as a camel driver. It was all fun and games until one of the camels decided to drip its saliva on me. Yummy. Despite my new perfume, I was constantly amazed by the ever-changing landscapes. At one point, we were walking over soft, sandy dunes, then suddenly the terrain turned to endless fields of stones stretching for kilometers. A little while later, everything became green, with plants springing up all around us. Some areas were dotted with acacia trees, while in others, we even saw flowers growing.
At one point, we stopped at a mausoleum, which is essentially a house-grave. Nadja, ever the adventurer, found an animal leg and proudly showed it to me like it was some kind of treasure. I wasn’t quite as impressed. For a moment, we were worried that we might actually be camping there (and, let me tell you, I had no desire to sleep next to or above a graveyard). Thankfully, we trekked on for another hour before finally stopping for the night.
This time, we were much faster at setting up our tents, giving us plenty of time to soak in the absolutely stunning sunset. Dinner was once again soup—this time a delicious gluten-free bean soup that I loved—followed by another fantastic tajine. Seriously, I don’t know how Iahia does it, but the man is a culinary genius. And all of this, in the middle of the desert!
We went to sleep in the tents, full and happy, and I couldn’t wait to see what the next day would bring.Read more