Camping Under The Stars In The Sahara

Early in the morning we leave Siwa for a 9 hour ride in the back of a Toyota Landcruiser troopy. There is no AC and the wind is hot so we slowly bake in the back of the truck. Out the window is nothing but the vast expanse of the desert. There are 20 checkpoints between Siwa and Bahariya, our destination. The checkpoints are there to prevent smugglers coming from neighbouring Libya into Egypt with weapons and other unwanted merchandise. As we head further out the checkpoints become more and more rudimentary until they are just tents on the side of the road and barrels to zig zag around on the road. We cannot take photos of them as they are technically military sites but we can’t help but feel bad for the guys who for 45 day stretches are stuck, literally in the middle of nowhere, with nothing to do but watch and wait.

In the morning we had collected our ordered lunch from a restaurant to save us from another day of junk food travelling. Around lunchtime our drivers pull off the road and park behind a rocky outcrop where we eat lunch in the shade. The outcrop looked like it was a reef millions of years ago with thousands of tiny fossils stuck in and around the rock. Our cold shakshuka beats the heck out of a bag of chips and Oreos for lunch like two days earlier.

We set out again and much more tedious time passes. It is hot and sweaty travel. We set up on the back seat with the laptop, draw all the curtains and watch some shows and a movie to pass the time. Finally we arrive at checkpoint 20, here Ahmed told us that there was a pool at our hotel and our spirits soared. 8ish hours sweating and bouncing around in the troopy we were ready to swim. Shortly after we arrive at Bahariya, a tiny oasis in the middle of nowhere. After checking in with the tourist police we go to the hotel. The sight that greeted us was devastating, the pool was empty. Stunned but not surprised given the tourist situation we go into our room which at least has excellent air conditioning. 

While watching the sunset Ahmed tells us all the basics of Islam. He took us through the five pillars of Islam and how they are applied. It was interesting to get a holistic explanation of how it all goes together. We won’t be converting any time soon though.

Dinner was an amazing feast put on by the hotel. For once it was nice not to choose between chicken and ‘meat’ and just enjoy a nice spread. To be clear, ‘meat’ in Egypt is a term which encompasses beef, lamb, goat and a few other miscellaneous red meat animals. Chicken and fish are their own categories. You often see a menu that says ‘meat’ and you ask “what meat is it” and the waiter looks at you puzzled and says “meat”, and we look at him puzzled and say “yeah but what meat?” Meat is just whatever is available, don’t expect an answer other than ‘meat’.

The next day we pack our overnight bags and leave our big ones behind as we are loaded once again into the troopies and make our way out into the desert where after a short drive we peel off the tarmac and onto the sand. Our first stop was the ‘black desert’ so called due to the layer of black volcanic rock that covers the surface like dark icing sugar. Our drivers ascending big dunes to get us great views of the surroundings before plummeting back down with all of us wooping and yelling on board. Such a rush! There are what looks like mini volcanos all over the landscape. 

We went to one of the primary volcanic sites and walked through the valley between two extinct volcanos. The scenery was ragged and beautiful with sharp black rocks covered in dust and sand.

After the black desert and some more duning fun we made our way to a small oasis village for lunch. 

Some of our group hiked up this mini volcano for the view in the 40 something heat!

We hadn’t heard that this place had a spring we could swim in so whilst lunch was being prepared we swam in the spring in our underwear and t shirts. The water was rich in iron and turned the sand in the spring dark red and our skin shades of orange, the equivalent of a bad fake tan. Luckily it was easily washed off.

Lunch was on the floor of the shady hut that had long low tables and throw cushions for us to use. A small channel from the spring ran through the middle giving us a cool spot to dip our feet after our meal whilst we waited for everyone to be ready to leave.

Leaving our cool oasis we drove towards the White Desert National Park. There is an incredible spot on the way called Crystal Mountain. Here you can find all over the ground and in massive formations completely natural crystal. The formations are beautiful and some of the rocks are massive.

This gives a nice idea of how in the middle of nowhere this road is!

Finally arriving at the white desert we stopped at a panoramic spot at the top of a huge sand hill to get a view out across the desert. Huge columns of stone and chalk rise up all around us and loose chalk litters the ground. Some of the group write their names on the rocks with the chalk. It feels like you are looking at the bottom of the ocean without any water in it. For some reason we agree to walk down the hill and meet the trucks at the bottom in the shade. We immediately regret this decision with the sand being loose and deep filling up our sandals and making walking hard. It’s a bit of a giggle though with Olie not wearing anything on his feet and jogging the rest of the way because the sand is hot!

