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Gypsies on the move
  • Michael Spies
  • Michael Spies

Gypsies on the move

To do a long off-road trip has been our dream for years. To have our house with us in the most beautiful places, To discover other cultures, people and nature. En savoir plus
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  • Michael SpiesGypsies on the moveMichael Spies
    Sunset in the dessert near the border to Kuwait
    And opposite the sun, the full moon risesFalconers with their birds at the border to Kuwait. They were returning from a hunting tripArrived at a beach in Kuwait, dreaming of a day of peace and quite. We got totally the opposite!Crazy Kuwaitis racing their huge pick-ups on the beachBetween racing Pick-ups, 1 million dollar Arabic stallions galloping.In the middle of it all, family picknic while a quad races byFamilies, quads, cars and racesNot a city at night but 1000s of kuwaitis camping in the desert with generators and allHey! The water is on the wrong side of the car. 2am and getting on to high tideThese guys walking among the tentsFor those Arabs who don't like the tent idea, how about a 20 meter long camping vehicleOr is 30 meters length better? With air conditioning of course!Another family camp ( kraal)

    First night in Kuwait

    8 décembre 2022, Irak ⋅ 🌙 21 °C

    Dreaming of hanging off a few days at the beach, we headed off to North of Kuwait city.
    It was armageddon!
    Huge tuned pick-ups having drag races on the beach, practising full power while pulling the wheel around. In the midst of this, families picnicking, kids playing while million dollar Arab stallions galloped. To top it all, racing quads practising wheelies between the picknickers.
    We were flabbergasted!

    We had parked on the beach and asked around if the tide would vote up. No problem was the answer that came from several families.
    SO WE WENT TO BED AND WOKE UP AT 2am TO FIND OURSELVES SURROUNDED BY WATER! Luckily only 30 cm!
    With 4 wheel drive we slowly edged our way out.    En savoir plus

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  • Michael SpiesGypsies on the moveMichael Spies
    Kuwait city
    Traditional DhowConcrete, glass and trafficIncredible eleganceFish market, fish from Kuwait and the whole world, in every size and weight20kms of promenade along the seaWhile searching for the culture center I ended up in the King's Palace, "security" did not agreeSheik Abdullah Al Salem culture centerSheik Abdullah Al Salem culture centerA galaxy, in the culture center. This must be what God looks like, endlessOur location the last night in Kuwait, not bad!And this guy came shortly afterwards to play loud "blues" music for the whole beach out of his xarCool blues in the morning, not bad when you are up for it.

    Kuwait city, skyline & 30km of promenade

    10 décembre 2022, Koweit ⋅ ☀️ 20 °C

    3 days of Kuwait city, getting our washing done and eating in a restaurant with wonderful food, what a pleasure!
    Among other, I wanted to visit the Sheik Abdullah Al Salem culture center, an incredibly large modern museum for history, the sciences and art.
    I started off walking on one end of the city thinking that this would be a walk of a few kilometers. It ended up being nearly 30 km along a never ending promenade along the sea with me mistakenly ending up in the kings palace and swiftly being whisked away by security. The following day I visited this incredible museum for the whole day and just managed two of the 8 buildings. What an incredible museum day.
    The next morning this "cool cat" cruised up to where we stayed next to the sea in hi huge convertible, fed a packet of seeds to the birds and pleasured us with the coolest of blues music from his huge car speakers. Kuwaitis have a lot of money and nothing to do, so they either race up and down the boulevard in their ferrarris or they listen to cool musik. I definitely prefer the second.
    What a crazy morning.    En savoir plus

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  • Michael SpiesGypsies on the moveMichael Spies
    Entering into Saudia Arabia the society changes dramatically, most women are totally covered
    Groups of women pickniking together. No men in sight!Women swimming in Burkini... women are with womenI was not allowed to join, but here they are preparing some food for margot to bring to me1Margot was asked to bring this food to me.These are the masculine children of the group sitting separately from the womenWhen they came to to curiously investigate our car, I was only allowed to greet from a distance.

