On 24 April, 7 participants from two organisations (SKGR – Self Knowledge, Global Responsibility http://www.selfknowledgeglobalresponsibility.org/ and Green and Away http://www.greenandaway.org/page.cfm?pageid=ga-home ) arrived in Sinai at the start of a journey to build Gwoona Dam. Rosa, Diana and Helen were the G&A contingent.
The second day we left for St Katherine’s and the mountains. We had a wonderful trek up to Salem’s garden, our home for the next 5 nights. On the next day we joined the team of Bedouin builders and over the following three days we all worked hard and the final dam was 15.70 m long and 2.70 m high. It was 1.20 m wide at the base and 1m wide at the top. It has a volume of 31sq m. The Bedouin estimate that the dam will hold 1700 cubic
Gwoona Dam
meters of water. The consequence of building this dam is that about 30 gardens downhill of the dam will benefit from the increased supply of water. The dying trees can be revived and the garden owners can plant more trees, vegetables and beans to feed their families. Some abandoned gardens will be restored and become productive again. The Bedouin will have more food and more income for their families and their sustainable way of life can be preserved.
The money for the dam was raised by the participants through friends and supporters. Such was the generosity of our sponsors that we exceeded the target of £2000 for the dam and raised enough funds for nearly ¾ of another dam.
The day after we finished the dam, we had a slow trek to Farsh Romana. We were accompanied by Eid a wonderful guide who told us about the history of the Jebeliya tribe, the meanings of names of landscape features, the herbs they use and of his sadness and concern that this entire heritage would be lost. None of his daughters have been up to the mountains gardens so they don’t know any of these stories and his sons only come up if they have work with tourists. It will only take a generation growing up in the towns for this history to fade, and with it the ability to live in the mountains and to keep the gardens going. Eid, and the other Bedouin we met are all custodians of a way of life that is disappearing and along with it traditional wisdom and a connection with nature. What could change this would be a revival of the trekking holidays and more journeys which would bring more of the Jebeliya back up into the mountains as guides and camel providers. The dams and deepened wells are helping to keep the older generation connected to their heritage through the gardens and make living in the mountains a possibility but the younger people need work in the mountains. The Bedouin need responsible, sustainable tourism in order to survive as a people. They need the income for education and health care and if they can’t get this in the mountains they will move to towns for work and loose their culture and heritage and the ability to live sustainably in a harsh environment.
The following day we trekked down the mountains to St Catherines to drive to the desert for the second part of our journey. We arrived to the magic of Mattamir just as the sun was going down. The following day we went on a desert orientation walk and choose a place for our mini 24 hour retreat.
Just before we parted for the retreat there was the most unusual drama – thunder rolled
A desert sandcastle
over the mountains, the sky grew dark and then it rained! For 15 minutes or so there was heavy rain. We could hear the sound of gushing water and saw a waterfall spewing off the top of a cliff below Gebal Mattamir. It was even possible to make a sandcastle. To our great disappointment we heard from Mahmoud that there hadn’t been any rain at all in the mountains and that the new dam was still dry.
For some the retreat was a welcome opportunity to have time in their busy lives to stop and do nothing for a day. For others it was an opportunity to reflect on the path their lives were taking and to make decisions about the way forward. We came together again on the last night for a delicious meal and to share our experiences over the previous 9 days. Our last day was spent walking and camel riding to Gebel Maharoon and Aduda dune then down to the jeeps for the journey back to Sharm El Sheik.
The journey was very thought provoking and we learned a lot, some of it about the Bedouin cultural heritage and some things about ourselves. The contrast between our own lives back here in UK and Bedouin life helps put things in perspective and emphasise what is really important in life. Our impact on the Bedouin is huge but this is a reciprocal experience with everyone concerned being enriched – the journeys fulfil the aims of the Makhad Trust to bring people of different cultures together for mutual benefit.
We would like to thank all our sponsors for their generosity. The excess funds will be seed money for the next dam building trip scheduled for next spring. Look out for more details to follow.
Green and Away 