http://www.travelblog.org/Bloggers/fellsadventures/ Travel adventures in journals and photos from fellsadventures en-us Sun, 03 Jan 2010 19:11:52 +0000 Sun, 03 Jan 2010 19:11:52 +0000 I am happy to be safely tucked into the corner of our Riad tonight as it is so noisy. I am more contented in some of the smaller areas that we have travelled and there are too many people here in Marrakech for my liking. Our guide today said that half of the people in Morocco are under the age of 25 which blows my mind a little. Clearly it is going to create a HUGE job shortage and it is easy http://www.travelblog.org/Africa/Morocco/Marrakech-Tensift-El-Haouz/Marrakech/blog-339013.html We added pictures to There would be sand... if you are interested. And on to the blogWe were back on the road today for another four hour drive but with stops it took more like nine. We stopped for a few hours to get some real coffee... It is the small blessings that we enjoy Besides I am sure that the coffee at the desert hotel is the same one that had me kissing the ceramic thrown. We du http://www.travelblog.org/Africa/blog-338696.html We appologize that we haven't written for the last few days. Mom and I have both been pretty sick and no easy way to blog. My seven year record of no puking flew out the window yesterday... hopefully that means I will be good for another seven yearsWe ventured off into the high dunes in Merzouga for a trek with the camels and we had a great time. We watched the sun set as we slowly made our w http://www.travelblog.org/Africa/Morocco/Mekn-s-Tafilalet/Merzouga/blog-338375.html Oh the tearsToday was our last day working in the Kasbah and how do bonds like that get established so quickly We were only with these woman for such a short time and they have left a lasting impact on us both. I guess when there are no words all that is left is character and heart. These woman have it in spades. They kept making hand motions to us that was something similar to don't get on http://www.travelblog.org/Africa/Morocco/Mekn-s-Tafilalet/Erfoud/blog-337445.html So what does one say about today Well today we went back out to Hanaboo Kasbah and mom worked with Hadisha and I went out to the high school to hand out 200 more toothbrushes. Yet again we did not have enough we were 34 short and I will have get more and go back tomorrow. Going to the school was much more organized than when we went to the other Kasbah Aziz says that the kids are afraid of http://www.travelblog.org/Africa/Morocco/Mekn-s-Tafilalet/Erfoud/blog-337091.html Today we went to the Hanaboo Kasbah which is 13km away from Erfoud. We were welcomed in by the ladies who seemed to be a little shy in the beginning but it didn't take them long to warm up to us. The children only had a moment to be skeptical of us and then I think that their curiosity of us two white women took over. The woman who we saw today look to be early to mid twenties and it is too h http://www.travelblog.org/Africa/Morocco/Mekn-s-Tafilalet/Erfoud/blog-336692.html The relaxing atmosphere of Erfoud and the Dadani's Cafeappartment caught up with us last night and we slept so good We may have even slept in a little...We went to one of the Kasbah's today and we were overwhelmed by the children. We brought 80 toothbrushes with toothpaste and we didn't have enough for them all. We did what we could to do some teaching about oral hiegene but the kids were so http://www.travelblog.org/Africa/Morocco/Mekn-s-Tafilalet/Erfoud/blog-336243.html This morning we were up early again and we seem to be having trouble sleeping through the night. The long day in the car was difficult at times because we were so tired and the views can be so unexpected and spectacular that we were afraid to close our eyes. We stayed at the Hotel de Jardin last night and were treated very well by all the staff. They all try to use a combination of English and http://www.travelblog.org/Africa/Morocco/Mekn-s-Tafilalet/Erfoud/blog-335917.html Here we go again trying to type English on a French keyboardThis morning we woke up early drove through busy Marrakech and were treated by the beautiful Atlas mountains. There is really no way to describe what an incredible experience it was but I will try and do it some justice thank goodness for the camera. The mountain ranges leave you breathless and the view is ever changing. The cray http://www.travelblog.org/Africa/Morocco/Souss-Massa-Dra-/Ouarzazate/blog-335543.html After running on only few hours of sleep for forty some odd hours straight caffine rapidly swelling feet a plane with a broken wing only a slight exaggeration and three hours worth of driving we have arrived safely here in Essaouira. The stop in Casablanca had us slightly worried as they kicked us off of the plane and didn't give us any