Blogs from Morocco, Africa - page 21

The day dawns bright but cold, like fleece cold......we set off south east towards Skoura. This is a five hour drive, first across the plain and then up into the High Atlas. All does not go according to plan. The plain is dotted with miles of olive tree plantations. In the distance the mountains can be seen, the highest peak rising to around 10,000 feet. Morocco has the third highest peak in Africa. All along the route are hundreds of Gendarmerie Royale. The King is on the move today, apparently. He is either going to visit his people somewhere, which he often does, or else he is off hunting as he likes to shoot gazelle and sangliers. Anyway, all the senior brass are out as well, resplendent in their uniforms and gaudy braid. Maybe he will ... read more

Tafraout, Anti Atlas, Morocco December 2018 – January 2019 “You are the sky. Everything else – it’s just the weather.” Pema Chödrön “Everywhere you go, always take the weather with you.” Neil Finn, Crowded House “Loneliness is the human condition.. that.. tunnels into you .. and.. allows your soul room to grow.” Janet Fitch “I used to think the worst thing in life was to end up all alone. It’s not. The worst thing in life is ending up with people who make you feel all alone.” Robin Williams Tafraout (30.47028 -8.87695) is a small regional centre in Tiznit Province, Souss-Massa region of Morocco, in the central part of the Anti-Atlas mountains. It is 386 km south of Marrakesh. The population is around 6,000. It's off the main tourist route but is be... read more

The Blue City of Morocco is truly one of the most interesting sites in Morocco. This is for several reasons. First of all, as the pictures will show you, the city is really Blue. The labyrinth that makes up the old city (created in the 1400s) is painted in blue. Apparently the color comes from the Jewish communities who settled there after being expelled from Spain. As for the meaning of the color several theories exist, including it's being a spiritual reminder of heaven and earth or keeping the mosquitoes away (there were no mosquitoes in sight). Second, the city is in the Northwest part of the country and as such is this incredibly mixture of Arabic, Spanish, French and Berber communities. Here my terrible Spanish was just as useful as my terrible French. This city ... read more

Day 25: Went for a nap as soon as I sat on the plane. Woke up still at the gate. Missed connection flight at Cairo. Stood waiting for the bus to the hotel (5 minutes walk away) longer than the transit flight itself. Swish hotel nevertheless with lunch included. Another delay upon departure with EgyptAir, of course (only an hour this time) Casablanca taxi driver loved 60km/hr on motorway while simultaneously taking calls at 1am. Day 26: Casablanca has a few highlights, but seemingly was renovating every public space. Massive mosque on the coast. Old medinas are cool. Love the tram. Grateful for four years of mediocre focus in French. However, continue to hybridise french and the more-recently learned spanish. Some lavish haircuts amongst the young lads here. Day 27: Booked another night, purely to watch a ... read more

It is 6.36am. The very first call to prayer started some time ago. I heard it from my bed. The calling woke me and I had no idea where I was / were I am. Then I realised, not through memory but through touch - the bed, unfamiliar, hard, short in length, wide, crisp, in a Riad, in the Medina, in Marrakesh. I get up straight away to hear the callings to prayer that Elias Canetti wrote of when he lived in Marrakesh. On the rooftop veranda of the Riad, I find that I am surrounded on all 4 sides by the amplified call to morning prayer. In my complete ignorance, I follow the sounds from different calls from the minarets across the city by rushing around the roof in complete darkness, scattering cats ahead of ... read more