Oct-2019

Having met Nick and Rosa in Hawaii earlier in the year, we noticed that we all share the same interest in traveling and have the same passive characters to simply enjoy life to the fullest. Compatibility when traveling with others is so important and can either make or break the adventure. Thankfully for us, we had a great time and talks are in progress for our next escapade.

Several gatherings later, and many destinations considered, we finally conclude Morocco as our destination of choice. As with every trip, the uncertainty with many issues add to the excitement. From Rosa and Anna trying to get time off, to Nick’s last minute kidney stone episode, we were destined to travel. This particular trip, as we wanted to explore many towns, and with over 22 hours of driving, we opted to book a tour company called Morocco Info Travel. One is always skeptical on who we select, but after numerous chats and countless emails, Moha was always responsive and eager to show us his beautiful country. With the length of stay and our major objectives, Moha laid out an itinerary that was filled to the limit and yet allowed time to relax.

We head to the airport, quick supper in the lounge and with time to spare, we get cleared on the flight. Truly, who has it better than us? After a smooth direct 7 hour flight we find ourselves in the baggage area at Casablanca airport looking for a driver with our names engraved on a placard. Okay, handwritten on a sheet of paper still made us feel important.

We meet Mustafa, known to all as Musti, and directs us to our SUV which will be our mode of transportation for the next 2000 kilometers. At first thought, this young hooded 25 year old boy seemed timid and inexperienced. We definitely were completely wrong as time went on, for his streets smarts, professionalism and obedience proved to be one of the reasons our trip was so successful.

Without missing a beat, we start by visiting the Hassan 2 mosque. A majestic mosque that can accommodate 25000 worshipers indoors and allow another 80000 on its gigantic esplanade. Beautiful architecture with its many archways and tile mosaics make for great pictures.

A quick walk around the Corniche area, where restaurants, cafés, and hotels are rimmed along the Atlantic ocean brought about our very first uncontrollable laugh. Nick’s request for an extra plate to share his mega meal ended being a plate the size of a drink coaster. With our fatigue and lack of sleep we all burst out with laughter.

 

 

Before arriving to our first Riad, we stop by the King’s Palace. A huge structure with doors plated in gold. Their tile work has the ability to hypnotize if starred at too long.

We continue towards the city and stop at a look out point with a clear view of Fes and the famous Bab Boujloud gates.

Not being familiar with Riads, we find out that they are old homes that have been renovated with a center courtyard and rooms around the perimeter. Many have an average of 4 floors with rooms at ground level where your privacy is somewhat compromised. With a quick heads or tails, Anna and I were the lucky ones staying on the 4th floor where Nick and Rosa had to whisper all night in fear of being heard.

 

 

As it is customary in Morocco, we’re greeted with warm green tea and home made cookies.

Despite being late, we venture out in the city center. Opened spaces lead to narrow alleys. Sea of heads rushing all around with your eyes trying to focus on one place which easily get distracted with sounds of scooters emitting fumes of gas and missing you within millimeters. Complete commotion and chaos.

 

 

After we find our way back through a complete maze, we retreat to our Riad Naila and chalk up our first day as a complete success. As quickly we fall asleep, we’re up with day 2 having a traditional Moroccan breakfast.

Musti, our punctual driver, signals us that we need to set out for Merzouga. The tip of the Sahara desert in which our camels are waiting. To break up the 7 hour drive, we stop briefly in Ifrane to see the Moroccan Swiss style town. A town that, for some reason, seems to not fit in with the rest of the landscape. The red clay homes with brown mountain sides give way to a lush green modern town.

We continue our way through the Cider forest where monkeys roam the area freely. We had to stop and while Nick was feeding one, I had to zoom in for a perfect picture.

We continue through Midelt and stop for lunch at a local hotel. As our goal was to arrive around 6pm at the Erg Chebbi sand dunes, our next visits were all calculated. The breathtaking views of the Ziz valley and Tizi-n-Talghaumt pass kept us clicking on our cameras for pictures on end. Nick and I purchase our head scarf from street vendors to get ready for our desert trek.

 

 

It was impressive to see the mountains quite dry with the valley filled with its well known palm grove. Amazing what a stream of water can do to plantations.

Just slightly passed our scheduled time, we arrive at the sand dunes with our camels waiting for our highly anticipated camel trek in the Sahara Desert. Prior to our trip, we have played out many scenarios as to how this would turn out. How we’d react with such  gorgeous landscape of sand as far the eye can see. It not only surpassed our expectations, but was intrigued on how the world can possess such beauty.

We saddle on the camels, the guide ushers a sound with a faint clap along the side of the beast and with a slow and calculated thrust, he comes to life at over 6 feet from the ground. All aboard, the march is on!

Look MA…no hands! We trek for over 20 minutes into the desert and as we get used to the slow thumbing steps, the guide signals our stop. Camels are instructed to lower, we hurtle our way into the sand and walk to the tip of the dune for the best possible view of the sunset.

The guide lays out a Moroccan carpet, definitely a magic carpet as we were all living a true magical ride.

As the sun was slowly setting for the night, every second displayed different silhouettes against the clouds which continuously kept us clinched towards the horizon. A moment in time that we will never forget.

With the sun having set, both Rosa and Anna take a carpet sleigh ride down the dune. Perfect way to get back on the camels and trek back to our camping ground.

With the occasional moon light being shone down from between clouds, the surrounding area was very dark. Only until we see our site with lanterns offering a walk path like airport landing strips, we come to realize that the evening will be nothing short of paradise.

We meet for supper in the main tent and converse about the incredible experience we all lived. The festivities continue under the stars with a camp fire and local drum musicians performing. We engage in folk dancing and Nick and I perform our own mix of drum beats to the crowd. Our tour guide Moha also joins us and shares information about their culture, their beliefs and explains our plan for the following days.