Simon assisting with another groups breakdown

Further driving and more dune surfing we arrive at the main site of the White Desert, the calcium formations. There are huge hunks of calcium that through countless millennia of wind and sand whipping at them have taken various shapes but most commonly the mushroom. We stop to see a huge mushroom formation and find the local kids have been dropped off and are using the place as an adventure playground, climbing all over these special formations. Eventually they all get shouted at and herded by their minder and we have the place to ourselves.

To describe this place is difficult. It’s just awe inspiring. Stretching out to the horizon in an endless field of paleness dotted with white plumes of fabulously shaped calcium stumps. As we drive around them and duck and weave through the narrow tracks between them we marvel at how unique and special this place is. And then it gets even better.

The chicken and the mushroom. The only formation that has a fence around it. Looking precisely as its name suggests the chicken and the mushroom needs no further description other than they look really cool in person.

A short drive further and we reach our campsite for the night right on sunset. There is cloud cover but the afterglow is spectacular lighting up the clouds in the most stunning shades of pink, orange and red. Putting that against the paleness of our surrounding the combination was eye wateringly pretty. 

The bunny rabbit!

The drivers quickly get onto their second job of setting up camp and feeding us. Rapidly unloading the roof of shelters, ground blankets, cooking equipment, sleeping mattresses, tables… it seems like magic the amount of stuff they put together. We kill time playing celebrity before the food is ready and get stumped a few times on some great people. Dinner is delicious, Egyptian soup, camp fried chicken, Turkish rice and potato stew with some tasty and refreshing chopped melon for dessert.

How incredible is our setup with the sunsetting!!

After dinner we play some games and tell stories from our travel. The drivers teach us a new game (the name escapes me, because it’s Arabic). Where one person turns their back on everyone and puts their hand behind their back, someone in the group touches their hand and the person has to guess who it was. Hilarity ensues.

As we settle in for sleep we get organised into a row of six and tuck down under our blankets or in our case, sleeping sheets. Once the light is switched off we all in unison go “OOOOOOOHHH” the stars are like a glowing painting brushed across the sky just for us. We can see bright and dim stars, maybe a planet and the occasional shooting star. We don’t want to close our eyes. We do sleep eventually though in the most incredible place we’ve ever slept.

 

Simon wakes first and the sun is only just up. Slipping away quietly from the group he goes and gets some photos while the light is still soft and the place is entirely quiet. It’s almost surreal to be standing in the middle of the desert and have the place almost to yourself with everyone sleeping quietly behind you.

You can see where Simon slept...

How small our camp looks in comparison to this past ocean floor

Ahmed wakes the group with his best rendition of ‘What Does the Fox Say”. Groaning people rustle from their slumber and we start to pack up and the drivers make up a desert breakfast of the usual boiled eggs, bread and jam with spreadable cheese. We’re all still pinching ourselves about our breakfast location.

The drivers pack up the camp quick sticks and with a quick group photo we are on our way out of the beautiful place where we laughed, dined, marvelled and slept.

Sadly on the way out we met a camel safari. Whilst it sounds great we were unimpressed with the treatment of the camels. To stop the others wandering off they bind the leg of one of the camels and tie the other to it. Seems unnecessary and cruel. 

The drive back to the hotel in Bahariya is uneventful but the weather is cool as the sun hasn’t cooked the sand and road yet. We gather our belongings after a break at a coffee shop nearby and start the long drive back to Cairo. We are very very keen to check into our 5 star Sofitel accommodation the following day and live it up a little.

Lessons Learnt

• 4x4ing is awesome and we should do it all the time
• Toyota Landcruisers are king of the desert. Did not see a single other variety of vehicle.
• There is no greater let down than a swimming pool that is empty after baking in a truck all day
• A hotel without a shower is not excusable
• Nature does incredible work given enough time.
• Sand will get into everything. Absolutely everything. Including (sadly and frustratingly) our camera

Parting Thoughts

We need to get a 4x4, simple as that. After our experience in Siwa and now in the White Desert we are in love. Our last big experience in Egypt finished we feel we have really ‘done’ Egypt and seen all the big sights. Our expectations were met in that the monuments are amazing, the weather is hot and the desert is massive but what surprised us was how far behind on the development scale Egypt is. We really thought it was further along. In Cairo the poverty is a bit more hidden, capital cities are always the height of development in any nation but looking under the ring road you find herds of goats eating garbage and garbage that is everywhere in every city and town. This basic fundamental we take so for granted in keeping our cities clean is non-existent here. 

