Tuesday, May 01, 2007

My First Sandstorm

I'm at the gym lifting my metal. Put down the weights and look up only to have hazy vision, literally within seconds. So now I'm thinking, Oh shit, blood is rushing to my head or something and it's affecting my vision! What is happening to me?! Turns out that there was nothing wrong with me or my vision. The windows started bucking, and sand started shooting in from every single tiny opening in existance. Within one minute there was a clearly visible layer of brown sand on everything. I wiped my head with my white towel and it was instant brown. My white t-shirt became my brown t-shirt. I was smelling and breathing nice fresh sand.

So I finished off my workout and ventured out to my car - after some hesitation. It is a very strange situation having such stong winds with so much sand in it! I've never experience anything like this before. It did remind me a bit of the time I was in Miami during huricane Andrew - except that was much higher winds and water instead of sand. That's not to say the winds here were not strong! Getting to the car I could hardly open my eyes, or even breathe, from the amound of sand in the air. Once in the safety of the car, I quickly realized that visibility was about 10 meters at best.

This is what happens in this area of Sudan around this time of year. The winds are called Hubub (or Haboub) and usually preceed the rains. I caught the tail end of the rains when I arrived here 8 months ago - see my earlier post on the rains. Some friends caught some photos of the approaching winds, and I've also included some photos from my car ride home. Mind you, on a normal day at the time I drove home it would be twilight.















This table is blue. This is about 15 minutes after the storm hit.

P.S. I've posted some of these photos on Facebook. If you are on, look me up. If not, I recommend it - it's pretty cool and helps people stay in touch.

22 comments:

Anonymous said...

Hi Wissam,

Quite impressive pictures, now I understand why you said the country is not developed. Hope you survive the sandstorms and the monkey delicatessen!!

Regards

Javier

Anonymous said...

Incredible pictures indeed! We complain when it gets a bit windy in Europe...! Well Wissam, I do not have the pleasure of knowing you but I met a friend of yours last week-end who highly recommended your blog. Let's see if you can identify him: seriously mad but truly funny, very clever though you may wonder how his neurons survive impressive amounts of absinthe and (you might not share this pt of view) I would add very sexy. In short: an incredible person. Got it?...Just to be sure, I give you one more clue: portuguese. Now you must know who I am talking about! I send you all the very best from Luxembourg (where I work for the moment...even if I am, like you, originally from Lebanon). Enjoy Khartoum - it seems very interesting! I'll keep reading your posts on a regular basis (it does make me feel very lucky to be in this small but developed country :-))! Cheers! V :-)

Unknown said...

Hi anonymous. I know who you are talking about, although he hasn't shown me his impressive resilience to absinthe. How do you know him?

Unfortunately I don't update my blog as often as I used to. I guess I'm just not impressed by this place as I used to.

What are you doing in Luxembourg?

Anonymous said...

Hi Wissam!
Nice to "hear" from you! What I am doing in Luxembourg? Long story! Briefly: I am half Belgian, half Lebanese (dad) and move to the UK a couple of years ago to discover that it really was not made for me, so I am now back on the continent. Luxembourg was the easiest place for me to find a suitable job (I'm working for the EU, in banking). OK, it is maybe not the most exciting country in the world but it offers a good quality of life and it's closer to my friends!

What about you??? What do you mean when you say that you are not impressed anymore by the place? Is it because you are feeling more at home or do you find life harder? Keen on hearing more!

I met your friend who is the friend of one of my friend's friends!! You know how it goes: you start a party with 4 people, you finish with 17! He was definitely the funniest one ;-) Just teasing when I say he has a strong resistence to absinthe (he's very reasonnable with his consumption :-))By the way, my name is Vinciane (Belgian...not Lebanese...but everybody call me Vi ;-)) Talk to you soon !

Unknown said...

Vinciane, nice to have a name replacing "anonymous".

Sudan is a difficult country to live and work in. It really is a special place, and requires special circumstances. I've been here for about a year, and it's taking its dragging now. The country is definitely very interesting though. I'd recommend it for the adventurous tourist.

London then Lux. I've never been to luxembourg, but I was in Lausanne a few years back on a business trip. Is Luxembourg as boring as Lausanne?

I take it Beirut is not your cup of tea. Right?

Just not to bore the other viewers with our conversation please write me to wkazzaz@gmail.com

How did you meet Antonio anyway?

Izi said...

Hi guys,
don't move to the mail, this is so interesting, I'm also a friend of Antonio (actually I think I'm the link between Wiss and Antonio - I'm also portuguese) and I'd love to hear more. :)

Wiss, I expect more regular posts! If nothing happens, invent it!
Take care

Anonymous said...

Hi Ana, Hi Wissam,

Well Wissam, if it keeps some of your readers happy, I have nothing to hide about my exciting life in Luxembourg :-). Just going a few days in the UK to join my partner. Let us know if I should answer your questions on your mail or here! Glad to "meet" you Ana.
Cheers :-) V.

Antonio Leitao said...

