Sinai Diaries #2
"Behind the magma mountains that form an imposing backdrop to Dahab, lies a largely unknown desert wilderness that offers both solitude and sublime beauty."
Dirt roads beyond Dahab lead through these mountains, a drive through an undulating landscape of rock. This is Bedouin territory, and very soon after leaving Dahab, desert people began to appear at the roadside wearing robes and keffiyeh, the headscarves that denote tribal affiliations. The vastness of the surroundings dwarfed them, little wavering dots of colour that quickly disappeared into the heat-haze. Because of its strategic significance as the bridge between Africa and Asia, the Sinai has been invaded through the centuries.
For all this, it remains a sparsely populated area, with the Bedouin still dominating. Although their nomadic lifestyle is fast changing as the young are drawn to the economic promise of the towns and cities, their movements increasingly restricted by border conflicts, it is still the Bedouin who live closest to the land. . . [continue]