As the immense journey unfolds, the Sahara exposes not just extremes of temperature and a vast emptiness of endless sand dunes, but a diverse range of landscapes, including lakes, waterfalls, crocodile-infested rivers and extraordinary mountain ranges. There are also a wide variety of cultures and a long record of civilization, trade, commerce and conquest stretching from the ancient Egyptians to the oil-rich Islamic republics of today. There is no easy way to cross the Sahara, and Michael encounters the same problems that have plagued travelers for centuries.