Why We Took Our Kids to the Sahara: A Story in Pictures
Somewhere around page 4 of the parenting handbook it probably says very explicitly not to take your kids to the Serengeti.
So it makes perfect sense that we missed the part on page 5 about skipping the Sahara.
And the part on page 6 about discreetly nursing your child on the side of the road en route to the Sahara.
So we packed up the car with our favorite Dora books and headed inland
through lush green fields,
through pastures,
and rocky outposts,
stopping briefly to clean up the barfing incident of the century,
then on the road again past babbling brooks
and the snow-capped mountains of the High Atlas,
and mesas, as identified by our in-house fluvial geomorphologist.
But slowly, the land became drier
and rockier
and i was getting thirsty just gazing upon the dry river beds.
And just as I was beginning to wonder who in the world would live in this desolate place,
we rounded the corner and there it was…an oasis in the desert!
We set up camp in a nearby oasis village
and from our small hotel, as the only guests, we watched the sun set.
That night, I tried my hand at traditional rug weaving.
And I pretended to eat a beef tajine using the spread-it-around-your-plate method, so as not to offend our host.
Though by morning no one in our tired party had slept very well (not naming names), we pressed on deeper into the desert.
Finally, having arrived, we rejoiced at the burning orange dunes that shone in the evening light (note: burning orange dunes don’t photograph nearly so well as hoped).
We played in the sand.
We bathed in the sand.
We climbed far off dunes.
Sometimes we passed a beetle.
And sometimes a beetle passed us.
And though some of us didn’t like the feeling of sand between our toes,
we finally warmed up to the idea
such that a even “cow” ride was in order.
To round off our trip, we managed to squeeze in some time at the pool, our in-house fluvial geomorpholologist, I’m sure, fully aware of the irony.
But best of all, after a fortuitous early morning waking (again, not naming names), I got a chance to climb a high dune and watch the sun rise all by myself.
Then I looked back down and momentarily panicked about how far away from the hotel I had wandered.
But instead of hurrying back, I paused to watch a line of camels return from a trek simply because it was beautiful. And also because my heart rate was much too high from sinking eight inches in the sand for every vertical foot climbed.
And with one final thought before leaving the dunes, I marveled that only God could command the wind to make a pattern this beautiful. No, I don’t believe this was any sort of accident.
Back in the car, we reflected on our trip. Was it worth dragging the kids to the other side of the Morocco?
Wow! The desert really is BEAUTIFUL!!! Thanks for sharing!
What beautiful memories you are making for your family. Thank you for sharing your experience with us.
Love the post.Love the pics. Love your family.
love you more 🙂
Great job Mary! You guys look like you were having fun in the most carefree way! Love the photo journal. Keep them coming!!
At least you got the memo about not taking a two hour camel ride into the desert and sleeping there overnight!
Actually Annie, I did not get the memo about that, but fortunately, my husband did and talked me out of it. Joe and Grayson did take the plunge though!
I didn’t realize how beautiful the desert was until Ryan and I were in San Pedro de Atacama, Chile in March. Loved this post.
isn’t it beautiful? at first, i wasn’t even sure i wanted to go. shame on me.
Loved looking at these pictures – miss you all! 🙂
Mary-I can’t tell you how much I love reading your blog. I get very excited every time I see it in my inbox. Sounds like a great latest adventure. Keep em coming!
liz, i’m so glad you enjoy it. i really hope you can come visit. this country is neato jet.
Can’t be too happy about the rope tied around the lower jaw and then across the snout, however given the proximity of Carolyn’s lily whites, it was probably in everyone’s best interest. Brad
actually, the rope was tied around his lower jaw, across his snout and then around both front legs so that every time he tried to stand up, he would stumble for a few steps and then fall down. it was kinda sad. i guess that’s how they keep them from wandering too far.
Mary, Just got back from being with your parents in BMT amidst flash flood warnings. Quite a juxtaposition from the Sahara! Such an entertaining blog entry….great photos, captions and memories.
Hi Guys
Wow, I really loved this one, I have a real thing about the desert and it is so good to see you kids having this wonderful adventure. The babies are so beautiful and healthy looking.
Cannot wait to see you all.
Love, Mary Jane
MJ, we miss you and pkfx!