Tag Archives: desert
Bedouin women making history
Um Yasser, a middle-aged Bedouin woman of the Hamada tribe in South Sinai, was born in a rock house, but spent much of her childhood living in a cave dwelling in the desert, where she and her mother tended their herd of goats. The Bedouins are an old, conservative ethnic group, with laws that govern […]
Oman -why I fell in love with it
Oman… I wasn’t quite sure what to expect before arriving, not having done much research. Saw a few pictures, heard it was nice, that’s about it. And then I arrived and it all fell into place…
The Sinai Trail – a 220km hiking odyssey across the desert
The Sinai Trail is a 220km epic walk accompanied by Bedouin guides through the mountains and desert of South Sinai
Hiking 200km through the desert: the Sinai Trail – part 1 – Anticipation
You know that feeling of needing a soul-stirring adventure? A little challenge to get your pulse up and give you that “alive feeling” again? That was me, stuck in my office a few months back. Bored and flicking through Facebook I found something that rang my bell: the opportunity to hike 200km through the Sinai […]
A fascination for the Sahara
Sahara is the Arabic word for desert. Visit a desert or two, and you will find out that the desert is a magical, ever-changing landscape and not just a huge pile of sand: huge golden dunes, flat packed desert, a moonscape scattered with strange rock formations or craggy and colourful mountains. If you care to spend a few days […]
Desert Days – spending time with nomads
Recently I had the privilege of spending a couple of days in the Sinai desert with a nomadic family. They are not quite as “nomadic” as they used to be, as modernity and necessity has crept into their lives, forcing them to adapt in different ways. Whereas children used to learn survival in the desert (how […]
Changing Bedouin lifestyles: from the tent to a house
Times are changing fast for the Bedouin tribes of the South Sinai. Up until around 30-40 years ago most of them used to live a nomadic lifestyle in the desert, moving with the seasons to feed their herds of goats and camels on the fragrant desert herbs. They lived in tents woven from goat and […]
10 Weddings and a Funeral
The Women’s Party – Part 1 I’d just arrived back in Egypt to hear that my Bedouin neighbour was getting married, and there was to be a party for the women only in 2 days time. Great! The party day arrived, and the sunset prayer sang out from the local mosque. This meant the party […]
I really did that? Highlights of a she-nomad’s life
Every now and then you need a little adventure in your life to make you feel alive, to have a break from the mundane and the monotonous, to break free from the routine. Life should not be a straight forward stroll stroll down Mediocrity Street, instead it should have some exciting bumps and curves to […]
Bedouin Law
“It would be better to die with honour than to bring shame and dishonour upon yourself and your tribe.” Bedouin laws are not written down. Their history, law and traditions have all been passed down orally from one generation to the next….click here to read more: Bedouin Law – a timeless ancient tradition
Adventures of Venus 