Today is what I call a kickback day. Nothing like sitting in a bus for hours. How can I enjoy 8 hours thru desert? Because my guide takes care of all the arrangements. And he promised an “enchanting oasis town” at the end of our drive.
Also, our itinerary says “surrounded by endless desert vistas and charming settlements, showing the timeless beauty and serenity.”
I just have coffee in my room. Gabrielle and I hop in the bus. In the memorable words of Stanley Tucci’s character Nigel, “Alright everyone, gird your loins!”
We begin Day 25 of our trip, which becomes the time my digestive system officially files a formal complaint. Days filled with another heroic breakfast followed by a substantial lunch. Then, because restraint seems apparently forbidden—an even larger dinner.
Few hotel rooms provide a hot water pot. Offerings unfailingly comes as a lineup of teas. None of which answer my increasingly desperate call for coffee. As a committed tea-avoider, I find myself longing for something a little less… teaish. I genuinely enjoy the food but at this point my stomach and I negotiate terms.
The M’Zab Valley is a striking and historically significant region, a UNESCO World Heritage site recognized for its unique combination of geography, architecture, and social organization. There consists a series of five towns, or ksour, in the oasis—Ghardaïa, Béni Isguen, Melika, Bou Noura, and El Atteuf. The valley is also famous for its palm groves, date production, and ingenious water management systems, including foggaras.
This day is all about DISTRACTIONS from the long road ahead. We will travel about 260 miles to our next destination, Ghardaïa. Our route, while on paved road, meanders through the Sahara. And there is not a whole lot to distract as we motor along on N46 and N1.
Leaving Bou Saâda, the scenery is classic red Saharan desert—flat stony plains, cactus and palms, occasional low hills, and long horizons under an enormous sky. Temperatures have warmed and I finally can wear a short sleeved shirt. The land feels empty, broken only by scattered village, palm clusters, and the faint geometry of foggaras.
We continue our Sahara journey to Bou Saâda. The national road N3 heads northerly to the small oasis of El Kantara before turning in a northwesterly direction onto N70/N78. Not much changes during our 145-mile drive.
Lots of flat desert, rocks, occasional hills and some green where humans and animals might survive. I’m thinking Arizona and New Mexico deserts on steroids.
We depart Constantine for our 170-mile drive into the northern Sahara Desert. The route looks curvy as it winds itself southwesterly on state routes. We drive among the cliffs and low mountain ranges of the Batna Province. These represent a natural geographical break through the Atlas Mountains.
By the time we reached Biskra, the Sahara had fully committed itself to its monochrome phase. The northern Sahara doesn’t believe in variety. The scenery remains stubbornly the same—brown on brown on brown.
2 April 2026 Constantine does not gradually reveal itself. It startles. After miles of green fields, days of deserts and dunes, I look around and wonder if nature simply decided to show off a little. Mother Nature clearly woke up one morning, looked at this part of Algeria, and thought, “Let’s Read more
