Well it wasn't a predetermined trip. Sometimes trips are scheduled on a whim. How like a dream, spontaneous and sudden.

I was on a week-long trip to historical sites in Morocco last month. Traveling and venturing to a new place adds new color and excitement to life. 

One evening on that trip, the guide Mohammad informed us, "The city of Erfoud, where we will stay tomorrow, is the gateway to the Sahara desert." 

Hey! Sahara desert? I was suddenly excited. That place was a dry desert, but my heart became lush. Even the mere thought of the desert suddenly came to my heart like a flower festival. 

Bidinta and I were with a group of friends in the Sahara desert on the border of Morocco and Algeria. We were eager to catch a glimpse of the beautiful scenery. That was the wonderful moment when the sun set in the Sahara. Watching the burning ocean and witnessing the darkness after sunset is also a joyous time of life. 

We are the inhabitants of a country full of geographical, biological and botanical diversity and multi-colored, green natural resources. However, the journey towards the completely uninhabited, vast and dry land was filled with curiosity. 

The Sahara is not just a desert, it is also a legend composed of many ups and downs of human history. Spread over an area of ​​9.2 million square kilometers, this vast and golden land is synonymous with mystery and thrill. This desert empire is 4,800 km long and 1,800 km wide, spread over 11 countries including Mali, Morocco, Mauritania, Algeria, Tunisia, Libya, Niger, Chad, Sudan, Western Sahara and Egypt. In terms of area, this desert is almost as big as the continent of Europe, where about three Indias can fit. 

The Sahara introduced heritage as something more than a physical location. Over the ages it has served as a great bridge connecting Africa to the Mediterranean as a crossroads of civilizations. Since ancient times, long caravans of travelers carrying goods like salt, gold and spices passed through this sandy land. Traders have been traveling through this desert for centuries.

In those caravans, they not only transported goods, but also left a rich cultural legacy to the new generation. They also exchanged ideas, visions and dreams. The Sahara has mesmerized explorers, dreamers, inquisitors and artists for ages. Now it was our turn to paint a little bit of its eternal beauty. I too am a traveler who has been hypnotized by the Sahara. 

An area with less than 25 cm of annual rainfall and no cultivation at all is considered a desert. Deserts are either sand or ice. This year I even reached the icy desert of Antarctica. The Sahara desert was a stark contrast to that cold and snowy continent.

See millions of icebergs, ice mountains, ice lakes and glaciers in Antarctica and hot and sandy deserts in the Sahara, where there are numerous sand dunes up to 200 meters high. The highest point in the Sahara is Mount Kusi, which is 3,415 meters high. The guide said - 'Until a few thousand years ago, the desertification of the Sahara region, which was covered with greenery and covered the diversity of seasons, was caused by the continuous deforestation in this area.' 

When he was saying this, I was excited to think how after the gradual destruction of the forest, how a lush and biologically diverse place can become desolate and desolate. A light of hope lit up in my mind, when he said, 'After 15 thousand years, some scientists estimate that this vast desert will be covered by forests again.' ;

Regarding the Sahara desert, I am reminded of the story of the Moroccan traveler Ibn Battuta, whose many travels in the Sahara are well-known. Ibn is such a traveler, who left his mother, father and native land in 1325 at the age of 22 and went on a world tour with a camel.

Egypt, Syria, Palestine, Habron, Tripoli, Jerusalem, Tatakia, Damascus, Basra, Madinah, Baghdad, Mecca, East Africa, India, China, Maldives, etc. at that time, he traveled 75 thousand miles. On his return to Morocco, he told the Sultan about his travels to various places including the Sahara desert. The Sultan ordered his travelogue to be recorded. That extensive travelogue was named Tuhfat al-Azayib al-Afsar, a copy of which is still preserved in the National Library of Paris. 

René Cali, the first European to return alive from Timbuktu, transformed himself into a Muslim pilgrim to cope with the harsh conditions. Driven by a burning thirst for discovery, those adventurers broke even the limits of human endurance.

However, the Sahara desert is still a dangerous area. A sudden sandstorm has enveloped many human fighters in itself. Even the unbearable heat has ended many people's lives in the sand of the desert. 

