Desert Songs. A Woman Explorer in Egypt and Sudan
- Cairo: American University in Cairo Press, 2008
- 141 p., 23 cm
Arita Baaijens gave up her job as an environmentalist nearly twenty years ago, and has been exploring the deserts of Egypt and Sudan with her small camel caravan ever since. In Desert Songs she recounts her passion for the desert, the place she loves and fears. On one level Desert Songs reads as an ode to camels, vistas and horizons, nomads and exploration. On another it is a story about an inward journey, a rite of passage. It is about leaving the world you know to venture into the unknown where you discover your true strength. How strong are you when there’s no backup? Where do your limits lie? Baaijens sets out on a voyage of self-discovery and unrelenting physical trials to find the answers. The experience changes her forever.