    Crossing into Saudi Arabia

    15 décembre 2022, Arabie saoudite ⋅ ☀️ 22 °C

    We have entered Saudi Arabia.
    The most striking element is the women who, to a dominating percentage are covered with an Abaya cloak, Hijab headscarf, and Niquaab face veil, which only leaves a small slit to see through and has a piece of cloth covering their mouth which has to be lifted up for eating. When the women have their face open, and I as a man come in their vicinity, they quickly cover their faces.
    So the only way for contact, is between Margot and them with me staying away.
    What was strange is that they all wanted to take Photos with Margot, but many did not want her to photograph them.
    Those women who are not covered are usually Pakistani. And that brings me to another aspect, everything that has remotely got to do with work, is carried out by non-Saudis. These are dominatingly Pakistani, Indian, African, or Egyptian, and make up the majority of visible society.
    When driving through the streets, one has the feeling of being in India.

    This is a country going through dramatic change.
    In 2015 Salman bin Abdulaziz Al Saud (age 93) became king of Saudi Arabia and promptly elected his son Mohammed bin salman (29 years), as his successor and has put him into a rocket ship career through numerous state positions giving him.more and more power.
    The result has been a loosening the rules of clothing and society, opening the country for tourism and sending 250 thousand young Saudis to study abroad (at state cost) .
    While clothing habits are changing very slowly, mastering the english language is evident with a high percentage (also women) speaking really good English.    En savoir plus

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  • Michael SpiesGypsies on the moveMichael Spies
    On passport Island after exiting Saudi
    Endless causeway leading to BahrainOn Passport Island 3 hours later after crossing into Bahrain. The difference was burocracy!Two splendid Dhows repaired for the king, forgotten since 11 yearsHand sawn planks nailed with iron nailsThe Dhow carpenters toolsMr Dhow man's modern saw for cutting planksFlamingos in front of private residencesGlittery sky scrapers celebrating off shore banking paradicesA beautiful fish dinner and after three months a first bottle of wine

    Bahrain, and a bottle of wine!

    16 décembre 2022, Bahrein ⋅ ☀️ 24 °C

    Bahrain was a bit of a disappointment offering much more than glittery skyscrapers at night and otherwise being dusty and without much charm and natural beauty.
    But it had one highlight, alcohol is allowed and so we had a beautiful fish dinner and a real, unforged, authentic bottle of wine from Australia.
    Downside, it was the most expensive dinner we have ever had! But when you are desperate, what else to do?    En savoir plus

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  • Michael SpiesGypsies on the moveMichael Spies
    The most important thing when driving into the sand dessert, wash your car!
    Well! No camel jumped out from behind the dune to attack usStraight, straight, and more straightBut before we could even consider what to do, a truck stopped and pulled us out.

    Christmas will be in the desert!

    20 décembre 2022, Arabie saoudite ⋅ ☀️ 24 °C

    We are now heading toward the Oman border and will then be heading off into the sand dessert for 5 days
    I hope not longer!!!!
    There will be no Internet!!!
    Should we not report back, then please come and look for our bones!!!
    They should be bleached white by the time you find us.
    So what does one do before heading into the dessert? One washes ones car, which is what we did last night.
    Then we filled all water tanks and bottles to the brim, filled up the reserve diesel canisters, and off we went.
    This is where it gets exciting!
    And promptly, we get stuck in the sand directly next to the road. While we were thinking about what to do, a truck stopped and pulled us out.
    Hmmmm! A bit humbling!    En savoir plus

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  • Michael SpiesGypsies on the moveMichael Spies
    Our first night in the dessert
    1This oil well-head will be our christmas tree.

    Christmas in the sand, no internet!

    22 décembre 2022, Oman ⋅ ☀️ 15 °C

    Today we will cross the border into Oman and follow a desert track for 7 days. Away from everything including mobile network.
    Margot and I want to wish all who are following this blog a wonderful christmas.

    A few days ago I heard that my dear Father is also following my blog. Every day his wife reads the newest entries to him in the old age home where he lives and discusses the content
    This fills me with joy, it is like a daily communication with him and motivates me to continue posting.
    Happy christmas to all!    En savoir plus

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  • Michael SpiesGypsies on the moveMichael Spies
    Which way to go?
    Short stop to discuss the directionVery bright, very dry, very straight!.Our second evening, with the whole team climbing the dune for sun setThe endless desert, as far as the eye can see.Our cars, tiny in the distanceGod's workshop when he was creating the world.Any and Elke, such a loving couple!Not so bed either, these two!