…

Erfoud is a city located on the edge of the vast desert, also known as the 'Gateway to the Sahara'. This is a city in Morocco, where once upon a time there were hordes of people carrying loads of salt, spices, etc. on the dusty roads. The city was founded as a military fort under the French Protectorate. Mohammed told us, tomorrow we will be staying in this city, which is the administrative center of the province of Arachidia and a major tourist destination, which is the starting point of the Sahara desert journey. 

About five million years ago, the Sahara desert was submerged in water. In course of time, this land was turned into land. Then all aquatic, terrestrial and amphibian creatures were buried underground. Even now, researchers have found remains of fish, crocodiles and dinosaurs there.

According to a 2005 report by National Geographic, about two hundred tombs have been excavated in the Sahara at various times. During the excavations, a huge burial ground was discovered, where human and animal bones and the remains of large fish and crocodiles were found. From this the scientist came to the conclusion that the Sahara desert was once green. Although the process of becoming a desert started a while ago, around 2500 BC, this place completely turned into a desert. The city of Erfoud is also known as the 'fossil capital of the world', full of unique fossils buried in the desert mounds. The various fossil shops and museums are thronged by explorers looking for the animals that roamed the Sahara thousands of years ago. Our team also reached one of those stores. 

Erfoud's specialty is not only fossils, but also sand and sand dunes. A little further from the city, everywhere you look, there is sand. Sand dunes as far as the eye could see. Among the arid and uninhabited dunes is a famous destination – Erg Chebbi. Our destination was Merzouga, the area where Erg Chebbi is. 

Merzouga, a village in the Sahara desert on the banks of the Erg Chebbi, south of Morocco, has a mixed Arab and Berber community. It was established as a trade route. Travelers weary from long journeys to Timbuktu, other important cities and ports have established Merzouga as they look for a suitable place to rest. Over time, it became a place of pilgrimage for Berbers. 

In the early days there was nothing but camels and tents. Now, along with the tourist activity in this area, there are hotels with facilities in operation. There are camping centers with state-of-the-art tents along the dunes. Sunrise and sunset viewing, camel trekking, sand boarding at Erg Chebbi Dunes, desert hiking, night camp oasis, tours around the dunes and cultural performances by musical groups are in abundance in this area. 

Although the underground water under the sandy hills is meeting the drinking water shortage in Merzouga, the water source has started to dry up after the construction of tourist accommodation. Although Yasmina Lake is a temporary reservoir of water in this area, it does not last for many days. Since the 1970s, regular flooding in the plains on both sides of the dunes has also decreased, so that the area of ​​the animal and bird stage is almost ending. 

At 4pm, three special Land Cruiser vehicles were waiting for us like modern-day camels. A mixed feeling of curiosity, excitement and curiosity was palpable among our group mates. Overlooking the high sand dunes built up by the wind speed in the desert, our journey advanced, following the smoky line of twilight evening. 

Ah, the endless wasteland and the smell of dry earth in the air. It was going on, whispering the secrets of the place by the wind blowing in the ear. It seemed, the desert was calling us affectionately and saying, come dear people, come bask in beauty. 

Before reaching the desert end, we stopped at Yasmina Lake. At first glance, the shimmering oasis nestled among the golden dunes seemed unreal. There are 90 such oases in the Sahara, the size of which varies according to the seasons. A water jewel surrounded by dry sand, the very presence of which was awe-inspiring. As we approached the shore of the lake and stood, the sky and desert dunes reflected in the lake continued to create the illusion of endless space. 

When I reached Yasmina Lake, I felt like this, even in the most desolate place, life finds a way to survive and grow. Even the kalangmalyang of our group turned into silence. This quiet moment is perhaps nature's invitation to us to pause for a moment and absorb it before continuing our journey towards the desert. 

