Life in an oasis

Traveling from Kharga to Dakhla oasis took us past areas where many small springs have come up. The land appears verdant but is quickly demarcated to sand and rock. A large mountain ridge followed us as we drove on. The layers and colored sediments were striking. At one point we stopped and walked across to see, what we had hoped, were cave paintings, but were in fact carvings left by pilgrims on their way to Mecca! Then on to visit two old medieval villages in Balat (inhabited) and Al Qasr (uninhabited). These villages made out of mud, two storied, with cooking and storage on the roof, were interwoven in a maze. We loved the wood carved lintels over the doors that had the Koran inscribed on them. Arabic writing is an art form in itself. J2 was haggling with the local merchants trying to bargain for Handicrafts. The towns were being gradually eaten away by white ants and their evidence of a voracious appetite was everywhere. Some of the houses were decorated with drawings of an airplane which apparently means that that household have been to Mecca. Lunch was located between these two visits and it was special. Mr Hamdy had a roadside cafe that provided us with the most delicious drink of lemon juice, mineral water, sugar and mint, the combination was refreshing and la-zease (Arabic for delicious). This followed with lentil soup and salad, tahine and Egyptian sun bread. Yum....