Blogs from Todra Gorge, Meknès-Tafilalet, Morocco, Africa

Today was an ideal touring day after the hectic pace to date & a big day set for tomorrow. A late breakfast was followed by a gorgeous 2 hour hike in sunny temperate conditions & the outlook of the changing autumn colours along the Todra River. The valley is farmed by local Berbers with a huge diversity of fruit & produce & the clever use of irrigation channels for water during the dryer months & larger channels to prevent flooding after the winter melt. At the end of the walk the gorge narrows to little more than the width of the road alongside the river & flanked by enormous cliffs each side. AHfter today's food tasting of goat targine for lunch we went to a woman's carpet/ rug weaving/embroidery/knotting Cooperative supported by Intrepid. Absolutely beautiful hand ... read more

The anticipation of the Sahara experience made the uninteresting 5 hour drive to the end of the road frontier settlement of Merzouga worthwhile. A typical mud brick Berber hotel was the staging point for our stay at a Berber camp in the Sahara Desert. On the way we crossed from the middle to the anti Atlas at 1907 mtrs but mostly signified by a barren rocky outlook with occasional knarly juniper trees which can happily survive in the harsh environment. Further along the river valleys the scenery changed to lush date palm valleys. Most of our luggage was stored for the night at our staging point (Auberge Salama) with only basic necessities able to be carried via a one-hour camel ride to a Berber desert camp under the stars. Timed to arrive near sunset the slog ... read more

Ako som predpokladal majitel este spal. Tak som trosku na recepcii zakrical, pochvili sa majitel objavil, davam mu dohodnuty obnos a smer bus. Dnes je pondelok, takze je tu dost velky trh. Cela hlavna ulica je zapratana stankami, kde su rozne blbosti, jedlo. V bus kancli este nikto nebol. Tak cakanie na provizornom sedeni pred vchodom. Po par minutach konecne prichadza predajca listkov. Ukazujeme mi nech si sadnem, musi nazhavit pc. Cakam v mini cakarni. Ludia si uz zacinaju kupovat listky tak idem aj ja k okienku. Opat mi ukazuje nech si sadnem (ang nehovori). Presne na cas 8/30 prichadza lokalny bus. Predajca listkov na mna mava nech idem do busu. Aaa konecne chapem co myslel, listok sa kupuje v buse. V den odchodu sa v kancli kupit neda. Zvnutra je bus spinavy ale pohoda. Po ... read more

Travel is the most private of pleasures. There is no greater bore than the travel bore. We do not in the least want to hear what he has seen in Hong Kong. (Vita Sackville-West) Saying goodbye to the Sahara, we head North through Arfroud, then turning West we follow the High Atlas Mountains on our right. The country is very poor. A combination of brown and grey stone plains rise to meet the snow capped mountains. A stunning scene. Every now and then we come upon a palmeraie (oasis). Towns of pink and orange mud-walled houses surrounded by date palms. Amazing agriculture: olive trees, almonds, onions, lentils, faba beans and, of course, wheat. The underground water seeps from the mountains creating shallow, crystal clear streams which filter serenely through the sands. Each farmer has ... read more

Motorhome News from Morocco 2 22nd January 2012 Continuing our travels through Morocco by motorhome, with friends, Kit and Morag from Norfolk, UK, and Brian and Kathryn from Adelaide, Australia. The Saffron Trail - into the desert, and that red warning light is still trying to tell us something! We came to Tafraoute on an anti-clockwise route previously recommended by friends; from Tiznet on the Atlantic coast, climbing up the precipitous road into the Anti-Atlas Mountains. For the Imelda Marcos fans amongst you, Tafraoute is the place to come for shoes; the round toed Berber variety, plain or delicately embroidered, yellow for the gents and red for the ladies, all hand-made in the tiniest of dingy workshops on narrow alleys in the souk. I guess we take bread for granted back home. But it's a staple ... read more