Our car stopped at Erg Chebbiner. The extended orange surface like a carpet hung all around mesmerized us. Erg Chebbi, which covers an area of ​​30 km in length and about 10 km in width, is also surrounded by villages like Merzouga and Hasilabid, where the life cycle of complexity and risk continues. Erg Chebbi sometimes looks like the surface of Mars because of the Pahalpur sand dunes. This land was used in the filming of the film 'The Mummy' produced in 1999 and 'Prince of Persia' produced in 2010. 

The world's largest and hottest Sahara desert is also a land of contradictions. Dry, yet full of mystery. Quiet, but humming with many stories, which tells the story of its life centuries old. Sahara tells, how he turned into dense sandy land! Reciting his own story, he lives a dry life. 

The Sahara has always attracted the adventurous and curious. A few weeks before we arrived In November 2081, the Sahara desert was in a situation different from its original character. For the first time in 50 years, the Sahara experienced two days of heavy rain and floods that killed 18 people. 100 milliliters of rain fell in 24 hours in the Tagunite village, located 450 kilometers from Rabat, the capital of Morocco. Everyone was surprised by that incident. In 1925, the dried up Lake Iriki was filled with water, bringing great relief to the local farmers. Earlier, the Sahara desert was flooded due to heavy rains in 1974. 

A few camel drivers approached us with eyes full of hope and curiosity. And offered to take them for a ride to the sandy hills for a reasonable price. Their enthusiasm reflected the importance of tourism as a livelihood in remote areas. Robbie and his wife Heike, a member of our group, decided to go on a camel ride. They climbed on the camel, but their efforts to balance on the swaying animal was worth watching. Their laughter brightened the atmosphere. 

Bindita, I and other members of our party opted to travel on foot. We wanted to feel the touch of soft sand under our feet, to become one with the sands of the Sahara. Needless to say, the first step on the sand was magical. There was nothing like the rough terrain we imagined. 

Burying each step in the sand we moved slowly. The sand dunes all around us were coming alive. It seemed as if it was constantly changing with the gusts of wind. Travelers from all corners of the world gathered there that day. Now we head towards the summit of Erg Chebbi. The climb was not so easy. The soft sand felt like silk underfoot, but it drifted with every step and was difficult to climb. It was a test of both our physical ability and determination. 

After reaching Takura, the scene was unique and unique. There were the highest sand in the sand that ended in every direction. And his waved shape was a golden and ray. That was absolutely vitality, who made it too deeply involved in the world. It was thought that the desert is breaking and his silence is a deep silphony. & Nbsp;

...

was now the turn - the sunset vision. The land of the sun was an climax of our trip. Looking at the horizon, lightly pink and deep purple is replaced by 'pallet'. The coated and made by colors were more advanced by a great painter than a great painting image in natural canvas. The misery was covered by the shadows on the furnace surface while shadows danced by the shadows. That was as if someone did in the past. Who will not be happy when he sees that size, color, and unimgan a believer of the light? We were not the exceptions of it. The mind was shocked by the color of Happy.

East horizon and the sun's Rakhum's ray! I was pulled in this hypocrite, some time in the same time. There was a long childhood in the environment. We were silent-silent travelers were witnesses to that scene. We stared at the sun. The sun was drowning down-down and was left over the beautiful world in twilight behind them. Mohammad hugged in Algerian limits. Announced line, which had been in the slightest light. & Nbsp;

was signing a deep line of tents below the desert. There were some of the areas in the terms. Turrags in the desert riotous aborigrate. These are the ability to flourish humanity in the harsen environment for centuries for centuries. & Nbsp;

, as the sun drummers went into the horizon, and the beauty of the desert gave us an unforgettable moments as a wonderful gift of life. & nbsp;

we returned to Urphawork. The sky was open at night. Different glow of stars in the city of the city! Sahara felt that he was called upon us to come back to us. Our journey was short, but that's meant will last. It was not just a trip, we were able to engage in many of the inhabitants of nature. & Nbsp;

was the sunset of that trip. During the sunset, it was a shift-like hill yellowpur. We seemed, we are watching the golden mountains. The sandy red sand reflected me to the country of gold. The sand of the land was also redruly. It felt experienced gold in the sunback. My eyes seen in the wilderness with my eyes seen a source of silver in Antaritica from the mountains of Nepal. & Nbsp;