Blogs from Morocco, Africa - page 11

We've been on the road for several days, have camped in moon scapes equally barren and cold and seen the snow high in the Atlas mountains blush pink in the early morning glow. Numbed to the incessant bartering ive flead to the heights of a Berber village in the cliffs above Toudra gorge and had the best mint tea ever at the side of the road with Mahommed and Mahommed. Sitting on the throne of movie sets I've pretended to rule the world, but sharing tea with the most humble has humbled me and truly makes me appreciate my privileged place in the world There have been near misses with the truck as lorries barrel ahead over our side of the white line and force us off the road (a rule interpreted very differently here in ... read more

My first windsurf in Morocco was the best windsurf session I ever experienced, I went (normal) surfing for the first time that morning and the wind had been building the entire time. It really kicked in at 3 pm, I had an instructor come out with me - the waves were at least 2 m and a rather steep learning curve to say the least! I spent the next day surfing and headed back to Marrakech that evening as the forecast was pants for the next week. Plus, I wanted to go to the desert... I had an allergic reaction to some yet unknown substance with swollen lips, eyes etc after Essaouira, but quickly had it diagnosed and sorted in Marrakech. Would not recommend it! A crazy bus ride took us (Me, Mitch, Nadia & Liam) ... read more

So I am not sure if I said this before, but the whole time I have been here my program director, Madiha, has been pregnant. We got an email at the very end of the break that the baby had finally arrived! This was especially exciting because we have pretty much been on the edges of our seats trying to guess the gender...turns out she is a girl! Her name is Safiya and she is TINY. Aliya, her two year old sister is fascinated but also quite jealous (as to be expected). There was a party for her birth the other day, as is customary to Moroccan culture once the baby is about ten days old. We had amazing food, pastilla made of almonds, vegetable tartes, artichoke and cheese wraps, and then piles and piles of ... read more

Finally here in just about 1 piece...Train to Brussels, bus to Charleroi, Ryanair to Fes..pouring rain..... and cold not at all what was expected of Africa...I know, I know, I know...it is not monolithic...First contact with overland truck is not encouraging, they are in the medina and we cannot find them or so they say......we must find a place for the night. I feel like Joseph in Bethlehem, dragging my donkey with pregnant Mary past closed doors in the dark, through the winding alleys of Fes. Finally a Riad! Of course the usual let's take advantage of the foreigners ensues..overcharging is rife in Morocco, my recommendation always book accomodation online...We end up dragging our bags back down the stairs as the room we are given for 70 euros has 1 bed and a crib....they are insistent ... read more

Oh and did I mention that the morning after our first bush camping experience we had to dig the truck out? If all this seems a bit and out of order it's because one entry has been lost... Experienced blogger that I am Hope this helps.... First stop Fes then on to Rabat to meet the truck, then to Volubilis the capital city of Rome during its occupation of Moroccan territory... Camp for the night and while the others try to get their visas for Mauratania, Ghana etc (we already have ours) sis and I visit Casablanca then back to Fes for 2 days.... read more

Morocco is spectacular! Its been one week already and I can't think of where to start - that means it's been amazing :) So I started off in a hostel called Marrakech rouge which is right next to the old citys main market, D'jemma El Fna. Its been a great place to get my bearings with loads of other travellers passing through, so I guess now I'm a little more clued up on how best to travel here too. To sum up the first week: Sun-Wednesday: I explored Marrakech and took some pictures, got sick then better again (standard tummy troubles) and missed out on a trip to Essaouira because of that. It was great though with plenty of fascinating cultural experiences in between. Thurs-Friday: Finally went to Essaouira! Much less full-on than Marrakech with a ... read more