I do not remember exactly when I first saw a picture of Lencois Maranhenses but it was love at first sight. I ingrained it into my mind and it never left. Is it a desert? A park? A land of fresh water swimming pools? Maybe all three?
Lencois Maranhenses is a national park in north eastern Brazil in the state of Maranhao. The desert landscape is made up of white sand dunes and seasonal rainwater lagoons. The desert is dry half the year and rains for the other half. The rain goes through the sand dunes and resurfaces in the form of lagoons. The nearby towns from which you can visit the park are Barreirinhas, Santo Amaro, and Atins.
After my MBA finished and I secured a work contract in Paris, I decided that it was time for Lencois and I to get acquainted. On my way to board my plane to Brazil, I fell flat out on the street in Rome completely smashing my phone screen and ripping a huge gash in my knee. What kind of cursed beginning is this? I kept going.
I arrived in Recife, Brazil with no plan and nowhere to stay but sure enough I found wifi at the airport and booked a few nights at hostel on the beach. The first night I arrived at the hostel, I felt so intimidated and alone. I was surrounded by all Brazilians who did not speak any English and I had a broken phone I needed to fix so I can contact my family and friends back home. I was in a country where I knew no one and did not speak the language. Why did I do this to myself?
The next day I woke up and headed to a nearby mall to fix my phone. After going by all the electronic stores and trying to communicate with sign language, I did not like the prices offered to me. Next, I headed to a store to buy a sim card only to discover that you need to be a Brazilian resident to get one. One of the customers heard me and offered to put his name on a sim card for me and sat with me for almost an hour just to get it done. Then, I left the mall and headed to a store somewhere else to fix my phone where I found a woman who spoke English and she helped me to bargain with the store owner for a good price (I rarely pay full price for anything). After his initial shock to found out I was an Iraqi/Canadian girl traveling Brazil alone, he invited me out for lunch while my phone was getting fixed. He took me to eat traditional Brazil lunch by weight then to eat Acai for dessert. He refused to let me pay for anything and drove me back to the store when my phone was ready. The pure kindness of these strangers restored my faith in my choice and lifted my spirits. I went back to the hostel a happy girl and spent a few days getting to know all the amazing Brasileiro travelers. We went to beaches and danced Forro in Olinda.
My arrangements to reach Lencois were not going to be easy.After numerous failed attempts to book a plane ticket to a nearby city because a Brazilian nationality was required to book a ticket, I decided I will just take the bus. The bus system of Brazil is impressive and high tech. I ended up on a double decker bus with a first-class level that had gigantic leather seats.Fully reclinable and very comfy, the 14 hour bus ride was a breeze. I arrived inFortaleza and had to switch and hop on to another bus to reach the beach town of Jericoacoara. This bus ride was less luxurious and comfortable but I made it. Once I reached Jericoacoara National park, I had to be escorted on a jeep through the desert in the dead of the night with only the moonlight to show me a glimpse of the desert landscape. I sat in this jeep with all stranger men and there was no real threat but I questioned myself every step of the way. What did I get myself into?
Jericoacoara was a lovely beach village. The only traumatizing part is having to run in the sand every day to a print shop in order to complete the laborious process of sending my papers to my new workplace.French bureaucracy never fails to cause me severe anxiety. I met many nice people and one of them planned to go to Lencois with me. It was also a very laborious process of catching a private car for a 6 hour drive through extremely rural Brazil. However, this new friend ditched me as soon as she found herself a guy and proudly announced that she will be going to Lencois with him after all. I had planned everything with her soI felt disappointed. Going to Lencois is a difficult and very scary journey for a woman to make alone. It was the type of place that people went to in groups. Should I even go?
A new Brazilian friend gave me her number and told me to always text her so I don’t feel alone. Her kindness kept me going. I hopped on a private 4X4 with a French family who was both surprised and shocked to be crossing north Brazil with an Iraqi girl traveling alone and they made the journey that much more pleasant. Polite and nice people. That’s all I needed them to be. I arrived at my hostel suspended in a rural village in Barreirinhas and quickly found out that they do organized treks to Lencois. I showed up with a big bright orange suitcase which they definitely did not let go. They teased me for being a princess and kindly lent me with a backpack for the trek. I joined the trek with a Brazilian guide who did not speak English, 2 lovely Brazilian girls with some English, and a French guy who spoke very good English (impressive ;)).I learned the most Portuguese on this trek.
Our journey started with a boat ride through the river to the mouth of the sea where we stopped to enjoying some fresh grilled fish.
The first night was spent at an oasis with a local family who lived there. They provided us with some traditional Brazilian food and hammocks to sleep.
The next day we were woken up at 5am to eat breakfast and continue the journey. The ground beneath my feet was hard and the sun was strong but of course it helped to have fresh water pools to jump into whenever we wanted to cool down ;)
We walked, we talked, we ate, and we bathed. The next night was spent at another larger oasis with another family. I saw the simple way they lived and never thought I would relate in any way but I did. It reminded me of my humble beginnings in Basra. The way I played around with cousins making up games as we go. We did not have TV’s or gadgets to entertain us, only our imaginations.
For the final day, we were woken up at 3am. We had to trek 20km and the goal was to do at least half before the sun came up. It was serene to say the least walking through this magnificent desert with only the moon light shining down on us. The whiteness of the landscape had no end and was no less than majestic. There is something to be said about experiencing a silence so calm and powerful, you had no distractions from your mind and your thoughts.
I thought and thought and thought. I reflected on my MBA. I reflected on my choices and the lessons I learnt. I reflected on my journey to Lencois and my relentlessness to not give up. I promised myself that I will not be the exact same person who went in when I come out. Lencois is one of the most amazing experiences of my life.
I don’t know if this pilgrimage has any meaning to the rest of the world. I don’t know if there is a god up there listening to me or if the universe has any other special powers. Trauma has a way of destroying your personhood, your beliefs, and your sense of safety in the world. So many obstacles deterred me from reaching Lencois but I never gave up. Lenois was just a part of my relentless journey to find Sura again. One step at a time.
