From South to North via Marrakech

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Exploring the South

Highlights of our tour of the south of the High Atlas was a shortish stay at Tafraoute where we used the bike to visit some strange painted rocks out of town. This proved to be our most southerly stop and we then started our slow journey north to the ferry.

We meant to skirt Agadir, rebuilt after the deverstating earthquake in 1962, but drove straight through the centre and up the coast. On to Essaouria a lovely resort of some age having been founded by the Phoenicians or earlier. A gull knocked over Lesley's wine glass while we were having a fish lunch as it dived for her food. We ate the food but left the plates early to move from the ogling gulls (and cats).

Marrakech

This city was a different type of experience from the south with a lot of hasseling and demands for money from taxi driver and touts. But we did meet a Servas couple for a cup of tea who explained a lot of how Morocco works. Judy works in an international school for the rich of the country. Unfortunately we missed by a day meeting a friend of son David who has just moved from Brighton to the city with his family. Their email was only received when we got a day's drive away. A real shame.

Ifrane, just north of Azrou, in the Middle Atlas was a strange Moroccan town looking just like a provincial town in France, a really smart place with two storey houses all finished and no dust about. The campsite was really clean and paved all over set on the slope of a hill.

And then it was a slow run to Tangier where we caught the ferry to Tarifa.

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