    Rub'Al Kahli, "the great emptiness"

    23 décembre 2022, Oman ⋅ ⛅ 27 °C

    "The great emptiness," which is brimming full of beauty!
    At the time of writing this, we have been in the desert for 5 days driving along the Oman border, crossing huge ancient flat lakes that haven't seen water for thousands of years, and have passed through regions where huge dune landscapes have entered these regions and are slowly wandering through them, and we have seen desert tracks, 100's km long and very straight!
    What amazed us most was that there are actually plants growing in the middle of nowhere where the ground couldn't have been more dry and more salty. These plants hardly have roots but have the amazing ability to absorb the dew that develops early in the mornings. And these plants were just flowering!
    Solar radiation is incredibly strong, making it almost impossible to drive without sun glasses. Winter temperatures are at 32 degrees! (In contrast to summer temps of 54 degrees!)
    The only time of day that is bearable is up to 2 hours after sunrise and before sunset. Most of the night is warm, and you sleep naked without a blanket until about 3am in the morning where temperatures drop to 10 degrees.

    I just don't know how Nomads, soldiers, or oil workers are able to live in this extreme climate!!!

    Today we saw our first real dune landscapes with dunes up to 200 meters, which we climbed to watch the beautiful sunset to then run down the steep slopes and enjoy dinner in front of our van while the most incredible star sky unfolded above.
    WOW! What an experience, what a privilege, what a gift!    En savoir plus

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  • Michael SpiesGypsies on the moveMichael Spies
    Morning glory!Sand training, short impressionChef Cook preparing an amazing Christmas Dinner with minimal ingredientsChristmas Dinner in the middle of nowhereTo celebrate the evening, a zero percent Martini. WOW what a drink! Got totally drunk on imaginatioThe highlight of the evening, a Thai silk paper balloon sent into the sky

    Christmas eve & sand training

    24 décembre 2022, Oman ⋅ ☀️ 18 °C

    Today is Christmas eve, normally cold and snowy, for us it will be a gruelling day training how to drive in sand (you need to only remember two things: reduce your tyre pressure by more than half and never stop. If you do stop, the chances are high that you will spend at least an hour digging your car out of the sand where it has dug its way in. And if that doesn't work, your sand tracks might help. If this doesn't work, then start praying!
    We went through all the various phases, including praying. This worked because suddenly, the whole team appeared to help get us out, and the teamwork did it. Margot then graduated with distinction in sand driving when she drove a really difficult route and only got stuck once. (I can't say this for myself)

    In the evening, as the day passed away, we celebrated Christmas around a campfire with music in the background as the moon and stars rose in the clear clear quite night.
    To crown it, Dietmar had brought a Thai silk-paper balloon with him to carry our wishes into the dark black sky.
    Wow! What a mind-blowing christmas!    En savoir plus

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  • Michael SpiesGypsies on the moveMichael Spies
    A film of Andi driving through a difficult spotSand, sand, sand. As fine as baking powderExhausted during lunch bread in the shade of the car.Simply endless!Climbing a dune, leaving g the cars tiny, belowThis evening we were up here alone! No chatting, just the wind blowing over the du es

    Fourth night, now driving for real

    25 décembre 2022, Oman ⋅ ☀️ 17 °C

    Today, following the beautiful evening yesterday, we needed our sand skills for real. Over and over again, the track had been covered by sand drifts requiring us to drive around, frequently through soft sand.
    But we all got through without one vehicle getting stuck. We are learning to read the sand!
    But the tension, concentration, and adrenalin during such driving is extreme, leaving you exhausted at the end of the day.    En savoir plus

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  • Michael SpiesGypsies on the moveMichael Spies
    Hangover from that zero percent Martini
    Endless tracks, sand and dustAnd then, in the middle of nowhere, a bath tub with three menThen four men and a ladyAnd then the whole family!What a great feeling to get rid of that salty crustAnd on we goAttention! Camels crossingThe first camel lady of our tripI can eat you up in one gulp I can!Hmmm! I don't know whether that carrot can get me to not eat you upWell, this is my sisterAnd here my third sisterNight time in our first Wadi (a River in the desert)

    No.5: how crazy is this, a bath tub!

