Morocco in Two Weeks

This was the biggest trip I have yet to take around Morocco. My dear friend Jesselyn brought Liz, another Peace Corps Volunteer, with her from Togo. The arrived in Casablanca and took the train down to Ben Guerir and from there came to see my town, Kelaat Sraghna. After a few days in Kelaa and several giant meals with Maryam and my various hospitable neighbors, we went on to Marrakech. I knew they would love Marrakech and we had a blast. By now I know the city well enough to be able to touch on the highlights and find my way around with a minimal amount of being lost.

We had a couple chilly nights (sleeping on the roof terrace of a hotel to save money) and it was quite a shock to Jess and Liz after their year and a half in sweltering Togo. Then we climbed up to Imlil (in a grand taxi) where the altitude made it much colder and we could see snow. We had planned to climb Toubkal, but after surveying our (lack of) gear and finding out the actual budget needed, we decided to content ourselves with day hiking. Imlil is a beautiful town and the trails leading off from there are all spectacular.

We spent a day regrouping and doing laundry back in Kelaa before heading up and over the Atlas through Ouarzazate and on to Kelaat M’Gouna. The other Kelaa is the site of my friend Cara, who was in my training group back in September 2005. Her Kelaa has a Rose Festival every May and it was amazing, though we arrived too late in the day to see the parade with the Rose Queen. There were all sorts of local music groups, lots of traditional crafts and rugs on sale as well as a general carnival sort of atmosphere. The town was packed and Cara said she hardly recognized it. Her students had a tent displayng photos they had taken in her photography classes. Jess, Liz and I were invited to yet another host family’s home for lunch and the next day some of Cara’s friends offered to drive us up to the Boulmane Dades Gorges for the afternoon.

Next was Merzouga, a small town way our in the desert. We got there in the early afternoon and negotiated for a camel ride out into the desert and a night in some Berber tents. There weren’t many tourists yet, I heard June is high tourist season. So we had the sand dunes mostly to ourselves. I was happy the Sahara heat hadn’t gotten to its full potential yet, tough Jess and Liz were probably cold.

After a hike up the largest dune to watch the sunset and look over at Algeria we had a tajine for dinner, admired the stars and slept for a bit before waking up for sunrise. Jess isn’t a big morning person, but even she beat me out of the tent in the morning to walk out in the gray light to wait for the first rays to peek up over Algeria.

Then it was back on the road, though only as far as Errachidia. I hadn’t been back since Leide Kbir in January 2006 when I went with Maryam and her husband to visit their families. Jess, Liz and I stayed with Maryam’s family and had a wonderful evening with them, though we were exhausted. I was so happy to see Maryam’s family again but somehow was so tired that I forgot to take any photos.

Then next morning we got back on the road and after a nine hour bus ride arrived in Fez. It was a long, though scenic, nine hours and we were so glad to finally get to Fez. I don’t know the city too well, and my Grandma recently sent me the cover story from the New York Times Travel Section about Fez, which suggested that guides would be necessary. Luckily, if you know some Arabic and aren’t afraid to ask shopkeepers, it’s pretty easy to find your way around the city. Our copy of the Rough Guide to Morocco helped too.

Like they say, Fez is a mysterious and often confusing place. It’s a beautiful city but after three days we were overwhelmed and hopped on the train to Rabat. I always enjoy Rabat because it’s so calm and nobody there seems to care that I’m a foreigner. I never thought I’d enjoy being ignored so much. People don’t even look twice.

Besides the calm people, Rabat has a beautiful view over the ocean, a friendly and still very old-fashioned market, and beautiful gardens. I can’t believe I’ve never visited the Chellah before and can’t wait to go back. The Chellah was an old city used by the Romans and later by Moulay Idriss before being abandoned in 1154. The ruins are mostly overgrown and currently full of nesting storks and egrets. It was a perfect closing to our mad race around Morocco. In the afternoon Jess and Liz took the train back to the airport in Casablanca for their night flight to Egypt and the second half of their adventure.

---

---