Originally Posted on March 2, 2021

Last weekend, I finally got to ride a camel - which was No. 1 on my list since I arrived in Qatar.

Harris, the camel , wore a bright red saddle with yellow, green, and blue sequins. Holding on tightly as Harris walked slowly and steadily across the sand, I felt my left thigh slipping off the side of his back. After getting a good grip, I leaned forward as though I were on a bicycle - and I continued to ride on. Harris is perhaps the only creature that drinks more water than me.

The same day I met Harris, I squinted to see the border of Saudi Arabia, which was a haze in the distance. I heard the crashing waves of the Inland Sea, where fisherman set up camp with their dogs and Land Cruisers for the weekend. And, at the end of the night, following the unpredictable tosses and turns of sand duning, I watched the sun turn from bright orange to dark pink in minutes.

The sand before the sun lay untouched.

After I left the desert, the miles of sand would continue to be free of footprints and tire tracks. Only the wind would form ripples in the sand.

I never knew the desert could be so wild yet still in the same breath.