Imagine...

So perhaps I was a bit harsh in my last post. Tunisia really is a lovely place. When the sun is out I feel like I have stumbled upon a piece of paradise. Unfortuneately someone else discovered it first and convinced everyone that fast food is the highest possible achievement. It really reminds me of the parts i dislike about the midwest: strip malls, car culture, fast and uninspired food, shopping as a hobby and a lifestyle and as entertainment. I know that America is supposed to be the great capitalist society where everything is for sale but there are shoe stores open here until 11pm. I couldn't find an art gallery or theatrical space in Sousse but the market is nearly always open. I had this same realization in Cairo: who needs to buy shoes at 10pm?!?

So anyway, I have left the coast and the cities and again find myself in an oasis in the desert. Douz is perched on the edge of the 'Great Oriental Erg'. The descriptions of the Sahara here are amazing. "Postcard perfect", "Once in a lifetime", etc. I plan on taking a camel trek overnight tomorrow.

...[Next day]...

So I have always heard that camels do not make the most comfortable mounts. For the first few minutes I thought that these warnings were all overblown. I figured that just like riding a horse it takes a little getting used to. One's body must get used to straddling instead of siting. After about ten minutes, however, I started to understand. There is no regularity in the rocking and I felt like i was eternally sliding forward into the camel's hump. I had a great time and though my tailbone and thighs may never be the same I'm very glad to have taken this trek.

I traveled with Andrew and Kerry from NYC and our guide Muhammed. A few hours walk by camel through the desert brough us to our campsite. This is not the high sands desert but a more scrub-brush area. It was a quiet and introspective trek as conversation from camel to camel is difficult. So i spent the time in contemplation and watching for the rare sightings of animals.

OOOhhh, there was a baby camel too. So cute. He came running up like a puppy and Kerry fed him a bottle of camel milk. I'll post a pic when i get to a better internet connection.

Dinner was delicious! An amazing chicken stew and bread baked directly in the sand and coals under the fire. We were all amazed but this flat round loaf of delicious bread came out without any sand on it at all. Something i want to try next time i camp on the beach!

So now I am back in Douz,...

Omg, i'm watching Al Jazeera coverage of a shooting spree at NIU (not far from my house in Illinois for those that don't know)!! I wish that people had the availability of psycological help to deal with issues without resorting to random killing! This is awful.

Its hard to watch the world news after having a break in the desert. Rebel attacks in N'Djamena have Chad in a state of emergency; assasinations in Thailand; more problems in East Timor; hezbollah and Israel on the brink of another deadly exchange. At least it seems as though Kenya is finally getting closer to peace.

So I head back to Tunis tomorrow to get ready for my trek south. I need to find some additional malaria medication and soak all of my clothes in an anti mosquito solution, premerthrin. I'm really hoping to avoid malaria - sounds completely awful.

I hope that everyone at home is safe and sound and let's all take a moment to hope just a bit for peace in all the world. Can we all just try to get along? Love to all, Joshua.