    26 décembre 2022, Oman ⋅ ☀️ 17 °C

    What a crazy day today!
    Driving in the middle of the desert, and suddenly in front of us, is this huge white bath tub, and believe it or not, it is filled with clear cold water.
    Within seconds, Tommy was in, me racing behind him, followed by 74 year old Eddy! Then followed Conny. That was the moment where all shame disappeared and the whole family piled in, except one who took the last picture.
    The place was a watering place for camels, who hold tight, drink up to 150 litres in one go! The old concrete trough had a huge crack, and the Nomads had grouchy half a water tank into the dessert. The crazy thing was that it was full of clear water, slightly salty, slightly sulphurous, but the best water I have ever seen !!!!!!

    Later on in the day, Margot and I bumped into three camel ladies and, in a wave of enthusiasm, pulled out all the vegetables from our cool-box. They ate one carrot, the rest was sniffed at, and then left lying. What a choosy bunch!!!
    Tonight, we spent our first night in a Wadi, which is a river flowing from a spring and then disappearing again. A beautiful evening among palm trees with birds waking us in the morning.    En savoir plus

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  • Michael SpiesGypsies on the moveMichael Spies
    Early morning in the Wadi
    Oh my god, Andi's rear tires are both flat and worse still, off their rimsThis old guy is phenomenal!We take the heavy wheels off and try to get them back onto the rims through explosion!A huge camel herd on our way outLooking for a place for the night. Unfortunately, a lot of wind blowing sand everywhereThe wind is calming down, and the Sun is settingQuite night without windFollowed by sunrise through our open back door

    No.6: a day with big challenges

    27 décembre 2022, Oman ⋅ ☀️ 21 °C

    This morning, a huge shock! In the early morning hours, Andi's 10-ton truck suddenly dropped 20 cm's. Waking all. Who later stood around marvelling at this catastrophy. A system used for letting air out of and for pumping up the tires while you are driving (necessary for driving in sand) had leaked, and at some stage, the tires had jumped off their rims. ON BOTH SIDES, IN DEEP LOOSE SAND!
    So, in the next 6 hours, miles away from the next garage, we dug under the truck to position a hydraulic jack, took off the huge, heavy wheels, and used a method of creating an axplosion inside the tire using inflamable break-cleaner to get the tires back onto the air-tight rims. No one except Dietmar had neither seen nor used this method that can go terribly wrong because you are playing with highly inflammable liquids.
    (The video shows a dramatic try, which didn't work. Later on, we succeeded).    En savoir plus

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  • Michael SpiesGypsies on the moveMichael Spies
    The day started calm and wind still!
    Drink that energy drink before heading off into the sand chaosThat track was actually supposed to go straight!Weaving between the sand driftslooking for a way to get throughA whole series of dunes blocking our path. Here, there was no way roundStuck, big style!Also stuckWorking their way throughDeep sand, eating up our wheels!Stuck!A lot of digging to be done here in a powder dry sand a fine as flourYessss! made it!And back on the path, after three hours of digging. The wind is getting stronger and strongerBea, getting outAndi working g his way without getting stuck

    No.7: Today, hard-core sand driving!

    28 décembre 2022, Oman ⋅ ☀️ 17 °C

    What a crazy day!
    Like yesterday, it started gently at sun rise, cool and without wind.
    Then the sun came and with it a wind that gathered force during the day until a fully fledged sand storm had developed that hid the sun, delivering sand into every corner of our vehicles and bodies. A night mare!