Hello, hello, dear friends, the network is growing, n'est-ce pas??
This world is incredibly small and the net really helps reducing its size!!
About the comments on that character that Vi met in Lisbon (seriously mad but funny, clever but burning his neurons with alcohol, etc,), I’m not sure I recognise him. Maybe it’s because of the absinthe or maybe she drunk some absinthe too!! 
In fact, the Portuguese boy was very impressed too by the Belgo-Lebanese princess!! As a small coincidence, he studied for 1 year at the same university where she graduate but in different years!!
The way we met and the easy going and great mutual understanding was very similar to the way I met you, dear Wissam (thank you dear Ana!! Beijinhos): a friend of mine invites me for a late night drink with some other foreign friends and there she was, elegant, intelligent and laughing at my jokes!!
And that’s it. We should arrange a meeting all together here in Lisbon, you need to try the Portuguese absinthe!!
Beijos e abraços,
Antonio

Anonymous said...

My goodness! Ever considered a career as a photo-journalist? Outstanding pictures if a bit surreal. hope everything is well over there. miss you tons.

Unknown said...

Dear friends, it's amazing how a bit of absinthe can bring together a belgo-lebanese living in luxemburg, a protuguese living in madrid, another portuguese living in libon and a lebanese living in khartoum! I would love to visit lisbon, sounds like a great idea. Logistics will follow.

Vi, I still want to hear more, and I love the way your brought in antonio and ana! Even my super sandstorm images couldn't do that! So you can continue replying in this space AND write to my e-mail.

Ana, more posts on the way. The next one is about more deer pets!

Anonymous said...

the belgo-lebano-portugese connection is indeed most interesting. how does sudan fit into this. right, the beatiful pics. dude its been a while since you have updated your blog. keep it up
axel
p.s. luxenbourg is quite nice! Well worth a visit for its prximity to belgium, france and germany

Izi said...

Axel, Sudan doesn't fit anywhere, that's for sure!
Wiss, go and work in Luxembourg, you'll love it. It's also filled with Portuguese emmigrants (isn't that right Vi?)
Antonio, good to hear from you! Lisbon was great last time I was there and even saw you at the end of the day, on that nice beach bar! You and the caipirinhas!!!

Anonymous said...

Ciao scimmia!
Good to see you blogged again, and the pics are awesome. They are as entertaining as the network of friends that seem to be growing by the day right here on your blog comments page.
Keep up the great posts, bro!

Birra

Unknown said...

Let me recommend Facebook. It's a nice place to keep in touch, especially when geographic proximity is an issue.

Unknown said...

Let me recommend Facebook. It's a nice place to keep in touch, especially when geographic proximity is an issue.

Unknown said...

Let me recommend Facebook. It's a nice place to keep in touch, especially when geographic proximity is an issue.

Unknown said...
This comment has been removed by the author.
Anonymous said...

Whaouh! I am off for a few days and there you go! How great to see this network developing like this!
Wissam, these deers are lovely...but, could I comment on your post and add that women would be most impressed sometimes if men could also consider banging their head against the wall to put things right up there :-)
Ana, you are absolutely right: Luxembourg is packed with Portuguese (20% of the population or so, which is quiet nice). Because of its central location and favourable fiscal conditions, Luxembourg also attracts people from all over the world - meaning that you're more likely to meet foreigners here than "real" Luxemburgese. Wiss, if you can live without sandstorms, the heat (though it can get really warm in the spring/summer time) and the exotic lifestyle you're experiencing in Khartoum, you would definitely appreciate it! And there is even a Lebanese girl up there to help you feel at home! To answer your previous question about Beyrouth: I do love it very much so but my view is probably biaised as I know it as "a tourist" ...What about you? Do you miss Lebanon? As far as an international meeting in Lisbon is concerned: what a great idea! I am sure that Antonio will be delighted to show you his world famous resilience to absinth Wissam :-)
Cheers 2 all of U :-D
Vi.
NB: Axel/Birra: where are you from?

Unknown said...

Sounds very tempting. I'd love to visit Luxembourg. It's one of these places you always hear/talk about but never vist. And I can definitely do without the sandstorms. Only thing, Luxembourg doesn't have any beaches, no?

I do like Lebanon. From the geography, to the food, to the history. But most of all I like that mediterranean attitude to it. Shame it's in the situation it's in.

Let's take this conversation to the next post, just to stay up to speed with things.

Unknown said...

By the way, Birra is my sister, and Axel is my colleague from the MBA course we took together.

Anonymous said...

Hi!
Cool pictures!
Did you take all these pictures by yourself? I'm writing my thesis about haboobs and I'm still searching for a good photograph. So if these are your own pictures I would like to ask you if you allow to put them into my thesis.
Best regards
Carmen

Unknown said...

Hi Carmen, sorry about the late reply (4 years late!). As you can imagine, I haven't visited this blog in a while.

The photos are mine, except for the 3 that were taken from the roof of a building. Feel free to use them.

w.