Oasis: Days In The Sunshine And A Bit Of Morning Glory
Haircuts are something which need consideration when travelling longer term. Now, some who may have noticed that nature has already removed most of my hair will say that haircuts can’t possibly be a source of angst for me – and you’re right, they’re not. But bear in mind that when one doesn’t have much hair, a small amount of growth in millimetres is a large amount of growth in percentage terms – so whilst it’s not angst ridden, the problem is one of regularity.
Michaela and her hair is of course a completely different matter, one which involves equal quantities of research, reconnaissance, perseverance and, ultimately, courage. Once through that threshold and into the chair, it’s wing and a prayer time. She’s not yet had a total disaster but there have been a couple of…..errrrr….close shaves shall we say, including in Egypt and here in Tunisia where they seem a bit too fond of straight lines for Michaela’s taste. It’s fair to say that the current Tozeur styling is not her all time favourite.
By Friday, more typical days of early desert summer have arrived, with unbroken clear blue skies, temperatures in the 30s and the hot sun directly overhead. Taking a drive north from our current base of Tozeur we visit three other oasis towns, Mides, Chebika and Tamaghza, for spectacular hikes through deep canyons and pretty oases where date palms, oleander and pomegranate provide colour.
Stopping on the way to take in the views and sample some jus de palmier (palm juice – odd stuff in that it only has a 3-hour life after collection before it starts to ferment) a helpful guy, Abdul, tells us of a hike to a beautiful canyon and waterfall where “only one in a thousand tourists go” because “the tour bus not take them there”.
He draws a map of directions in the sand and we decide to give it a go. Six miles later, in Tamaghza, he’s waiting in the car park, having somehow got there before us on his moped, and is now offering his services as a guide. Sometimes you just have to admire the guile of these people! In his defence he does take us off the beaten track through a spectacular trail which we wouldn’t have found on our own.
Back on our own and unguided, our Mides canyon hike puts us within sight of the Algeria border in the Atlas foothills before us; while in both Chebika and Mides there are remnants of villages destroyed and abandoned in the 1969 floods which also wreaked havoc on the troglodyte homes back in Matmata. The depth of the gorges is evidence enough of how powerful the surging water must sometimes be in these parts; those floods must have been incredibly fierce to be so destructive.
A drive westward along the northern edge of the salt lake brings us to Nefta with its sunken palmeraie through the centre providing classic oasis scenery, but unfortunately for the town most visitors turn right and head 14 kilometres across some truly barren desert landscapes to a remote location named Oumg Jemal. The reason is Star Wars again, where an artificial village created in Berber style fulfilled the role of Mos Espa in the movie series. It’s a bit of a strange sight, a rundown place literally miles from anywhere out in the lonely desert, slowly decaying as it is left to rot by humans and simultaneously reclaimed by the Sahara, occupied during the day by a handful of hawkers hoping that the tourists who call in on their “4×4 desert trek” will buy some of their tat for a few dinar.
Star Wars fans would probably be more edified by these photos than by an actual visit, so here you go….
So what’s the story (about) morning glory? Well….
Watching the sunrise over the Chott El Djerid salt plains is a must-do here, so it’s a 4am alarm and a pre-dawn drive out past roaming dogs and silent palms, and whilst the renowned changing colours of the sand are subtle but beautiful, the sight of the sun pushing up above the mountains is indeed glorious. Darkness lifts quickly before the eastern sky turns first orange and then pales to honey then back to orange before the blazing sun pushes above the mountains and races upward with almost indecent haste.
Once clear of the horizon it heads quickly for the skies, shortening the first long shadows of the day and soon casting discernible heat down on to the baked plains below. And it does indeed get hot today, 36C by lunchtime.
Our time in the very pleasant town of Tozeur is coming to an end; ahead of us now is a one night stand in Gabes, really just to return the rental car, and then to complete this adventure a few days on the island of Djerba. Whilst here in the Djerid region we’ve visited six or seven oasis towns, all attractive in their own way but Tozeur is without doubt the nicest. Visit these towns in the morning or the evening and you will love the bustle and character, visit in the afternoon and you will discover a ghost town where the world exists behind closed shutters.
One of our real aims here was to ride the famed Lezard Rouge train through spectacular canyons but sadly it was out of commission at the time of our visit. But, as ever, we don’t look back in anger.
