Surprise! We have cell phone coverage...

  Holy cow, we have cell phone coverage this year! I guess tourism can be a good thing. 21st century tourists don't like to unplug. Our base camp is close enough to hit a tower. If I'm allowed to accompany the men into Wadi Rum, I will lose cell service, but it would be worth it.

  We arrived on site last night just in time for the women to start setting up their side of the tent. It's kind of weird for me, I'm used to hanging out with Mama and helping her with the food prep. For the next two weeks I won't be doing that. I'm hanging with the men. When they're out working the dogs and the birds, I'm staying with Baba and his brother.

  Zahir's cousin came running up to me to show me our experiment was still working. Last year he and I were talking about permaculture. I told him how I built an earthen berm which produced food 12 months out of the year without using fertilizer. Of course there was a huge difference, when I did that I was in Florida. Florida is a swamp, a very very wet swamp. Here water is precious and must be trucked in.

  By the end of the first week last year we decided to attempt a test berm. He has been irrigating it using the gray water leftover from cooking and general washing. The only place that died off were the ends of the berms. By the end of the day today we came up with the idea of planting indigenous scrub to cap the berm and seal in the moisture. In addition to sealing in the moisture its roots should increase the biomass. Any dead material could then be used to build additional berms.

  It was kind of neat seeing something go from theory to fact. Gardening in the desert who knew? Khalid told me that the hardest thing was keeping the goats away from the vegetables.

  The day is just beginning and the men are starting to stir. It is so weird sleeping so far apart from Zahir. Normally I cuddle under his arm. I don't think anyone is confused about our relationship. It's the difference between that is assumed, and that which is known. I hope we can have some private time today.

 

  I got a good question in my email today. How do you charge your electronic devices? The family does a primitive camp. Only that which you carry in is used. 

  Zahir and I have several solar powered battery backups for our little devices. To recharge the larger stuff we use a couple of fold-able arrays. It's one of my chores to keep everything charged.

Wildtech 21 watt fold-able array

  Today the rest of base camp will be set up so the men can go out and hunt. With luck we will have fresh rabbit (sorry hare.)

  The men are up for first prayer so I'm going to sign off at this point. I will update as I can.

***
  Post breakfast update: Khalid and I both share a passion for the works of Geoff Lawton. Googling his name is worth the read. He is the biologist who brought a viable self-sustaining permaculture garden to the salt flat southwest of Amman

Chase