If at noon the king declares it is night, behold the stars… ~ Moroccan Proverb HE SAID... Today we were travelling northeast from Casablanca to Rabat. We were catching a morning train to Rabat, so we headed down to the hotel lobby for an early breakfast. Breakfast was a reasonably simple affair, but enjoyable all the same. We started with freshly squeezed orange juice and mint tea, then grazed on baguettes, boiled eggs, croissants and jam. We organised our packs in our room, then loaded them into a minibus and made our way to Casa Voyageurs, one of Casablanca’s three main train stations. The station was empty, so we breezed through the various ticket collectors and settled into our oven-like carriage. We eased out of the station at 9:45am, and stared silently at the decrepit and ... read more

Believe what you see and lay aside what you hear… ~ Moroccan Proverb HE SAID... Today we were travelling from London to Casablanca. We left Romany’s house in West Harrow (London) around 2:30pm and caught an Uber to Heathrow Airport (Terminal 4). We settled at Caffe Nero and used our remaining currency to buy coffees, smoothies and a lemon sparkling tea. We sat and chatted with Romany, Kirsten and Jared until 4:45pm, then made our way through security. Ren got caught in a backlog of passengers who needed their bags checked, and while we waited at the security counter our gate lounge opened. It seemed an interminable wait before Ren’s bag was even opened, and the only mistake she had made was to leave her iPad in the bag (rather than take it out). When she ... read more

HE SAID... The lead up to this adventure had been different to our other trips. For a start, we’d managed to tie up our work commitments well before we left, which is a rarity for us. It allowed us time to think and plan – so much so that we organised our packs about a week out from leaving. This wasn’t entirely ideal, as I kept looking at my pack at the airport and couldn’t entirely remember what was in it. I also found some time to record one of four songs for the son of an old friend in the week before we left. He asked if I could help with the backing tracks of an EP he was putting together, and I jumped at the chance. I was grateful for a few free days ... read more

HE SAID... Since returning to Australia, people have asked how I found travelling in Eastern Europe. I always tell them I loved the place, and that I would return at the drop of a hat. An old engineer was bemused by my affection for Romania. He informed me with significant aplomb that he had compiled a list of ten countries where he had no desire or inkling to travel, and Romania was one of them. I looked at him in disbelief and refused to enquire as to the other nine countries, despite sensing his desperate need to share them. I changed the subject and quietly slipped away from his tedious chatter. We didn’t spend a lot of time in Hungary, as most of our travels were through Romania and Bulgaria, but I can comfortably say I ... read more

HE SAID... Today we were travelling north from Gorno Draglishte to Sofia (via Rila Monastery). We woke reasonably late following the feast and free flowing wine the night before. After gathering ourselves and our packs, we headed down to our homestay family’s small dining room for breakfast, where we enjoyed scrambled eggs, toast, mekitsi (fried dough), local jam and peppermint tea. After bidding farewell to our incredibly affable hosts, we left the homestay and headed northwards with Boris the bus driver at the wheel. We were making our way to the Rila Mountains, where we were visiting the Rila Monastery. The monastery is located in a forested valley deep within the Rila mountain range, and when we arrived mid-morning, the air was brisk and mist shrouded the surrounding hills. While the building and surrounding structures were ... read more