Aside from the overnight train to Luxor which is specifically for tourists there is little transport infrastructure besides highways that are chaotic with manmade speed bumps next to pop up roadside stalls and shacks.

So come to Egypt, come and see its marvels and its struggles. We have not at any stage felt unsafe or concerned. There are soldiers nearly everywhere and the tourist police are an army in their own right. Egypt is in decline without tourists to support it and it shows. There are nearly empty monument locations that should be bursting we people, boarded up western food places and slashed hotel rates with occupancy in the single digits. Hopefully now the election in done there will be a return of stability and prosperity to this country. God knows it needs it.

Simon & Amy xoxo

Goodmorning Sahara desert!

Sand Surfing in Siwa Oasis

We are writing this blog while in an old 4x4 travelling through the Sahara desert on a road that looks deserted (no pun intended). The road is obviously not frequently used with sand piles accumulating on the road, it’s no wonder we took a 4x4 over a van today. 

The eight hour ride from Alexandria to Siwa is gruelling, we land in the back of the bus so the bumps are bad and being in Egypt, there are many. It seems the way of making a road is just to lay the tar directly over the ground, no levelling required. There are security checkpoints every so often with soldiers in tanks or entrenched positions with rifles at the ready, Ahmed tells us this is the main road from Libya so they are checking peoples details. This continues the whole way with some of these checkpoints being barrels across the road and a small building for the soldiers to live in. It is not uncommon for us to see a rifle directly pointed at us, although the soldiers are usually also waving at us. Clearly we don’t look like a threat but the guns are protocol; albeit a little unsettling.

A few hours out of Alexandria we stop at the El Alamein WW2 cemetery and read about the Australian involvement in the campaign and its pivotal role in the turning of the war. Just like Gallipoli there are so many graves of so many young men. The place is well kept and beautiful with bright flowering trees amidst the sand.

There are very few stops along the way, after all there is nothing out here. Lunch is snack food that we bought from Alexandria. We stop in the middle of the desert to have a look around, its flat emptiness as far as the eye can see. It’s hard to believe that once upon a time this was ocean, there are reminders all around you though with fossils just sitting in the sand like shells.

Along the rest of the trip we try and blog but the bumps are bad and the laptop flies around making typing impossible. We sleep rough and finally we arrive.

We check into our hotel and the longer we stay the more we find we dislike. The shower has literally no pressure, you turn the taps and nothing comes out, the AC blows barely cool air and the beds are rough with giant pillows that are stuffed with rocks. The carpets have never been vacuumed, ever and the Wi-Fi is painfully slow. But it is home for two nights and we’re used to not so great places so we suck it up and adapt. Not long til our 5 star nights in Cairo and we are dreaming about it.

On the rooftop Ahmed tells us about the locals and we learn some of their traditions. A lot of them spark upset amongst the females of the group and Simon. 

 

Bustling Siwa!

Afterwards we walk up the nearby ruins of the old settlement of Siwa. From the top we have a great view of the Oasis and out to the desert. The sunset is good, not great, but the contrast of the lush green of the oasis to the stark pale emptiness of the surrounding desert is striking.

After dinner we go to the local hot springs for a refreshing dip, we have the place to ourselves for a while until a bus load of Egyptian tourists arrive and crowd the small place. The water is quite warm and staying in makes you sweat. Covering up is mandatory for the girls, and even then we watch the men try to show off to us.

In the morning we load in the back of two tuk tuks and are driven around Siwa to a few sites. We go to the Mountain of the Dead which is a burial area full of old tombs, some temples one of which Alexandria the Great is said to have visited, the salt lake that rings the Oasis and is full of dead things and finally Cleopatra’s bath for a swim and lunch. 

 

This was really the perfect swimming hole, it’s literally a big, wide and deep hole with an edge you can dive off into. It’s also got plenty of green algae which becomes the ammunition in an ongoing throwing war between the guys. There are local boys there who show off in all manner of ways to the girls in our group. We relax on the sun beds, drink mocktails and have a savoury crepe for lunch. It was perfect was to spend the early afternoon. 

Man skimming the pool for algae.

 

 

Dashing back to our hotel in our little tuk tuk trikes we load into some Landcruisers to go 4x4ing in the Sahara desert. Our driver takes us up, over and down massive dunes with us yelling and cheering. The Sahara is an endless ocean of sand that seems to go on forever, it is a sight like nothing else. The sand is so fine you can’t grip it in your hand, it’s more like dust than sand.

