Morocco - Pt 1

[Morocco]
It’s been a long time coming, but internet or computer shutdowns due to power failures & sorting out 2 months worth of mail + Tax when we got back have been frustrating to say the least. To sum up Morocco - Mint tea….. & Tiles!
[Casablanca]
We were met by our driver “Ahmed” & are driven to the Al Djeema mosque. The minaret is some 150ft tall with a green dome top, over looking the coastline. Non Muslims are not allowed inside, but we can see into the through huge carved wooden doors & arches. There are mosaic tiles everywhere, on the walls the floor the ceiling. It is amazing looking up inside the domes, the patterns are so intricate. Islam doesn’t allow the reproduction of images (or music) unless they are for religious purposes, so their creativity comes out in patterns in the carving & tile-work. We join Ahmed again & have a coffee - in a coffee shop!! I feel normal, even cosmopolitan! The café is filled with men sipping mint tea or ‘broken coffee’ (machiatto) in small glasses. I have “Nous Nous” which translated from Arabic means half & half. French is the second language & mine is more than a little rusty. The year 9 dialogue I remember so well ‘Se Phillipe LeDiu’ isn’t much help; I’m always going to be looking for him!
We found our way to the Medina (walled city - usually contains the oldest part with the Souq or market) We wander around looking at life - textiles, brooms, cans of food - all normal, plus the touristy stuff, lamps & carpets. Lots of men walking around in pointy hooded Jelebas, it’s cold & the long gown seems a practical outer layer. A classic olive-skinned Moroccan man sidles up to me; ‘you want guide?’ He has the thin face, greying 3 day growth & thick moustache, hooked nose and a black ribbed beanie. ‘Show you best places; you like Carpet ?’ Then when Helen had stopped to look at something & I’m alone, his voice dropped a tone & 2 decibels, ‘You want smoke, Hasheesh? Very good price!’
Our evening meal is of course cooked in a clay ‘Tagine.’ Yeaaaah! I had been waiting for this, we have chicken with green olives & preserved lemons, with vegetable couscous & the ever present flat bread rolls. It’s delicious! Lots of cinnamon, chilli & cumin.
The drive out is slow & crowded with morning traffic, we found it tolerable as everything was new to us. The freeways are in excellent condition & the van makes good time once we get out of the city. People obey road rules here, a novelty for us! The fields are very green- lots of rain; 6 years worth in 3 months Ahmed tells us.
[Rabat], the capitol.
Sterile political hub with Roman ruins & storks nesting on them. A city under gentrification! (That’s enough for Rabat) Then on to Fez,..... a city under gentrification. (Hang on; there’s a pattern emerging) The reason everyone comes to Fez is the Medina. It’s very old and is huge, there are over 960 streets 850K+ residents. Ahmed grew up here, & he still wouldn’t guide us through it. We do have a guide & need him to navigate the labyrinth of streets. People live in the Medinas, so everything local is there, butchers, bakers, tailors. The streets are narrow, crooked, lined with shops spilling outward. Painted doors offer a glimpse of local life inside - but the entrance corridors or stairs keep the interiors private. We find the Tannery - which is spectacular but smelly. We are led to the favoured carpet shop, perfumery etc. There are men working everywhere. I took a photo of a guy turning chess pieces on wood-lathe, run by a bow-string in right hand, and the carving tool in the left, but the cutting end was pinned to the guide with his foot! He quickly runs off a wood trinket, a gift for Helen. Donkeys & tiny 3 wheel trucks are the chief form for deliveries, nothing else can negotiate the traffic or stone streets. There is always a cat or two hanging around, they are well fed from scraps of meat /fish thrown out by the shop owners or restaurant diners. We found a butcher that specialized in camel meat, and the head is proudly hung on a hook outside the shop front.
[Erfoud]
The roman ruins of Voloubolis are stunning until i found out they were rebuilt in the 60's after an earthquake, the epicentre in Portugal! The mosaics are wonderful & excellent condition.
We made a detour to get over the Atlas mountains, the two closest passes were closed due to snow, so 3.5 hours are added to the trip to cross them. Over the top & down the other side, the fields are dusted with snow, and the red dry rocky land is dotted with flat roofed mud brick houses, green fields and goat herders. We brought Bread & cheese for lunch to avoid stopping for too long. The village streets seem to flood with people at lunch time - the kids go home for lunch; 12 - 2pm, the shops close & people go to prayer before eating. We are late into our hotel, after dark, and we are in the desert.
[Tizimi]
We are close to the dunes & Algeria. The next morning brings us to the Dunes D'or outpost where we start our camel trek. (From here it’s only 52 days to Tombuktu!) The dunes are a small pocket of sand in the desert, from the highest peak above the tents, we see the edges almost all the way around. The area surrounding the dunes is sandy/rocky, and herds of camels run free. There is the occasional flat roof mud brick house & numerous off road vehicle tracks crossing the desert. It should be hot!
Camel Trek. After an hour I had numb legs but we arrive at our permanent nomad's bivouac. Our camel driver is Hamed, a lovely kid, all of 20, who coins our favourite term when he doesn’t know the word. “Zhuush” When you make a Tagine, you ‘Zhuush’ up onions….. When you make the tea, you put the pot on the fire and….. “make like Zhuush, Zhuush, Zhuush!” It still amuses us even now! We climb the highest dune, & when sunset is over, the air cools quickly. Not that it was ever that warm! We slept under a pile of 6 blankets.
From here we head south to Marrakech & back over the Atlas, but this is enough for now; if you’re still reading.

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