"A sky as pure as water bathed the stars and brought them out. And then night fell. Dune by dune the Sahara unfolded itself beneath the moon. Its light, falling on our foreheads with the pallor of a lamp which blends the softened forms, enveloped every object in its velvet sheen. Under our soundless footsteps the sand had the richness of a carpet. And a bare-headed we walked, freed of the cruel weight of the sun. In that dwelling place — the night . . ."

- Antoine de Saint-Exupéry