Symphony in white

An overnight safari is the best way to appreciate the White Desert, as Jenny Jobbins discovers
It is not until one is south of Bahariya that one begins to encounter the limestone ridges created from the remains of zillions of marine creatures deposited in the bed of a vast ancient sea. Such limestone is the source of the ice-white bricks used all over the Western Desert, north to south, as building material for structures that will last only a tiny fraction of the aeons the stone took to form. The fantastic shapes of Farafra's White Desert are the result of thousands of years of erosion of this limestone by wind and by sand blown in from the Great Sand Sea.
Our drive by car from Cairo to Farafra took six hours, including a pause in Bahariya. After Bahariya comes the Oasis of Haiz, where we were told that melons do very well, and where the checkpoint marks the limit of the Giza governorate and the start of the New Valley. There are no more oases before Farafra.
I shall never forget our entry into the White Desert at sunset, or the turquoise sky streaked with copper mares' tails ridged with gold and the weathered white hills basking in a pink glow. We were going to spend some time on safari, and this was just a taste of what was to come.
We were being taken on safari from the Aquasun Resort, a newly-opened hotel near Qasr Farafra. Aquasun is a small oasis on its own, watered by the hot spring of Bir Sitta. The water runs in narrow canals through the gardens, which are planned, but not yet planted, washing the roots of the infant eucalyptus trees along the canal banks. It runs piping hot straight into the hotel bathrooms and the swimming pool. The water is very slightly sulphurous and has a high iron content, which leaves a brown film on surfaces. However, it leaves clothes, hair and skin freshly clean, soft and sweet smelling although, whatever the cleansing agent, it must be strong -- it removed the patina on my copper bracelets.
The hotel's domes and claustra decoration follow the traditional Farafran style. Each chalet room has its own mini-palm frond-roofed courtyard, and except for the rooms and the restaurant most of the hotel is in the open air. When owner Hesham Nessim opened Aquasun last October he brought the staff en masse from his hotel in Taba, so the team simply moved to a new location and continued their work with smooth efficiency.
Before setting out on safari we were visited by Mr Socks, a fine silver-toothed gentleman whose camel wool caps, gloves and jerseys are a great defence against the desert chill. As in another isolated community, the Shetland Isles, the men of Farafra do the knitting, and although their handwork might not win any prizes from Martha Stewart, the American icon of style, it has soft, natural colours and, wonder of wonders, it doesn't make you itch. I am sure Martha Stewart never has an itch and, therefore, might not appreciate this phenomenon, but I had never owned a woollen garment in my life until, some years ago, I bought one of Mr Socks's camel wool scarves.
While this was going on, great ululations were echoing from one of the chalets and, rather foolishly, I went to find out was happening, only to be pulled through the door and forced to belly dance. I obeyed to amuse the other women guests, who got a great kick out of watching me make an idiot of myself. The music was horrible.
The evening's entertainment was dancing of a different kind, a performance by a local song and dance troupe. Dancing plays a great part in the social and festive life of the oasis, and this group came together two or three years ago to perform for tourists and the world at large. At private assemblies in Farafra women dance veiled from head to toe, but they are not allowed out with a group of men for a public performance so their place in the troupe has been taken by men. Very lithe and graceful they are, too, gyrating to the rhythm with a sash tied round their hips. As far as I am concerned the ban can be applied over the rest of Egypt as well, and the common or garden oriental dancer, often too plump to swing her hips, can be replaced by a slim young man every time. I was quite taken with the rhythmic percussion and a catchy number which sounded like Farafran rap.
Next morning we set off on safari. All we had to bring was a sleeping bag; Aquasun provided the rest, as well as a freshly-cooked four-course dinner every evening at six. The cook turned out to be a geography graduate and a keen guide to the structure and geology of the desert. I was amazed at his ability not only to distinguish one pebble from another but to produce a finely-chopped salad that did not contain a single crunchy grain of sand, which is not the case when I cook in the desert. We sat for a while each evening around the camp fire, but in general it was early to bed and early to rise.
A camping safari, paying homage both at sunset and at dawn to this dramatic theatre left by an antique ocean, is a wonderful way to see the White Desert. Whether seen by jeep -- as on our trip -- or by camel, the marvellous contours of this pale landscape, which at times resembles a field of snow and at others gives the impression of a giant ice-cream parlour, are an unforgettable vision in one of the most spectacular of all deserts.
Practical information
Aquasun Resort, tel: 010/667 8099
The Upper Egyptian Bus Company runs a comfortable daily bus service to Farafra from Turguman Square, Cairo. Fare LE25. The bus journey takes about seven hours.
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