Today I decided not to run or walk in the dunes and to take a complete rest day instead. It can never harm to have a rest day during the tapering down period. I still went to the sauna though, to boost my heat acclimation.
The sauna was the same temperature as yesterday, so it stayed between 81C (177.8F) and 86C (186.8F). I think that kind of temperature range is perfect for heat acclimation. You can stay in the sauna for some time but yet it is still very hot. Much hotter and it is hard to remain in the sauna for long periods.
I stayed in the sauna for 45 minutes in total, but I left briefly at 30, 35 and 40 minutes in order to douse myself with cold water in the shower. I would have liked to have stayed in the sauna the full 45 minutes without leaving, but it felt like that would have been a struggle. I may try that tomorrow instead.
After finishing with the sauna I decided to try out the jacuzzi. It seemed like the perfect way to wind down and loosen up all my muscles. The staff set the temperature of the jacuzzi at 37C (98.6F) and then left. Shortly after they left the power went off briefly and the jacuzzi cut out. When it came back on the jacuzzi was still not coming on, so I had to turn it on myself. Unfortunately I couldn't seem to figure out how to set the temperature and whatever I set it to, it kept changing to 39C (102.2F) several seconds later. That was slightly hotter than I wanted but as the French say "tant pis". After 25 minutes I left the jacuzzi, showered, dressed and prepared to walk home.
The door of the spa is normally always wide open so I found it strange that it was closed. As I opened it and walked outside I realised why it had been closed. There was a big sandstorm brewing. I thought for a second about waiting it out as I didn't have any goggles or sunglasses and the walk home is around ten minutes, so I didn't fancy ten minutes of getting sand blown in my eyes. The storm looked like it was firmly dug in and not likely to subside anytime soon though, so I decided bugger it and left.
As I walked home I didn't get too much sand in my eyes, so was able to watch the storm in all its glory. The fine sand was lifted hundreds of metres into the sky, blackening out the remaining daylight and creating an ominous and foreboding scene. The smaller palm trees were being blown almost horizontal and several power lines had been blown down. When I arived back at my hotel the door (which is always wide open) was closed, and I had to use the huge metal door knocker. This added to the whole drama of the scene, and I was half expecting Igor to answer the door.
I decided to take a short video clip with my camera, which I can post once I get back to Zurich. I am not sure whether it will capture the scene in all its glory though, as photos and videos rarely do.
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