    It was also a day crossing a desert section where sand drifts and small dunes hd covered the track resulting in us having to find a route through the dune fields of dry fine sand and every one getting stuck at least once.
    We spent most of the day digging!    En savoir plus

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  • Michael SpiesGypsies on the moveMichael Spies
    Morning glory, no sand storm and total silence.This beautiful lady got up first............and served coffee in bed! Yea!Tommys truck stuck, before a try to get out dug him even deeperQuite a mess after digging Tommy out for three hoursTrucks waiting while we walk forward to look for paths through the dunesLooking for a pathLooking for a pathTrucks waiting in the distance while we walk forward to look for a routeLooking for a pathOur last night in the desert at a hot lightly sulphurous springA Tire showing us the route out of the desert, two days drive in one day

    No.8 - It's all about psychology

    29 décembre 2022, Oman ⋅ 🌙 22 °C

    Today I realized to what extent Driving in the sand is about psychology and that only a part is driving skills.
    But let's go a step back.
    The day started really cool. The wild sand storm of last night had disappeared, the stress of constantly getting stuck was gone and we woke up into a beautiful calm dawn,
    and then I got coffee in bed! YEA!

    The group then assembled to discuss today's route which was planed to cross unknown territory between the two red tracks in the
    Map (see photograph). This would take between one and two days depending on how much we got stuck and whether a route could be found.
    Edi kicked off the discussion explaining that he had studied his "Gaia App" with air photographs all evening and that what we were planning was impossible and irresponsibly dangerous. To cross this region, covered in dunes blocking the path was crazy, one of our cars would tip over, we would get stuck and never get out again. His wife Elsbeth started crying and told that she hadn't slept all night. After lengthy discussion we decided to drive to the beginning of the track in question and then decide there, whether to turn back or not.
    We arrived at the point and promptly on the first hill, Tommy (mantoco),the guide, dug his truck into the sand covering both axles!!!!!
    We all dug for three hours. The decision had been taken! The question was which route to take to get out?
    Here Eddi again showed his App indicating a clear track out of the dunes back to the main road.
    The decision was taken to follow this route.
    Well, we drove the whole day, miraculously crossing three barrier dunes without anyone getting stuck. Clearly driving skills and courage had greatly improved. Drivers were no longer hesitating, which leads to slowing down and digging-in.
    In the late afternoon after 70kms and 6 hours of driving we found ourselves confronted with a dead end. A really high dune was blocking our path with no way over. The only way was back the way we came which would mean three days!    En savoir plus

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  • Michael SpiesGypsies on the moveMichael Spies
    Just made it to Salalah for sunset
    Beautiful stallions on the beachThis must have been the court photographer of the Sultan!Dawn on the beach at Salalah, totally alone with the waves!Dawn on Salalah beach with sound of the ocean waves

    Salalah

    31 décembre 2022, Oman ⋅ ☀️ 26 °C

    Yesterday afternoon Margot and I separated from the group after we had driven out of the critical part of our desert trip and headed towards Salalah on the coast.
    We desperately needed to get back into our own space. All these group processes are exhausting and we were longing to just wake up alone on a beach.
    And that is what we did, This morning, 01. January 2023, we woke up on a beach to the sounds of the Indian Ocean waves in Salalah when the Muezzin started singing, and watched as the dawn got lighter and lighter and finally when the sun rose.
    WOW! HOW BEAUTIFUL IS LIFE!
    To all of you, a happy new year 2023.    En savoir plus

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  • Michael SpiesGypsies on the moveMichael Spies
    This endless beach, for us Two, alone!
    Sprinti, on the peak of a steep hill, overlooking the seaFor us, an opportunity to come down, after many days of adrenalin tensionSound of the waves, us, and nothing else!Sun rise, from our bed!Sprinti on the hill, right. The beach, all to us aloneThe whole day naked, sheer paradise!1Second sunset.Not only the landscape is beautiful!Good morning another morning

    Two days of total paradise. Alone!

