Let's go wild camping! we are motivated and ready... and come exactly one step further: to the next village (Merzuga). Where the sand sheets are needed again, because once again we got stuck in the sand. Two young men are at our side with advice and action. They organize shovels and dig us free. A few meters further on we stop for two nights. The ground is safe. We can even borrow their bikes and ride them to the village. They have neither gears nor brakes - "desert bikes". So we roll along slowly - fast enough to not fall over, but still so slow that children overtake us on all sides.
We're trying to take off
The first thing you see from the bus is the big dune. It invites us to get to know the Sahara better. We accept that. With the paragliders on our backs and without shoes on our feet, we run towards the dune. The wind is blowing strong, but from the right direction. Nature can be found a surprising lot, in all that orange sand. Whole trees rise unexpectedly from behind the dunes, camels run past the horizon, grass and leaves struggle out of the ground.
Walking in the sand is so much harder than we thought. Again and again we need all four. Every now and then someone falls (OK, OK, it's mostly Bianca). Again and again it is also associated with an incredible amount of laughter. Because the situation seems so unreal. Alone in the desert, with the paragliders. Whereas we hadn't even left Europe a month ago. While we barely knew each other a year ago. While we have only had our license to fly for 5 months. And yet here we are. Laughing in the sand.
On the dunes it's called "parawaiting". The wind is way too strong. We break off. The disappointment breaks through somewhat, but it settles down quite quickly on the way back. The view is just too impressive to stay sad here.
On the other side, low to the ground
We heard you can drive around the desert. Let's try that. It will soon be off-road, but the roads are dry. After the ruins of a long-abandoned village, we unexpectedly drive through a nomadic settlement. A Berber family invites us for tea. Every single person we meet here greets us with "Bonjour, Ca-va?". But that's it. We won't find any more French here. Unfortunately we do not speak Berber. Nevertheless, it is funny and the tea is delicious. With hands and laughing it can always be communicated somehow. In the sunset we find a place for the night, the dunes in front of us and no light pollution around us. The stars shine through the skylight. It is very quiet…
After a relaxed yoga and hang session in the morning, the rude awakening came. We're stuck. Yet again. Unfortunately, the ground only looked solid here, but it is actually just sand. We get about 1 meter further, then we just dig into the ground. It gets worse with every attempt. At some point the bumper hits the ground. Sh*t. What now?
All tricks are applied
Of course we shovel and shovel and shovel, but it doesn't help. The first jeep we wave to stops. Mohammed gets out and helps us directly. First, we try our tow rope. Well, actually it's a spanner set. But it looks stable. It wasn't. It tears straight away.
Then we continue to try shoveling, jacking, even more shoveling, stones, the sand sheets... At some point two Berber boys are there, pushing us. Again nothing. They organize a better tow rope and finally, FINALLY we are free. Actually, we expected a towing service. But Mohammed pulls us to safe ground. What does he expect from us in return? Nothing. (Except for a Schöggeli). He's covered in sand from head to toe and must have been on the ground for an hour because of us. Out of sheer kindness. Thanks again for that, we will never forget it!
Exhausted, we drive back to the campsite. There we meet other vanlifers who were already on the ferry with us. They are cooking tajines and invite us to stay. We gratefully accept and slowly prepare to say goodbye to all the sand.
English (UK) 
Deutsch