Sandplay therapy is a nonverbal therapeutic intervention that makes use of a sandbox and toy figures to create scenes of miniature worlds that reflect a person’s inner thoughts, struggles and concerns. When I played with my cousins in the sandbox as a child, I never thought much about sand being therapeutic. I just knew that I loved the way the sand felt in between my fingers and toes.
While MY recent call to the Sahara desert was all about recovery, all of us are just one trip away from knowing the secrets of the desert. One desert retreat away from awakening our own secrets. The mysterious healing allure of the land of mirage still fascinates me. The untamed Earth, vortexes, miles of vast openness, lures me in and fills my soul with wanderlust.
Tapping into the real Morocco is a journey that lies far from the elaborate touristy suites and buzzing restaurants of the north. Found deep in the southernmost region, where the ungenerous stone begins to surrender to the saffron gold dust of the Sahara. South of Marrakesh, the Draa Valley, an 8,900 sq. mile oasis that runs along the Algerian border; exerts an indefinable pull, retaining traces of its Berber kingdom, the indigenous inhabitants of North Africa who spoke Afroasiatic languages. A land of old Jewish homes, shrines of desert saints and tiny Saharan towns.
Landing where the Atlantic meets the Mediterranean, there was no time to explore the “pink city” this trip. I was greeted by my driver at Casablanca airport before riding 12-hours south into the deepest points of Morocco on a road full of sweeping vistas, sharp spiraling gradient and several security check points.
Sbai Palace is a charming oasis nestled just outside the desert wilderness of the Sahara near the charming town of M’Hamid (the last town in Morocco before the Algerian border). It was Arabs who brought the date palm to this mystical region. A stay with the Sbai Palace team is a spiritual journey like no other to inner peace in an environment that encourages you to connect to your higher self. The perfect getaway under the sparkly desert sky, offering beautiful traditional & vegetarian meals, breathtaking architecture, healing arts and the perfect ambiance to relax, rejuvenate and restore.
Within a 10-walk, you’ll find Ksar Ait-Ben-Haddou and M’Hammid Main Square. I instantly fell in love the traditional blouses and headdresses worn by the Berbers, known as idgharn. Mosque M’Hammid is within a half mile. Oulad Driss Kasbah is within 6 miles. When not exploring the dunes or camel trekking, many evenings were spent drinking “Berber Whiskey,” aka strong mint tea, in front of a bonfire while gazing up at the stars that twinkled above the pool at twilight.
“My favorite color, the seam of a desert horizon” – Eileen Tabios
