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.
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.
