Back from Morocco. Our (Barkha and myself) stay was 10 days and we visited mostly the northern and central part of the country. Highlighted cites are: Casablanca, Fez, Tangier, Marrakesh, Merzouga, and Erfoud. Started and ended in Casablanca.
(As always, remember that you can click on any of the images to enlarge them - including the ones in the titles).
(Also, you can click on the captions to expand the text).
Volubilis
First up, we stopped at a place call Volubilis (near Meknes) to see some ancient Phoenician and Roman ruins. The name comes from a flower that grows in the area. Gotta see ruins…
Fez
Next, Fez. Stayed and ate in a nice Riad (kind of like a small, square castle with a courtyard in the center). A very old one (built in 1209). But, not very nice. We basically stayed in a B&B with a family. The stay, about $41 (400DH). In case you are wondering, the exchange is about 93 Dirham per Dollar.
I have to say that Fez was the dirtiest of all the cities. We also visited the Medina (a.k.a. shopping area - i.e. maze) and the tannery - where they hand dye and make leather goods.
The interesting part of the Medina (other than the limitless shopping) is how easy you can get lost. Must have been hell before GPS. There are literally thousands of small winding alleyways.
One of the many mosques...
Tannery - This is probably the most photographed area of Fez.
More tannery - makes for good photos...
Tangier
Next, Tangier. There were only really 3 interesting things about Tangier. First, it was very modern; second, you can see Europe from the shore (see above photo); and third, there is the cave of Hercules. In the picture above, you can see the southern part of Spain (rock of Gibraltar area) in the distance.
The cave of Hercules is supposedly where Hercules was to have done his challenges. There is both a free and paid section of the cave. The paid section is basically a tourist trap - not worth it.
This is a man-made entrance into the cave from the sea.…
It is supposed to be in the shape of Africa.
They cut grinding stones from the walls of the cave. Apparently, s…
A stack of grinding stones...
Paid area of the cave.
Statue of Hercules.
Marrakesh
Next, Marrakesh. Known for it’s large open air Medina - i.e. shopping and haggling. Not that it doesn’t have the mazes, it does. The photos give you a good idea of what it feels like walking through the Medina. There is a t-shirt that I saw a few tourists wear; it says “Lost in the Medina.”
Exit from the open air section of the Medina.
Part of the open air section of the Medina.
One thing Morocco is known for is it's hand made items. These…
A typical shop.
There weren't very many beggars, but everyone wanted to help…
Typical Medina street.
Their flag is displayed, but not that often.
Lots of colors!
Colors of all kinds!
And colors of all shapes!
This is a typical veggie delivery cart.
We did stay in another Riad. This one was a lot nicer than the first one - and a lot more expensive ($90). It had a very nice courtyard.
Courtyard of Riad for breakfast.
Merzouga, Erfoud, and Tinghir
Next up, Merzouga, Erfoud, and Tinghir. Merzouga is known for being on the edge of the Sahara desert. Erfoud is known for it’s fossil businesses - from the Atlas mountains. I picked up a few nice fossils (no photos) to add to my collection. The photo above is sunrise from our hotel (400DH a night) into the desert.
The interesting thing was the drive out from Marrakesh. It was rainy all the way into the desert. This is very unusual because of the desert region = very little rain. This made for very hazardous driving through the Atlas mountains (sorry, no photos) and the locals really didn’t know how to drive in the rain. Also, the rain sits for days because the ground doesn’t really absorb it.
Tinghir is one gateway to the Atlas mountains and is known for it’s gorge. Awesome driving through the Todra gorge.
Part of Tinghir from the road on the way to the gorge.
The drive through the Todra gorge. Walls get to about 900 meter…On the way back to Casablanca, had to pass back through the Atlas mountains (about 5 hours in the high mountains). Only small villages, but mostly empty space. The views were stunning and the roads were pretty good unless you were in a village; then they were potholed to the max.
Lower in the mountains we ran into our only problem on the trip, a flat tire. No big deal, only down for about 15-20 minutes. The only funny thing was that we pulled over in front of a valley like farm area. A young boy tried desperately to try and help me and then asked for money at the end. In my usual spirit, I refused all help and also refused to pay him.
Casablanca
Stayed in Casablanca for a day. Had to eat at Rick’s place (replica from the movie - if you are wondering). Didn’t really feel like taking any photos. Sorry for the images, not up to my usual standards. The one above is from the (dirty) hotel window.
