Baraka Gardens, although not a charity, is actively helping the local community to develop their gardens, promotes eco-tourism and provides a source of income for garden owners. We have very limited resources but do believe a lot can be achieved from very little. Reversely, little good might result from big amounts of money, as we see it on a daily basis involving international organizations. We started with a very modest budget in 2008, and now our main garden project, El Freish, has become a unique example of what can be done with little resources. However, work is not over yet as there are still many other important things to do. At the same time we are helping other gardens as well. We started with two gardens; Farhan’s garden in Abu Jidda and Ramadan’s garden in Wadi Arbain. (See below under ‘Projects’.) There is still some work to be done in both, but as soon as we finish it we will help other gardens. A substantial part of the profit generated through our programs is put aside for this purpose – unfortunately we are not generating enough yet to proceed at a pace we would like to. For this reason we started to organize a series of fundraising events (see below under ‘Funds raised and used’) and are searching for other ways to help the garden owners. The Sheikhs understand the concept of fundraising for charitable purposes and are happy to support the gardens. Our long term plan, however, is to cooperate with a registered and trusted organization since this would reassure everyone about how the funds are used. Furthermore this would help us to get in contact with experts in the fields of environmental protection, agriculture, cultural heritage, social development, Byzantine history and architecture and possibly other areas. We have talked to a number of UK based NGOs and we will hopefully find a way to cooperate – bear in mind though, our initiative is very new and everything takes time. In the mean time we carry on with our work; slowly-slowly, the Bedouin way.

Upcoming Event

April 28. 2010 - mt. Sinai Moon Rise

The program starts as a typical mountain trek in a close-by wadi, departing as a group from the Mountains Tours Office (Sheikh Mousa), St. Catherine's, at 3 PM. It is an easy and short - 30 to 50 minutes - walk, but will give you a very good idea of the high mountain wadi system and the mountain orchards. From the top of the saddle after the village the view down on Wadi Itlah running towards distant lowlands is very dramatic. Instead of walking down in the wadi, however, you will take a small path branching off the main route and enter a secluded granite basin; El Freish. In the basin there is a garden which is probably more than a 1000 years old, built on ancient Byzantine traditions. It is a very good example of the unique high mountain orchard farming tradition of the Jabaleya Bedouin. The place has been gently upgraded to accommodate visitors but it retained its original character and functionality. The owner and his family grow a large selection of fruits and vegetables, organically as in the past, to supplement their own needs. A traditional Bedouin meal, accompanied with fresh bread made on the fire, will be prepared and served on big trays and eaten together. The Bedouin have various ceremonies when they gather to eat and pray together; tahawa is a blessing ceremony, similar to fuela, but without meat. After the meal you can explore the basin and watch the setting sun colour the mountains around you. There are several look-out points with small sitting areas and old ruins from where you can see the peak of Mt. Sinai (Jebel Musa) on one side over the rim of the basin, and the wadis below on the other side with the Chapel of St. John Climacos in the distance. After the sun set the moon will start to rise, but since the basin is surrounded by high ranges, there will be a short period of darkness. We will gather around the fires and wait for the moon to appear. The moon-lit basin is a stunning sight and the quite party, with traditional Bedouin music, will carry on into the night. We are also expecting people to bring their own instruments and either join the other musicians or make their own little circles. Early return to the village where people have the choice to stay on in St. Catherine's or go back to the coast.

See images of the snow

2009, Eternal Egypt

There was a rare event on the 1st of March, 2009 - the town of St. Catherine's and the mountains were covered with a thick blanket of snow. We were lucky to capture scenes of this event and some of the work was used in a new Egyptian magazine called Eternal Egypt. The full honorarium was offered for the development of gardens, which went to Ramadan and Farhan to improve their places. (See below under ‘Projects’.) We were very happy and grateful for the snow since it saved many of the orchards - and this way it even helped twice.

Eternal Egypt is out now; find it at news agencies, bookshops and hotels throughout Egypt, or contact the publisher CULTNAT.

November 2009 - BG Egypt Energy Challenge Event

We have provided El Freish garden for a group of 200 people from the oil and gas sector to hold their annual corporate event. Although the mountain gardens are better appreciated in smaller groups it proved that our local Bedouin team can deal with bigger tasks. We provided food and drinks for the day while the organizers were dealing with the actual program. Everything went very well and people had a great time. Although the garden did not benefit directly from this event from the organization involved, the participants raised 1542 LE on the spot for an irrigation system and to deepen the well. The later, postponed until this spring, is not necessary anymore since there were heavy rains last winter. The money instead will be used to repair facilities broken by unusually strong winds recently and fixing the stone wall of the garden.

Abu Jidda is a secret garden in the high mountains, located close to the main wadi and other gardens, but hidden in a small basin. The rich red soil from the volcanic intrusion that cuts through the garden is unique in the area, and a great variety of fruits are grown, including almonds, apricots, apple, pear and fig. The owner, Farhan Mohammed, wanted to finish the room his father started and make some small developments, but since his three sons are still young, he couldn't do it with them, and neither from own financial resources. Baraka Gardens started supporting Farhan in 2007 - in fact, this is the first garden we were involved with. Now the room is complete, a number of sitting areas have been added and there is also a new look-out point/relaxing area on the edge of the basin looking down on the valley below. A shady open summer room, an arisha, will be finished very soon. The ancient well has been cleaned and covered with timber. A simple bathroom and composting toilet need to be built and Farhan can start receiving visitors. Estimated cost: 3500 LE.

Ramadan's Garden

Ramadan's Garden is located close to the town of St. Katherine, right below Egypt's highest mountain, Mt. Katherina, and overlooking Egypt's holiest, Mt. Sinai. He has been providing accommodation for visitors for many years in his garden, under the stars, in an open Bedouin tent or in simple stone huts. There are also toilets and washing facilities in the garden. Ramadan and his large extended family is usually found in the big communal tent, where he plays the traditional Bedouin instruments, the simsimiya. He also breeds hyraxes, a furry rabbit-like animal. While he still receives visitors, the trekking groups who used to camp in the garden are rare - these days mostly smaller groups, families, couples or individuals pass by on their trip to Mt. Sinai, who need better facilities than hard-core trekkers. With the support of Baraka Gardens one of his secluded stone huts, located above his garden and overlooking Mt. Sinai and the Monastery of Forty Martyrs, has been turned into a pleasant retreat. It can accommodate 5 or possibly 6 people, there are comfortable mattresses and bedding, a small sitting corner has been created in the room, and there are pleasant open sitting areas right around the hut. It is truly a unique alternative to staying in a hotel in town. An arisha - sun-shade from timber and small rock columns and covered with cane mats - needs to be built in front of the room. Estimated cost: 600 LE.

El Freish

Our main garden project and base camp is a model for other gardens; it already has sufficient facilities, although there is still many other things to do. The most important would be to make the garden wall goat-proof. We took of the ugly and dangerous barbed wire which was protecting the garden and would like to replace it with natural materials. Date palm leaves had been used in the past and this is a good solution. The dry stone walls have to be fixed anyhow and we could fence the garden at the same time. We raised money earlier to make an irrigation system and to deepen the well - the later is not necessary anymore since there were good rains last winter. The irrigation system is in place now (pictures on right: Mohamed Abu Aluan building the extensive system) and what was planned to be used for the well will instead be used for the garden wall. Cost is not estimated yet.