instructions on where to go... too bad we can't read A http://www.travelblog.org/Africa/Morocco/blog-334766.html We appologize that we haven't had the time to blog over the last week we have been spending the majority of our time laying on the beach and swimming in the large pool. Here is a summary of the things that we have done since we last blogged. Mom and I took a Lao cooking class in which we honed our mad springroll making skills. We met some interesting travellers from the UK all but one of whi http://www.travelblog.org/Asia/Thailand/South-West-Thailand/Phuket/blog-161253.html We arrived back in at the 3 Nagas just before lunch today and the airconditioned rooms were quickly put to work. Yesterday we rode the elephants for an hour in the morning. They are amazing animals and save for the sound of their ears flapping against their bodies they make no noise as they walk through the trees. Mom's fear of heights had here white knuckling the saddle bench the whole way http://www.travelblog.org/Asia/Laos/West/Luang-Prabang/blog-159398.html Yesterday we left Cambodia and I for one am already missing it like crazy already. I just found a note from one of the kids in my bag and nearly burst into tears mom says big surprise.... Luang Prabang is like a breath of fresh air and the clean beds with real Lao silk blankets not beach towels as they were in Cambodia are a much welcome change. We all slept much better last night without th http://www.travelblog.org/Asia/Laos/West/Luang-Prabang/blog-158737.html Today we ventured away from our volunteering for the day. It is one of many holidays here this weekend and so we had the day off today. Savath SaVat took us to three of the local temples so that we could see them up close instead of from the distance of the orphanage. The temples blew us away by the sheer magnitude and the intricate carvings in every stone. The ruins are often scattered for a http://www.travelblog.org/Asia/Cambodia/North/Angkor/blog-157965.html this morning we were able to go on a water filter delivery with Trailblazer What a ride it was only about 25k's to the village but took about hour and a half to get there. The farms that we past had cattle that we so skinny that weren't sure how they could stand up. We felt like the 1st family as people were yelling hello's and were so excited to see us. Our driver says it was because they don http://www.travelblog.org/Asia/Cambodia/North/Angkor/blog-157695.html We have decided that mom's severe fear of frogs is what attracts them to most every restaurant that we have eaten at so far this week. If frogs don't effect your appetite then the cats and dogs that roam free in the restaurants shouldn't either. The rest of the family doesn't seem to mind the frogs however we try to keep mom blissfully unaware of their presence. In spite of these things the http://www.travelblog.org/Asia/Cambodia/North/Siem-Reap/blog-157379.html Todays blog is dedicated solely to our eating experience. We have been both tantilized and terrified by the food so far. There is something about walking through the Russian meat market on a hot day that turns the weak hearted away from the meat. It could also be the fact that we have seen all sorts of live soontobedead pigs being toted around on the back of skooters. Or the bits of chicken t http://www.travelblog.org/Asia/Cambodia/North/Siem-Reap/blog-156720.html Last night we were welcomed to Cambodia by Sam our connection to Globalteer and our volunteering experience. We didn't really know what to expect from our stay here but today we were all blown away. We started the day with a program called Trailblazers www.thetrailblazerfoundation.org. This program works to supply the local villages with clean drinking water. The filters are a relatively easy http://www.travelblog.org/Asia/Cambodia/North/Angkor/blog-156419.html We have only been in Hoi An for about a day and a half and we are sad to be leaving tomorrow. We are wishing that we had given ourselves one more day to fit in some tours but instead we have been drawn in by the shopping even the boys have joined in on the fun and they don't seem to be complaining about the long days in the market. There has to be more than one hundred tailor's shops in this s http://www.travelblog.org/Asia/Vietnam/South-Central-Coast/Hoi-An/blog-155738.html Today Thanh Tang our tour guide took us to a small weekly market. The drive took over three hours but the scenery continues to take our breath away. Every time you turn a corner which is often the whole country side looks differently. We have taken about a hundred pictures and I still don't think that we could adequately capture the sights or the smells.It is difficult to describe what tr http://www.travelblog.org/Asia/Vietnam/Northwest/Sapa/blog-154676.html