Field Trip to the Water Works

Last Saturday, our family joined some friends for a trip to see where our city water is filtered and put into the pipes that come to our house.  (As a side note, we have not had water come out of our pipes the entire 8 months we have been living here…until a couple weeks ago.)  We drove about an hour outside of town to a place where much of the water in the area collects.  The name for a river or dry river bed is ‘wadi’.  Wadis run all over our city, but are usually dry.  After many days of rain, you may find some wadis that still have water in them, but most of the water runs down into the sand, leaving the ground above dry, and the ground below wet.  The wadi we went to visit was definitely not dry.  Water flowed across a large shallow river about as wide as a football field.  There had not been enough rain to fill the wadi to a dangerous level yet, so motorcycles and vehicles were still crossing the water.  People were even passing by to cross the water as we stood and watched.  After much pleading from our children, we finally decided to cross the wadi ourselves on foot.  There was a small dam made of bricks that allowed us to cross without sinking in the mud, but it was still slippery, and there were multiple times I thought I was going to come crashing down into the water with William on my back.  The little kids didn’t fare as well as I did... both Hali and Noa ended up covered in muddy water from the waist down.  Everyone else managed to get across with only a little muddy water at the bottom of our pants and skirts. 

Crossing the Wadi

Hali getting muddy

After we saw where the water collected, we were able to get a small tour of the “waterworks” plant nearby.  We saw huge generators, huge filters and huge pipes that cleaned the water and sent it to the town we live in, just about 45 Km away.  It was surprising to see a place where simplicity and technology met.  We also saw a huge date tree, and some beautiful areas with trees that we hardly ever see

drawing a crowd in the village

John Hardy under a date tree

Us in front of a giant filter

in our city.  We were able to bring a small picnic and share it with those who gave us the tour.  The kids got to play in the trees and grass while the adults got to lay in the shade and just enjoy a beautiful day.  It was a trip well worth taking, and one we won’t quickly forget.

Here is our group, gathered under the shade of a tree.  Sadly, despite the fact that we wore our hats and put on sunscreen, almost everyone in our family arrived home with at least a little bit of sun burn.