Weekend in the Western Desert

This weekend, we drove 350 kms west of Cairo, to the Bahariya Oasis. We ate a hearty lunch at the Hotel Desert Safari Home while our host, Mr Badry worked with our guide and driver to load up our 4-wheel drive for the trip into the desert.

The desert landscape varied so dramatically. From sandy dunes to the volcanic rocks of the Black Desert to Agaba's rounded landscape to the Old White Desert and the New White Deserts that ignited our imaginations and made me think about what life might look like on Mars -- I was scared to blink, lest I miss something.

Below are the limestone rocks of the White Desert that form Dali-esque shapes in the light of the setting sun. This is how I imagine life (or lack thereof) on the moon...It is called the "New" White Desert because it is more remote than the Old White Desert. This was where we camped overnight (more on that later)

All Photos copyright Sufia Lodhi 2008