skip to main |
skip to sidebar
Bikaner in Rajasthan is situated in the desert not far from the Pakistani border. Temperatures were warm during the day - we visited in December - but fell close to freezing at night. We saw more camels here than elsewhere, possibly because of the town's remoteness, or perhaps because of the camel research centre located there. We liked this camel for its typically haughty facial expression. He seems to be telling the world that he is king of the road, and perhaps in Bikaner he is.
The photo, taken in 2004 at Abu Simbel, is an example of the beauty we saw in Egypt that was such a pleasant surprise. This is also where UNESCO, in 1960, coordinated an international effort to move an entire temple complex to protect it from the rising waters of the Nile following the construction of the Aswan high dam.
One of the highlights of our Moroccan holiday in 2002 was a visit with the Berbers in the desert. We rode on camels at sunset, slept in the open air, and rose in the dark for another ride on the camels to see the sunrise. Here are our camels waiting for us to return to them for the ride back to Merzouga.
I think this 2004 photo captures the special quality of light in the desert at Giza that gives everything such intensity. And, of course, the camel remains central to the culture of the desert even today.
I love this photo, because it shows how beautiful the desert can be. Taken in 2004, it was one of my first photos with a digital camera, my Nikon Coolpix. I was surprised by the quality of a photo that could be produced by simply pointing and shooting. I was also surprised by the unexpected beauty of the Sahara. My impression of the desert, before actually seeing it, was that it would be nothing more than desolate wastes of shifting sand. How wrong that was!
Only twice, to Egypt in 2004 and to Morocco in 2002, did we take a guided tour rather than travel on our own. The Morocco trip was great. Everything was as near perfect as it could be. The tour company was British as were almost all of the people. Our tour guide, Mark, pictured here second from the right, was fabulous. He was very knowledgeable and competent and had a terrific sense of humour. The photo was taken just before we rode into the desert on jeeps for a camel ride and just after we had been instructed on the proper way to wear Berber headdress.
