Dad flew into town yesterday on yogurt business. After dinner last night we decided the temperature had dropped enough—from 119 to a more tolerable 100—to venture out on a walk. Dad kept glancing over in the southern sky so I finally asked him what he kept looking at. He said there was a cloud that looked funny. I dismissed it as a rain cloud and we kept walking. Just a few minutes later the cloud seemed much larger and much closer… and orange. It wasn’t a rain cloud at all. It was the great haboob!
I recently learned that the mega sandstorms—mostly found in movies that take place somewhere in the Sahara just when the bad guys are about to overtake the good guys—are called haboobs. They can overtake you pretty quickly and we were no exception.
We stopped for a few minutes to watch the huge cloud roll towards us, and then decided we’d better pick up the pace. We scampered back to the condo just in time to watch the cloud roll right over the top of us, unleashing sand and dust in a blinding fury. The entire sky went dark. We peered at it through the glass for a few minutes, but finally relegated ourselves to the couch. Dust masks in place, we spent the rest of the evening listening to the wind rattle the patio furniture while we watched Machu Picchu documentaries in preparation for our next adventure.
This morning there was a thick layer of dust over the whole city, but we survived the first haboob of the season!
I recently learned that the mega sandstorms—mostly found in movies that take place somewhere in the Sahara just when the bad guys are about to overtake the good guys—are called haboobs. They can overtake you pretty quickly and we were no exception.
We stopped for a few minutes to watch the huge cloud roll towards us, and then decided we’d better pick up the pace. We scampered back to the condo just in time to watch the cloud roll right over the top of us, unleashing sand and dust in a blinding fury. The entire sky went dark. We peered at it through the glass for a few minutes, but finally relegated ourselves to the couch. Dust masks in place, we spent the rest of the evening listening to the wind rattle the patio furniture while we watched Machu Picchu documentaries in preparation for our next adventure.
This morning there was a thick layer of dust over the whole city, but we survived the first haboob of the season!
4 comments:
I saw that in the news today and wondered if you were in the thick of it. Glad you made it home in time! Those pictures look apocalyptic.
Oh wow. That's crazy!
p.s. I didn't think you were still posting here...I'll have to add it back to my blog list.
Wow, that looks crazy! I only remember seeing one of those while we lived there. Glad to know they have a fun sounding name.
They are a little crazy. I give up on washing my car.
I am still posting here regularly... about once a year.
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