Absolute Desert

Season 1Episode 360 minOct 27, 2002
Absolute Desert

Michael reaches Timbuktu along with a camel train carrying the giant salt blocks that made the city one of the greatest centres of Islamic learning up until the 16th century. He wanders through the rubble that is 21st-century Timbuktu to find the Imam who shows him original astronomical textbooks that predate Galileo's discoveries by 200 years.

Leaving one of Timbuktu's most famous addresses, the house of Alexander Laing, the Scottish explorer who had his thoat slit for not converting to Islam, Michael heads east to the land of the Wodaabe. These nomadic herders are some of the last true pastoralists of the African continent - famous as much for their male beauty pageant as their stylish cattle. Living in the bush with them, Michael watches the complex rituals surrounding this extraordinary annual pagaent, the 'Gerewol', where the girls get to choose the prettiest boy.

It is the season after the rains, a time of relative plenty for the nomads, and Michael's Wodaabe family, led by the English-speaking Doulla, travel to Ingall for the Cure Salee - a gathering of clans that takes place every year. Amidst the chaos of camel races, shopping and general mayhem, Michael meets up with a group of Tuareg for the next leg of his journey, a camel train across the Tenere desert to Algeria.

Omar introduces him to the delights and vicissitudes of life on the move in the most desolate landscape on the planet. Walking 12 hours a day, eating the odd sheep and learning the rudiments of Tamashek, the language of the Tuareg, Michael finally gets to grips with the heart and soul of the desert. The going is tough, but the sense of comradeship with both the other cameleers and the camels, who are their lifeline, is palpable.

Absolute Desert has aired on Oct 27, 2002 at 7:00 PM
Previous EpisodeNext Episode

Trailer

We do not have any trailers for this episode

Recently Updated Shows

Recently updated shows that might be of your interest.
Rick and Morty
Running

Rick and Morty

Rick is a mentally gifted, but sociopathic and alcoholic scientist and a grandfather to Morty; an awkward, impressionable, and somewhat spineless teenage boy. Rick moves into the family home of Morty, where he immediately becomes a bad influence.

Avatar: The Last Airbender
Running

Avatar: The Last Airbender

A young boy known as the Avatar must master the four elemental powers to save a world at war — and fight a ruthless enemy bent on stopping him.

FROM
Running

FROM

FROM unravels the mystery of a nightmarish town that traps all those who enter. As the unwilling residents fight to keep a sense of normalcy and search for a way out, they must also survive the threats of the surrounding forest – including the terrifying creatures that come out when the sun goes down. In season two, hidden truths about the nature and terrifying origins of the town begin to emerge, even as life for its residents is plunged into chaos by the arrival of mysterious newcomers.

House of the Dragon
Running

House of the Dragon

Set 200 years before the events of Game of Thrones, House of the Dragon tells the history of House Targaryen as they fight through a civil war.

My Strange Arrest
Running

My Strange Arrest

An in-depth look at the people who were arrested for allegedly committing some of the weirdest, wildest and most bizarre crimes ever. We dig beyond the headlines and the viral videos to look at the incidents and their consequences, hearing the stories from the accused, the arresting officers and eyewitnesses. These are bizarre crimes with real-life ramifications.

GenreCrime