Our Bedoin Home

When we reached camp on our camels last night, it already was dark. So, the following morning I woke up before dawn, excited to explore the sand dunes in our area. Our tent is the one in the forefront of this picture. These tents are not just little things put up for the tourists. Bedoin really live in them. From where I stood while taking this picture, I could see dozens of tents in several encampments scattered up and down the desert on the edge of the dunes. Surreal.

On a sad note, the Bedoin in this area are having a very hard time. They usually are nomads and earn a living by crossing the desert and trading goods with people along the way. However a war over oil has caused the closing of the border and they no longer can move across as they used to. The Bedoin we visited are stuck on this side of the border in Morocco and can only earn a living now by giving camel rides to and hosting tourists like us.

Our guide Abdul told us that the reason he takes tourists on the tour we went on is because he wants to help the Bedoin. Abdul is from this area and grew up with them. At one point, Abdul asked me, "Do you have associations in your country?" At first I did not know what he meant, but after some probing, I think he was asking about charities. I asked him what the Bedoin need. His answer, "Food." This certainly puts things in perspective.