i finally have something incredibly exciting to write about again... 6 nights in marrakech with 4 friends from paris!! it was awesome!!!
on thursday afternoon we flew into marrakech and were dropped off at the medina by a cab. big tactical error not being picked up by the hostel, making it to our riad in darkness, having wandered through narrow laneways and the famed djmma el fna completely disoriented for over an hour. but it was worth it, the little riad hostel was gorgeous, with lanterns strung from the ceilings and 3 terraces with views over the square and medina.
following our stop at ait benhaddou we piled back into the car and headed off through the sparse landscape again. in the mid-afternoon we stopped at another ancient kasbah, skoura, where we spent half an hour wandering around fields eating pomegranate from the tree and dates picked fresh off palms. it was one of my favourite stops of the trip, made even better by the little boy who asked us for a pen as we were getting back into the car in exchange for a camel he had made out of palm leaves.
in the evening as the sun was setting we wound our way through dades gorge, stopping to take photos at a place called monkey fingers, due to the otherworldly rock formations (to be honest i spent the whole trip feeling like i was on mars, the landscapes were just so dystopian!). we arrived at our accommodation for the evening after dark once again and were absolutely blown away, the rooms were huge and dinner was mouthwatering - goats cheese salad with honey vinaigrette, quail breast with beans and potato, and a brown sugar tart for dessert. yum! the following morning we were once up again early and back in the car. we drove further into dades gorge for a photo stop over the breathtaking view, before heading to todra gorge. yet another incredible sight, we wandered through the valley with sheer rock faces 300 metres high either side of us. i can't even begin to describe how beautiful and unique each of these places were, photos just cannot do them justice!
once again back in the car, we followed a school bus up a mountain and were enthralled by the reactions of the children, especially the girls, to the car of white tourists behind them - peeking at us only to hide their faces once they realised we were watching, only to peek once again a few seconds later. and then the bus just stopped to drop some of them off on the side of the mountain, and there were no houses in sight! following lunch, our guide took us to a 12th century kasbah that he normally doesn't take tourists too - despite skepticism over that statement, the locals looked at us like we were aliens, so we were inclined to believe it. i was really proud of the efforts we had gone to to be modest, as our head scarves and covered legs and shoulders allowed mohamed to take us to this incredible kasbah, and one of the local women even commented in french how happy she was with my scarf.
in the late afternoon we arrived at sahara garden to drop our bags before heading into the desert - i was so so so excited! we dumped our stuff, had a glass of mint tea and then we were off!! i was riding a camel named jimmy hendrix, but unsatisfied with that name i re-christened him mustafa. going absolutely hyperactive as we rode out into the desert, i jumped off mustafa and ran through the sand, before leading the line of camels and making ali, our bedoin guide, superfluous. it was so much fun but terribly windy! i even stood up on the saddle!
by the time we arrived at our campsite, it was pitch black and sand was whipping everywhere - so we hustled into the dining tent and huddled chatting with a lovely couple from new zealand for a couple of hours before dinner was served. we had a great time and lots of interesting conversations over dinner before russell and alvedia went to bed, they had food poisoning which would have been terrible on the camels! we had a bit of a dance while ali and mubarak played the drums, before cracking out the cards and having a brilliant time teaching the guides how to play go fish. the looks on their faces when they knew who had a card they needed were priceless! in return, they taught us an advanced version of naughts and crosses and to count to 5 in arabic. it was so much fun, but it wasn't bed time yet - they took us out into the sand dunes and built a fire to sit and sing around! was a bit of a shame the night was cloudy, but a brilliant end to the day nonetheless.
the following morning we were up at 7am and back on our camels to head out of the dunes. after a brief breakfast at sahara garden we got back in the car and set in for a long day of driving back to marrakech. man were we tired! we stopped for lunch and hardly spoke a word, and proceeded to sleep almost the entire way home. in the afternoon we made a quick stop at a women's cooperative to learn about argan oil production, and a few purchases later we were back on the road and revitalised by chocolate bars. finally back in marrakech after 10 hours in the car, we entered the haven that was our accommodation for 3 nights - riad kenzo, a gorgeous little riad complete with a plunge pool, hammam and roof terrace. the manager took us to a nearby restaurant for dinner, where i had a delicious chicken and almond pastilla, but we returned to our rooms pretty fast as we were all worn out!
the following morning we set out into the souks of marrakech, the riad's manager damian taking us to meet his friend yusef to show us around, ensuring we got good quality products at cheap prices. it was loads of fun and seriously overwhelming, the crowded stalls and makeshift roof exactly what i had hoped it to be, unlike the grand bazaar in istanbul.
our wallets significantly lighter, we went for a tour of the leather tanneries. armed with berber gasmasks - mint sprigs - we were led around the putrid pools of lime and pigeon poo, and shown the process of making camel leather - it was fascinating, but not something i'd race to do again!
following the tanneries we decided we needed a drink and some food, so yusef led us to the rooftop terrace at cafe arabe where we indulged in some western food and beer (shameful i know). running late, we raced back to the riad for our hammam and massage treatments. what an experience!! so unlike my hammam in turkey, i was naked and scrubbed raw, covered in 4 different types of gunk, before being washed off, wrapped in a robe and deposited onto a massage table. of course, i fell asleep and completely missed almost my entire massage, but man was i content at the end! when the 5 of us were finished we ate a delicious lamb tagine on the riad's terrace, followed by incredible orange blossom yoghurt. so so yum! in food comas, we all climbed into the boys bed to watch gladiator, but gave up in short order and stumbled back to our own beds.
our final full day in marrakech was spent once again back in our prado - our driver mohamed had invited us to lunch in his family's village in the south of morocco! we spent the morning buying a beautiful bowl, fruit and a selection of pens and notepads for his family to take as a gift, before being picked up by mohamed at 9am. on our way to his village we stopped at a market that berbers go to each week to shop and catch up. it was absolutely fantastic! we wandered around, i bought a beautiful necklace, and then mohamed took us to a teahouse and showed us how to make mint tea. we had no idea the process was so complex, but it was definitely the best mint tea we had in morocco!! mohamed also showed us the area where berbers parked there 4x4s... a massive field of donkeys! the market was definitely my favourite experience of our whole time in morocco, despite walking past rows and rows of freshly severed goat heads.
back in the car, we headed to mohamed's village, but stopped on the way to check out the incredible hotel sir richard branson owns in the mountains. we were shocked to be shown around the entire hotel, and were incredibly jealous we weren't staying there by the end of our tour! upon arrival at mohamed's village we left the car and started walking up a very steep hill. after a brief rest break at a gorgeous kasbah hotel we continued trekking and ended at a waterfall! it was beautiful, we decided we understood why mohamed was always so happy given that he lived in such an incredible place surrounded by breathtaking views and snowcapped mountains.
after the waterfall mohamed took as to his family home, where he has lived his entire life, and his sisters served us lunch. it was delicious, but we were all horrified by the amount of food they served us and were about to explode by the end! as we were finishing lunch a storm rolled in, so we thanked mohamed's sisters and had a great time running down the mountain back to the car. once again, we slept on the way home and returned to riad kenzo incredibly full and happy. the others all decided to go out to dinner regardless and then onto a bar, but i was happy to stay at the riad and finish gladiator and go to bed.
on wednesday we had a leisurely breakfast before flying to lisbon. it was utterly wonderful and we were all so sad to leave!