YEEEE HAAAA!

Following the duning we go sandboarding down a medium sized dune, after our drivers wax up the boards for maximum sliding Simon starts by attempting to go down standing up. Everyone else eventually has a turn either standing up or going toboggan style. It is amazing fun but the sand can bite and it gets EVERYWHERE. Walking back up the dune after the descent is torture. We twice attempt a dual toboggan style ride but the size of the board just didn’t like it and we end up tipping over and crashing into the dune. Those first couple of seconds were great fun though!

After the sandboarding we head to a cold spring in the middle of nowhere. Go over a dune and seeing this lush green spot with water appear as if by magic is incredible. The spring is called cold for a reason, its cold! But after the heat of the desert and being coated in sand it’s exactly what we needed.

Feeling sufficiently chilled we cruise over the adjacent dune to the hot spring. It’s tiny and crowded with locals.

The Landcruiser is not feeling so chilled...

The hot spriing of disruption.

 We have been repeatedly told that this area and Egyptians in general are pretty conservative but our experience here was still rattling. We walked to the pool and were about to go swim. Men can wear whatever they want of course so only men were in the spring. Amy has been covered up all day but wearing her bathers in the swimming holes with a t shirt on. The way we manage this is to get to the waters edge and drop a towel or shed pants and get in hastily. No chance of making a quiet entrance here, we had dozens of people staring at us from the moment we arrived. Nevertheless we took a punt and tried our tactic but as soon as Amy dropped her towel to get in revealing her legs and swimming bottom mayhem erupted. 

The men simultaneously broke into wolf whistles, cheers, yelling and general loutish behaviour. Things we expect from teenagers, it was disgusting and disgraceful. It was the women who averted their eyes. Needless to say we covered Amy up pronto and one of the women came and asked us to wait until they go. Not in a rude way but more about protecting Amy from unwanted attention. We returned to the truck a little rattled, put yoga pants on so Amy is now in a ‘burqini’ and no more cat calls and whistles. The whole experience to us highlighted the backwards (to us) nature of Islam, men cannot control themselves so the women have to cover themselves. Later our guide told us the women were apologetic about their mens behaviour. It seems they know it’s not OK but they do it to tourists anyway. Lots of thoughts in my head about this.

We skipped the sunset due to cloud cover and spent the rest of the afternoon staying hot in the springs. Unfortunately we were attacked by midgees or sand flies and Amy copped the most brutal red spots all up her legs. 

With the light fading we raced back through the desert towards town, by race, we mean race, we were going fast, how fast we don’t know because the speedo didn’t work, who cares – its Egypt. We wondered how our driver knew where the dune drops were. To us it looked like an endless sea of pale sand stretching from horizon to horizon. He told us he’s been doing it for 10 years and knows the desert. We trust him and once again he takes us over the dunes, up and down for some thrilling fun.

Getting back to our unpleasant hotel we learn they have turned the electric pumps on and that should help water pressure, by help it means you can have a cold shower under a trickle. Better than nothing. During Amy’s shower the power goes out to the whole town, and she showers with torchlight.

We arrange takeaway lunches for the next day, as we are doing another 8 hour ride but this time in 4x4s to our next stop. The thought of another full day eating nothing but chips and other junk food is repulsive.

Siwa has been beautiful, a green island in the sea of sand. The place itself is like a step back in time. If you took away the traffic and hid the store signs you could be in the 19^th century. The place is so remote when the Muslims took over Egypt it took them 300 years to get out to Siwa so remote and treacherous is the way to it.

Lessons Learnt:

• Get swimming pants if travelling to the Middle East and you are female.
• Expect to eat a lot of crap food when travelling, there is nothing to stop at.
• Laugh when things don’t work or are inadequate. What’s the alternative
• Get some good neck stretches under your belt, 8 hours in the back of bus leaves some tension.

Parting Thoughts:

Siwa is an island in the middle of a vast sandy ocean, the contrast of the green palms and grass against the paleness of the desert is incredible and only really accessible from high points within the city and from the surrounding dunes. The town itself is like a backwards step in time with donkey still being a primary mode of transport. Even the singular ATM is hidden in a mudbrick hut. There is a charm and quaintness to the place and it all seems to move a lot slower. We didn’t like a lot of the oppressive ‘culture’ that is in place locally and when you ask ‘why is it like this?’ and you get the ‘it’s our culture’ response it doesn’t really answer WHY. If something is found out to be ineffective or untrue why would you keep doing it?

 Simon and Amy xoxo