Morocco was the experience of a lifetime….so varied, so different and so exciting. It’s hard to pick favourite spots, as all the people in the riads (oh so beautiful) and hotels were absolutely charming.
The weather was perfect, rarely going below 22 degrees. We loved Chefchaouen, our first real encounter with Morocco (Casablanca is different — a very commercial city) and then Fes which was so easy and interesting to walk around after a guided tour to get our bearings. Erfoud, via the Middle Atlas Mnts also a great experience and again, delicious food. We will never forget our camel ride into the Sahara and night in a Berber tent (and sliding down a sand hill on a piece of carpet with great speed) and the wonderful sunrise on the desert. Another great experience was looking over Abu Ben Haddou and having a really nice old man give me my first experience with snakes….he had them all over me—will send photo when I find it, as have taken thousands). We then visited the wonderful ancient building after hopping across giant “stepping stones” in the river. Mint tea amongst the goats!! Fabulous. That night, the Hotel Berbere Palace which is great for a wind down for “city slickers”. The trip over the High Atlas Mountains is spooky, but awe inspiring (this is because I’ve always been a bit nervous of mountains, and these are the biggest I have ever driven through)….. But we had Namir — World’s Greatest Driver!! Marrakech was everything we expected it to be–snake charmers, tiny alleys, good food, a spot to have a beer and really good Moroccan wine. Then Essaouira, and because we live on the coast in Sydney, it was bliss to spend a couple of nights quite literally surrounded by water….yet another great Riad.
All our guides were fabulous — well informed, interesting and spoke pretty good English. We under stood each other–a real “plus”.
Now for our Driver, Namir, the Tiger. He was more than fabulous. He really looked after us every step of the way, making sure of check-ins, introducing us to fantastic local restaurants, dropping and picking us up wherever we wished and showing us even more than any of the guides could…including a tree covered in goats chewing Argan pods (will send photo). He became more than a driver, he was our friend in Morocco. A friend who helped me with an injured leg, (he almost carried me across the river at Benhaddou) and a friend with a great sense of humour and a very normal outlook on the world, always prepared to share his views and interested in ours. In other words, Namir, Fraser & Toni really “hit it off” and totally enjoyed the easy company. Please send him a couple of kisses from us.
I just wanted to add that you did a wonderful job organizing our tour; everything ran seamlessly and we’ve been telling everyone “go to Morocco”.
Cheers,
Toni & Fraser, Australia (November 2015)