Marrakech

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(Very) early Saturday morning Nick, Carly and I touched down in the heat, colour and mayhem of Marrakech. We spent four blissful days there. Each morning started with the most delicious breakfast of fruit, freshly baked breads and fig and apricot jams on the roof of our riad (the wonderful Riad El Ouarda if anyone is planning a trip). Then followed hours of exploring the narrow, winding streets and the souks, jumping out of the way of donkeys and motorbikes, marvelling at snake charmers and all the colourful spices and potions on offer that filled the air and made our noses itch, and stopping to barter - or banter - with the stall owners ("just looking" we would say when they tried to entice us inside their shops, "that's ok, I'm just selling" they would grin). Carly demonstrated her excellent negotiation skills and we came away laden with handbags, pottery, cushions of every colour and - for Nick - 2 pairs of bright yellow slippers.

We made a quick stop at the infamous Nikki Beach - sort of like an open air nightclub with a pool in the middle of the dessert, kinda strange - but the highlight of our holiday was a day trip to the Atlas Mountains. Guided by French ex-rally car driver Gerard, we careered around the mountains taking in some breathtakingly beautiful scenery. As you can see from the pics, the landscape was constantly changing - moving in a matter of hours from lush green valleys to snow capped mountains to vast, dry desert. We also spent a few hours 4WD through the desert - while Nick encouraged Gerard with whoops of delight every time we sped up sand dunes and came crashing down the other side, Carly and I turned white in the back seat and held on for dear life as our heads hit the roof. Scary, but fun.

We had some fun nights out eating in the market stalls (aside from the roving hands) and at a swanky restaurant with a band that did a mean rendition of Tina Turner's "You're Simply The Best", got to completely relax in our riad on day beds with mint tea and G&T always on hand, and were touched by how welcoming and warm everyone was. Marrakech was a completely beautiful city - I can't wait to go back.

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