28 Comments
Monkey's Tale
What a stunning landscape! Mides Canyon looks spectacular, and great with no other tourists! I didn’t cut my hair for 20 months in Asia, but I do wear it in a pony tale when I’m travelling so it really didn’t matter. Maggie
Phil & Michaela
Wow, 20 months! I reckon even I could grow a pony tail in that time!!
100 Country Trek
These are amazing images . But I love seeing these photos of our time in Egypt . Thanks for sharing this .Anita .
Terrie
Love these. We don’t manage maps well ( Rock to Polzeth ) so are always impressed. Lovely sunrise description
Phil & Michaela
Cheers Terrie, see you soon!
Andrew Petcher
Great pictures, I especially like the gorge picture with the reflections.
I remember having a camel burger in Morocco.
Phil & Michaela
Thank you. All the camel dishes have been pretty good to be frank…and I think I’ve probably eaten enough to get my own back on the one that threw me a few years ago.
Alison
Amazing scenery. Not sure if I would trust a hairdresser I didn’t know! How was the camel, hope you didn’t get the hump after …I know very lame
Phil & Michaela
Camels are friendly, especially when cooked.
Alison
Haha not sure if I would be game enough but my hubby definitely would ..there’s nothing he doesn’t eat!
WanderingCanadians
It’s incredible to see the contrast between the barren desert landscape and lush oasis of greenery. Your pictures of the landscape look gorgeous. I’d say waking up super early to watch the sunrise was worth it.
Phil & Michaela
It definitely was…it was a good experience.
Toonsarah
Stunning scenery and desert views! How are you finding driving a car around here? I don’t think that’s something we would attempt! And I’m not sure about the local hairdressers either, although so far that hasn’t been an issue for me as we don’t travel for nearly as long as you do.
I had to laugh at your little gallery of very different camel photos at the end 😂🐪🐪🐪
Phil & Michaela
Ha ha good, it was intended to amuse and hopefully not offend. The driving is incredibly easy…straight flat roads and very little traffic, although once in the towns and cities it’s a bit different. But of the 19 different countries I’ve driven in (showing off now) it’s one of the easiest.
leightontravels
Tamaghza Canyon is spectacular. Having had my fair share of ‘travel’ haircuts, I totally sympathise with Michaela on this issue. I would love to have a wander among these deserted villages.
Phil & Michaela
Yes the canyons are absolutely wonderful, the sunrise thing was pretty special too.
Suzanne@PictureRetirement
So, did the fellow offer to take you to the waterfall before you walked 6 miles? or was that part of his very persuasive plan to charge for assistance? However you got there, that canyon and waterfall were worth the effort. Breathtaking scenery.
Phil & Michaela
Ah no, we drove the 6 miles…that’s why we were mystified how he got there first on his moped!
Suzanne@PictureRetirement
ahhh, I missed that detail. Thanks for explaining.
Annie Berger
Not a spot at the bottom of the post for a separate comment so I’m piggybacking here! Another wonderful post – loved the wadi photo at Tamaghaza Canyon and the sunrise collection.
Need to see before and after haircut photos! For a woman, it’s certainly a leap of faith to sit in a salon chair in some far-flung country and say in a language that you hope is understood, “Here I am. I am in your hands!”
Phil & Michaela
Odd that there was no comments box, it seems to be back now. Yes Michaela always has a sharp intake of breath before she crosses that line.
Christie
Another post with amazing scenery, I love the canyons! Thank you for taking us with you in places I’m not very sure we will have a chance to visit. I understand you are going unguided in most of your trip in Tunisia, right. I’m not sure if I would follow Abdul advice to check that off the beaten place LOL but I guess the tourists must feel very safe in all places you went to.
Phil & Michaela
Yes we’re completely unguided, we always do our trips independently so that we can create an entire itinerary ourselves
grandmisadventures
The pictures from your hike remind me so much of Southern Utah 🙂 I think I would nervous to get my hair cut in another country. Good to know you havent had a major disaster with it
wetanddustyroads
Mides Canyon looks beautiful and love the oasis views. Wow … worth getting up early to watch that spectacular sunrise! So camel meat … how does it taste?
Phil & Michaela
I suppose we would describe camel as tasting half way between lamb and goat – it’s tasty.
wetanddustyroads
Sounds good to me 😉.
arv!
Lovely pictures