nomadic in april

These are a Few of My Favorite Things

I love the desert! I think I'm borderline obsessed with it. The stillness and endlessness magnifies how small we are as human beings. The sublime sunrise and sunset when all is perfectly quiet. I have the utmost respect for people, plants and animals who navigate the extreme conditions. The only way to survive is to be in tune with every sign and signal from the sun, to the wind to the stars. One of my ultimate dreams is to make a trek with the esoteric Tuareg (nomadic people of North African) through the Sahara desert. 

In the meantime, I took an overnight trip to a Bedouin camp in the Jordan desert. Not nearly as grueling and adventurous, but amazingly beautiful still. Wadi Rum is in southwest Jordan and about a two hour drive from Petra. I went with fellow instructors Mark and Susu and we began our day hiking through Petra. After climbing and descending 1000 "stairs" to the top of Petra we were whisked away by our driver to catch the sunset at our campsite. We met our camp guy at the entrance to the area and he drove us winding and spinning through the sand to our campsite. . .for tourists. We arrived just as the sun was disappearing over the rocky cliffs to a camp full of French tourists. I have to say I was disappointed as I imagined this experience of me against nature! So I dragged my bedding away from the rows of tents and slept under the stars. So beautiful. So beautiful. I tried to stay awake all night, but the hike in sweltering heat and direct sun soon caught up and rocked me to sleep. The next morning I awoke before sunrise and before the camp was awake. The red sand and cliffs changed colors as the sun rose higher and higher. It was so quiet and still, I felt like the only person on earth.

I love the dessert! Other favorite deserts: The lencois dunes in Maranhao, Brazil; The Dogon villages in Mali.