We etched closer to the meeting spot where Adel and I would bid our awesome overnight guide farewell, but not before we stopped at a couple of attractions along the way. Not far outside the White Desert was an area that had stones laying all around. We got out and walked around a bit and I collected several stones that seemed to call to me.
Back in the car, we made a quick visit to what seemed like a tiny desert village. Adel wanted me to experience a hot mineral water aqueduct. This is a tourist attraction because…well no one seems to know exactly how it originated, a desert mystery. Kinda like the endlessly deep well next to the oldest tree living tree in the world. There were children all around who shyly presented their homemade wares for purchase. I wondered how much of a tourist attraction the aqueduct really was, and did it serve as an economic source for this off the beaten path. It seemed no sooner than we arrived that we were back on the road.
After a short drive we turned off the road toward the valley of the Black Desert. I walked around this very unique place collecting a few stones and also some sand. I had collected some White desert sand as well. It was a beautiful blue-sky kinda day and it made the backdrop of the Black Desert even more beautiful. After leaving the Black Desert we soon met up with the driver who was stationed along the road. He would take us back to Cairo. I thanked our Desert Guide and wished him and his lovely family well. He and Adel embraced as I transferred my belongings into the car and settled in.
During the ride back to Cairo, I did an inventory of my treasures collected during this awesome desert experience. I had downloaded an App called Rock Identifier and it proved to be an invaluable asset. In the back seat, I took a picture of a few recent stones collected, I giggled, ooo’ed and awe’ed as I discovered what my treasures actually were. I now had in my possession:
* Basalt stones (Black Desert)
* Limestone (White Desert)
* Yellow Jasper (Outside the White Desert)
* Clear Quartz (Crystal Mountain)
* Limonite stones (Outside the White Desert)
* Hematite stones (Outside the White Desert)
* Sand (Black Desert)
* Sand (White Desert)
* Tree bark (said to be the oldest tree in the world)
I had one day left before leaving Cairo heading back to Mexico for eight days to retrieve the rest of my belongings. After which, I would be flying back to Atlanta to retrieve my pup Quincy and then driving, with my son’s help, to Detroit, MI which was now my home. Stay tuned for the last chapter of My Soul’s Journey Home…