    2 janvier 2023, Oman ⋅ ☀️ 25 °C

    After the beautiful sunrise on the morning of New years day, this unbelievable coastline helped us top it again!
    We headed down the coast, onto off-road tracks and then up a really steep hill overlooking a 3km long beach.
    And not a person around!
    So we spent two days running around naked, swimming in the waves, discovering the rock pools and hiking the coastline to catch the most incredible sun sets.
    The even more beautiful dawn and sunrise we caught straight out of our bed!
    Can it get better than this?
    What a start into 2023!
    This can only become a great year!    En savoir plus

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  • Michael SpiesGypsies on the moveMichael Spies
    On the way to Fizayah beach
    Fizayah beachTime to Grill those two fish we just bought from the fishermanNow, isn't that a grand place to grill your fishFish galore!Starting point of tje Xamel-head trail 7 km's along the coastlineFrankincense tree. Arabian wealth source for centuriesCamel-head trailA Wadi on the trailExhausted, but happyVarious water colours where underground sweet water enters the seaThe long way back to where I came from1

    Fizayah beach

    3 janvier 2023, Oman ⋅ ☀️ 25 °C

    Fizayah beach started off with two beautiful fish that we bought from the local fisherman and grilled to the sound of the waved. Now, what a start!
    The next day, at sun rise, I walked off on the camel-head trail 14km in all, along the coast while Margot did yoga for the first time in 3 months. We both discovered that three months of sitting had not done us much good!
    Already after the first two Km's I thought I would never finish this trail. The moist air and temperature had me sweating so profusely that I drank over 3 liters this day.    En savoir plus

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  • Michael SpiesGypsies on the moveMichael Spies
    Fresh water in the.middle of the desert
    Morning calm

    Wadi Ayun

    5 janvier 2023, Oman ⋅ ⛅ 26 °C

    A WADI is a perennial river or spring that starts and disapears again.
    Wadi Ayun is in the middle of a stone desert above the escarpment of the coast. When you see the landscape, you can not imagine that there will ever be water here. And then suddenly there is. A spring exits the rocks, and 400 meters later, it is gone again!
    But soooo beautiful and so peaceful!    En savoir plus

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  • Michael SpiesGypsies on the moveMichael Spies
    1Oh yes! Outside 30deg. Inside 15deg.
    Approaching Wadi DarbatWadi Darbat right from the top

    Wadi "Darbat"

    7 janvier 2023, Oman ⋅ ☀️ 25 °C

    Along the coast of Oman, there is an escarpment where the terain jumps from sea level to about 1000m in steep cliffs. All along these cliffs, there are waterfalls and springs where ground water exits and flows into the sea.
    Wadi Darbat exits up on the escarpment and then cascades down over turquoise waterfalls and pools. The chalk in the water has created amazing sinter structures.
    We climbed up one of these waterfalls right to the source, a wonderful adventure.    En savoir plus

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  • Michael SpiesGypsies on the moveMichael Spies
    Carrying sacks of sardines from the net in the water to the pick-ups
    trying to pull the net out of the water, impossible!Men standing up to to their hips in flapping sardinesSardines for everyone. Each person takes a bucket full

    Sardine run

    8 janvier 2023, Oman ⋅ ⛅ 25 °C

    Today we returned to Salalah for our "every 10 day meeting" with the group to coordinate the next 10 days. This is the beauty of the travel concept of Mantoco. As a principal, everyone travels alone with weekly check-ups, new ideas, and helping each other. (Iran/Irak were exceptions for security reasons)
    We used the opportunity to get washing done, stock up supplies, and have a punctured tire repaired.
    The evening and night were planned on the beach next to a lagoon with flamingos.
    As we approached the beach, I noticed a fishing boat near the shore with hundreds of seagulls excitedly flying above. We went to look. The fishing boat had a net so full of sardines that they couldn't get it to the beach. Numerous pick-ups arrived, and with several ropes, the cars pulled the net to the shore. more was not possible as the net was too heavy. Then fishers and spectators grabbed big bags, filled them with sardines, and carried them to the pick-up's where they were poured into the back.
    The excitement in the air was incredible. Everyone shouting, running around, pick-ups coming and going and above 1000 screeching seagulls diving down into the net, grabbing a sardine, and then taking off again.
    In the back of the pick-ups, the men were standing up to their hips in wiggling, flopping sardines.
    While this event was incredibly exciting, that night I felt very sad, I felt the collective suffering of those thousands of sardines dying slowly.
    I have caught fish myself, but I allways made a point of killing them quickly. Just letting fish die slowly is not OK.    En savoir plus

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