• Enjoying Algerian hospitality
September 26, 2004
What a day! We woke up at 4 a.m. to get ready to enter Algeria and we only rolled into the hotel in Ourgla at 8 p.m. The Tunisian border was a breeze. The team said goodbye to our desert guides and headed into the uncertainty of Algeria. Waiting for us on the other side were three PETRONAS staff from the Algeirs office. With their help we managed to cross into Algeria in about 4 hours.
After a long day of driving, we finally got to Ourgla, where the first of several community relations projects were waiting for us. Our first stop was the children’s ward at the hospital. Joyce and the team brought some joy as we blew up balloons and played with the children.
Next, we visited the local technical school to hand over some educational materials. The visit was a short one as we had yet another appointment with a local PETRONAS supplier. We headed for the factory belonging to Mr Zughan and couldn't believe the reception we got. Riders on camels fully dressed up for battle, drums, singers, dancers and a platoon of musket bearing locals. They really know how to welcome people here! Some of the team joined in the dancing and merriment. Our expedition leader, Halim was also invited to fire one of the old muskets!
That night, the team was invited to Mr Zughan's house for a feast. And what a feast it was! Seated around the courtyard of his house, the team was served huge pieces of lamb and coucous. After some sweet minty tea, the team retired for the night.
We are indeed surprised with the reception we are getting in Algeria. The people are friendly and always curious about us. Our only problem is the language, as only some of us understand French or Arabic, but we make do with sign language. It’s amazing that we can communicate this way.
We headed for our next stop early in the morning. Only a short 190-kilometre drive to Ghardaia, and the view that greeted us as we came down the valley was quite beautiful. The old quarter of Ghardaia is now a World Heritage Site. The people still live and practise the traditional ways. We checked in to the hotel and after lunch we had a tour of the thousand year old Ghardaia Mosque. It is still in use today.
We also visited the old quarter. Unfortunately, we were told that the people there do not like being photographed. However, we were allowed to photograph the old buildings. Next was the local souk, a bustling square with not even one tourist in sight. We had a good time browsing around with no one hassling us to buy souvenirs. Tomorrow we head for Tiaret and then to Oran where we will be taking the ferry that will bring us to Spain for our transfer to Morocco, the last country we will be visiting on PETRONAS Trans-Sahara 2004.
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