Sahara with Michael Palin is a BBC television sequence presented in four parts by a traveler and British comedian, Michael Palin. The series demonstrates journey of Michael through Sahara wasteland in which he meets various people at diverse places. The route of journey consists of territories like Western Sahara, Senegal, Mali, Morocco, Libya, Algeria, Tunisia, Niger, Mauritania and Gibraltar. The series consists of following four episodes:A line in the sand: A journey begins at Gibraltar which is few kilometers from Africa. To reach Sahara, it is essential that a person must travel over Atlas Mountains and Palin was able to complete it successfully. Michael Palin visits Berber village, in the hills near Marrakesh where he experiences a traditional dance.Before passing through the high mountains, he surpasses Ait Benhaddou, a historic town utilized as a prime location for some movies.
Eventually, after reaching Sahara, Michael visits refugee camp of people who travelled from Western region of Sahara.
Destination Timbuktu: This documentary starts with Michael crossing the Senegal River and then entering into Saint-Louis town of Senegal. He visits Dakar and enjoys the wrestling match which is usually conducted late-night. Michael visits Tirellik town located on the Bandiagara, where Dogon people reside. Dogons are group of people who isolated themselves from entire world and they have distinct culture as well as unique customs. During his stay with Dogons, Michael eats a food in 56 degree location and looks a funeral dance which is a real unique experience for him.
Absolute Desert: This part opens with appearance of Imam of popular mosque structured out of mud. Michael Palin takes stopover at an oasis, where camels are employed to remove water using a long rope and large bucket from deep well. In the evening, Michael enjoys camel caravan and talks with came drivers while eating food with them. As drivers are not able to speak French or English language, the discussion ends up with teaching each other their respective native languages. After spending five days in the camel caravan, Michael Palin leaves the place and rest of the thing is explained in the next part of documentary.
Dire Straits: The episode begins with Michael surmounting the border of Niger, in order to reach Algeria, a completely desert area only possessing sand. He boards an Algerian plane after that and flies for Hassi-Messaoud, which is a refining and an oil extraction town. From there the trip shifts to Tunisia, where he becomes part of an octopus fishing crew and visits the family which lives in the caves. Last two days of journey are spent by Michael at Ceuta, where he talks with woman regarding the immigrants who died while trying to shift from ‘dire straits’ to ‘promised land’.
