Siwa – The Oasis of the Oracle

The Oasis of the Oracle

Siwa is one of the last surviving oases on Planet Earth, and one the remaining few with continued potential for sustaining life in the middle of the desert. Its beauty resides not only in its pristine environment, but also in its cultural attractions, including treasures left by pre-historic inhabitants, as well as pharaonic, Greco-Roman, Arab, and Berber civilizations. Its present people’s culture and genetic memory attest to all of this and more. Siwa is indeed the fruit of love of travelers from Africa, parts of Europe, and Asia, who together participated in transforming the oasis into a place of wonder. Until this day, the temptation for travelers to part with the materialism that has corrupted many of the basic joys of life in order to settle in Siwa continues to help the oasis thrive. With their shared commitment to live in peace and harmony with nature, these travelers from the four corners of the world –just like their ancestors from Antiquity- have decided to settle in the oasis. By doing so, they further enriched it with new layers of knowledge and cultural diversity. Over the past twenty-five years, I have had the privilege of witnessing this process, and being enriched by it, whenever I am there. A journey into the past, to the land and time when the Temple of Amun was guarded by an oracle, is the one experience I would choose to offer to my loved ones, wherever they may be. Siwa has inundated my life with joy. It has also prompted me to multiply this joy by sharing it with my friends, guests, and family, as well as the people from Siwa with whom, and for whom, I have worked.