Blogs from Souss-Massa-Draâ, Morocco, Africa - page 2

The camel never sees his own hump but that of his brother’s is always in his eyes ~ Moroccan Proverb HE SAID... Today we were travelling south from Zagora to a Sahara Desert Camp (via Tamegroute). We checked-out of our spacious hotel (Le Tinsouline) at 9am, had a cheesy photo stop at the replica Timbuktu, 52 Days sign, checked out the indigo head scarves worn by Berber men as protection against wind-borne sand and embarked on a walking tour of Zagora’s palm groves. By the time we’d finished it was mid-morning, so we jumped into the minibus and drove a short distance southeast to the dusty village of Tamegroute. The peaceful Nasiriyya Zawiya complex was our first port of call. We wandered the quiet internal courtyard with its distinctive green tiles and large wooden doors before ... read more

For he who builds his kasbah out of halva; beware the nibblers ~ Moroccan Proverb HE SAID... Today we were travelling southeast from the High Atlas to Ait Benhaddou. We trekked out of Aroumd (a remote hilltop village in the foothills of the High Atlas Mountains) earlier in the day, jumped into a minibus in the bustling village of Imlil and started a slow winding descent out of the mountains. We spent some time in the lively market village of Asni along the way, and we also relaxed on the sunny terrace of a roadside servo with a cafe nous nous (a local cafe latte). We were travelling southeast to Ait Benhaddou on the edge of the Sahara – a six hour journey by road – and it was midday already! We sped through lowlands on ... read more

I wouldn’t be having the full tourist experience in Morocco if I didn’t ride a camel, I thought. Up at the top of the mountain where the original city of Agadir was located before a massive earthquake levelled it in 1960, there were young Berber men offering camel rides to visitors. Not the authentic riding-through-the-bleached-sand-dunes-of-the-desert kind of camel ride; but the short-walk-down-the-asphalt-road-and-then-back-up-again kind of camel ride. Tourist camel ride extraordinaire. No complaints though. Believe me, I felt the history when that camel stood up. Being near to that huge animal with big, blue eyes and then perched up high upon his back - and I mean, wa-a-a-ay up high on his back - felt sensational! I immediately imagined what it would be like to travel extreme distances in this way. It’s not a smooth ride, but ... read more

You know more of a road by having travelled it than by all the conjectures and descriptions in the world- William Hazlitt We had a much better start to the day this morning! There was sufficient hot water for me to shower, and I managed not to flood the bathroom this time. The breakfast was much improved, as was dinner last night. Last night we had a cooked Moroccan salad (rice and assorted veggies), bread, olives, and a quite tasty vegetarian couscous, all washed down with a small bottle of rosé. Plus fresh fruit salad for dessert. I was very stuffed. Breakfast was that same tasty pancakey pastry, with apricot jam, a boiled egg, really nice baguette, yogurt, and good strong coffee. We headed off about 9 am, for a short drive to a rose product ... read more

I am typing this in our room at the Ksar Kaissar hotel near M’Goun in the Rose Valley. We switched from our crappy small room to a crappy larger room. We passed thousands of kasbahs today (extended family homes) and so we made a joke with our fellow travellers about this subpar hotel and that surely, in this land of 1000 kasbahs, we couldn’t find a better place to stay. Of all the kasbahs in all the world, we had to stay in this one! Anyway, despite the crappy hotel, we have had a great last few days. After we left Midelt we had a fairly long travel day working our way to our desert camp in the Sahara. We continued travelling through the Mid-Atlas mountains, heading to the desert. We went through hilly terrain where ... read more