We retreat for the night with constant flashbacks of what we just lived. An activity completely beyond our usual regular routine. The tent was a 5 star accommodation with running water, toilet, shower and air conditioning. Not only did we see the sunset, we were scheduled to take our camels for another trek early morning for sunrise. As the morning was quite brisk, we dress appropriately and head back into the desert; this time around we started with darkness but ended with sunshine.

We retreat for the last time at our camp ground and have breakfast before we set for yet another road trip.  A quick salutation to our camels, Nick feeds them some apples, a last spot check of our belongings and away we go.

A very quick stop for some pictures at Auberge Café du Sud and we find ourselves parked after some time in an opened area where camels and flamingos are in abundance.

 

 

As we had Moha guiding us most part of day, we visit a village called Khamlia. A village located near Erg Chebbi in southeast Morocco near the Algerian border where the inhabitants are direct descendants of slaves.  The smiles on their faces were so contagious that one would never realize the poor living conditions they need to overcome daily.

We listened to their drum beat ritual and visit their school and local grocery store. We even gave the children a handful of chocolate to which they were so appreciative.

As mid afternoon was approaching and hunger was setting in, Moha surprises us with a lunch invitation at his home in Rissani.  Meeting his family was clear to us that everyone shares the same family values. Moha’s mother made great meat pizza for all to share.

In continuing our journey, Moha stays behind in his local city while Musti drives us to Ouarzazate.  With the pleasant country side view along with goats and donkeys blocking the passage, we finally make it to Riad Aylan.

Riad Aylan was very modern, ceramic filled courtyard with large rooms and roof top terrace.  Great place for our evening supper with the moon light adding the perfect romantic touch.  What a remarkable journey so far.  All perfectly planned, tour guide who invited us over to his home and our driver Musti whose responsibility was to ensure our complete safety.  Honestly, who has it better than us? Moha and Musti have become our friends.

Next morning brought some rain, cooler temperatures and the Riad lost electrical power.  A chili breakfast at the rooftop terrace forced us to pack up quickly and leave for Marrakech. Our  first stop was at a local mountain side shop with Zidane wanting to offer us some couscous.  We’ve come to realize that Moroccans are extremely friendly and social people.  In this particular case, if you notice Rosa’s face, Zidane was just a little too friendly.

We sped right by the Hollywood film location as we wanted to visit Ait-Ben-Haddou.  This UNESCO world heritage site was a collective grouping of dwellings with narrow passages and breath taking views.

With its great landscape, several scenes from the series “Game of Thrones” were filmed in this location.  Anna and Rosa kept busy entering small shops offering trinkets while Nick was busy making friends with locals and I drumming up beats with Musti.

 

 

For the last road stretch of the day, we drive along the High Atlas mountains that offer spectacular views of the gorges.  The journey continued through the majestic Tizi’n’Tichka pass over 2200 meters high where Nick was feeling slightly uncomfortable with the road edge literally at the car door.

One last tea stop and we arrive in Marrakech.  From the minute we arrive in the area, we see the hustle and bustle interactions between locals and tourists.  After some confusion as to  which Riad we were staying at, a call to Moha solved the issue quickly and we’re escorted to the correct place. Riad Inaka.

It was suggested we venture over to a place called Zeid’un Cafe for a nice supper.  By the sounds of the directions, it seemed fairly simple, however after over an hour searching, the location appears in front of us.  With, of course, the help of several locals directing us. After super, we walk through the zouks and the Jamaa El Fna square.  A completely organized mess that kept us all in heightened alert. Knowing we’d be back the following morning, the night sensation view was over and find our way back.

Right after breakfast, we met Mohammed, our Marrakesh tour guide. With his friendly demeanor and extreme knowledge, he enlightened us with history, culture and local stories.  From Mosques to Souks, from spice sampling to leather hand bag demonstrations, Mohammed covered all what needed to be seen.

A trip to Marrakesh would not have been complete if we didn’t meet their local cobras and snake charmers.

A great roof top lunch followed by one last order of business ; the perfect picture in a great Moroccan lantern shop.

We end our afternoon with a relaxing horse ride to La Mamounia Palace Hotel.  A  5-star masterpiece of Moroccan style.  It didn’t take much for a walk around the premises to realize that a single night stay would set you back thousands of dollars. We continue the horse ride to our riad where Musti was waiting for the last drive back to Casablanca.

Our Moroccan adventure had 3 last hours of driving, 1 last stay in Casablanca and infinite memories that will last a lifetime.  Our last point of interest upon arriving Casablanca was the famous Rick’s Café.  We were actually held back from entering the premises as both Nick and I had shorts on.  A quick change in the parking lot with no shame granted us access to the romantic café  inspired by the 1942 classic movie “Casablanca”.  The decor was exceptionally laid out that gave all patrons the feel of actually living  in the 1940’s.  Rick’s Café was a perfect location to end our perfect trip.

After supper, Musti drives us to our hotel where we have our last laugh.  Completing our check in, all 4 of us with our carry-on, wait patiently for the elevator to descend.  A faint bell signals the opening of the doors.  We look at each other and, once again, start laughing uncontrollably as the elevator was the size of a miniature closet.  It surely didn’t stop us all from entering.  With no room to spare, and Rosa performing as a contortionist, we successfully make it in, up and out.

Musti drops us off at the same place he picked us up several days prior and wonder how a trip can feel so short yet seem so long. Time is a great commodity and when it is spent with the people you enjoy the experience and memories are simply magnified.

Who has it better than us?

Oct-2019

 

Moha can be reached at Moha’s Website and on his Facebook page at Moha’s Facebook Page