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- A Walk in the Todra Gorge, Morocco
- Road Sights From Merzouga to Tinghir/Tinehir, Morocco
- A Morocco Fossil Exhibition Before Driving to The Todra Gorge Area
- Berber Marriage Customs in Morocco
- The Berbers of Morocco
- Merzouga and The Dunes of Erg Chebbi, Morocco
- Eating Medfouna/Madfoune/Madfoun, A Moroccan Pizza and Merzouga, Morocco
- A Mausoleum, Rugs, and Market in Rissani, Morocco
- The "Ksour/Ksar" of Ouled Abd El Halim, Rissani, Morocco
- Erfoud in The Middle Atlas of Morocco
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The Todra Gorge has dramatic cliffs that rise vertically and leaves just a narrow pass. It was formed as a result of an enormous fault in the plateau which separates the High Atlas from the Jebel Saghro. The Wadi Todra River flows through the Todra Gorge with crystal-clear waters creating lush palmeries that line the banks. These fertile fields that extend in Tinghir/Tinehir are filled with produce, date palms, grains, olive groves, fruit orchards and almond trees filled with pink flowers that had just begun blooming.
The focus of our trip to the Todra Gorge today was an optional moderate hike to Abdelali viewpoint for panoramas across to the Jebel Sahro, the Dades Valley and down into the gorge. The walk generally takes around five hours roundtrip. In hot weather, temperatures it can be more demanding and Explore said that walking boots with ankle support was essential. ex-Marine and I didn't want to carry heavy hiking boots in suitcases on a one-month trip that would only be used once and opted out of the group hike. But first, an early breakfast. Wonder of wonders, there was actually freshly squeezed orange juice, the usual bread, and a woman making the Moroccan version of crepes. When making a French crepe, batter is thinly ladled into a crepe pan. She rolled out a thin dough, folded it into a square and fried it. However made, it was delicious and a welcome break from bread.
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A lunch stop somewhere along the road where ex-Marine and I snarfed down an omelette berbere - omelet with vegetables in it. Very tasty and the first semi-real meal we'd had in days. Today's road trip continued along an ancient route along the southern slopes of the Atlas, a traditionally Berber area. No one had to point that out since women no longer walked down the street dressed in black from head to toe. They were still wearing black jebellas but decorated with sequins and embroidery.
It was very windy and the sand was blowing in sheets across the desert along with small whirlwinds ("dust devils") sighted every now and then. A major attention-grabber was the first road kill of the trip. A dead camel on the side of the road with a policeman directing traffic. I bet hitting a camel could do serious damage to both the car and driver. Yep...the he (or she) camel was definitely dead with the head lolling over to one side. The camel should have been more careful crossing the road and I'm not kidding about that. During the next 1-1/2 hours, we saw quite a few camels crossing the road while others stood nonchalantly in the middle or to the side, just daring you to hit them...View image.
Continue reading "Road Sights From Merzouga to Tinghir/Tinehir, Morocco" »
It was not a restful night in Merzouga. A young French group ran around the courtyard screaming and shouting at the top of their lungs until midnight and what sounded like African drum music also began at 11:00 p.m. and accompanied their noise.Up for breakfast early (who slept) and starving, again there was no one in the restaurant even through breakfast was scheduled for 7:00 a.m. I don't know if you remember in my Meknes video the guide's discussion on "Moroccan Time." Succinctly, they pay no attention to the actual time. ex-Marine went into the kitchen and found staff sitting around who began putting breakfast on the buffet, one piece at a time, very s-l-o-w-l-y. Bread, fake orange juice, honey, oil, jams, coffee, tea and fried crepes. That was it.
Members of the group had walked back from the desert camp where they spent the night and were filled with stories. The general consensus was that it was a lot of fun. The camel ride out to the dunes was a highlight for those who had never ridden a camel before. Dinner was the same mixture of meat, vegetables and tomatoes that we saw in the kitchen of Kasbah Le Touareg last night. Music, dancing and a night under the stars or in the Berber tent. A big thumbs up from those who participated with one recommendation. Keep your cameras in a plastic bag. The sand reaped havoc on quite a few telephoto lenses that would need the expertise of a camera shop in Tinehir.
Continue reading "A Morocco Fossil Exhibition Before Driving to The Todra Gorge Area" »
Don't you find different marriage customs interesting throughout the world? My ears perk up when a guide says, "Let me tell you a little about marriage customs in my country." Below is the history of these customs in Morocco related to us by Aziz on one of the longer bus ride days. According to him, these were the customs in the "olden days", pre-2002. Modern men and women now arrange their own marriages but the old ways still linger in isolated areas of Morocco:
- The prospective Groom must first ask his parent's permission to marry. If too shy to ask directly, an uncle or other relative will intercede and do the asking. If they say no, it's no;
- If yes, parents visit the Brides parents to discuss dowry and agree on a price. A marriage contract is then written by a Moroccan government employee with the Bride price and other agreements included. For example, the prospective Bride may be in college, want to finish her education and then work. That will be included in the marriage contract. A normally well-off Berber family that owns a car and house will include gold. Gold belts will be then part of the dowry. A thin Bride makes the Groom's family happy. Why? Less gold in the belt. True, and not a joke; and
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Morocco is considered the land of the fiercely independent Berbers, the "Lords of the Atlas." Berbers are the indigenous peoples of North Africa west of the Nile who have made their homes in the isolated High Atlas Mountains of Morocco for for at least 5,000 years. The Arabs didn't arrive until the Islamic conquest in the 7th century when they invaded North Africa and forced Berbers to assimilate, or flee into the Atlas mountains. Their music, dance, language and religion, is far removed from the Arabs and Berbers remain very sensitive about this issue. Aziz, along with the majority of Amazigh, perceive the Berbers as being persecuted by the Arabs. This short list of Berber information was given to us by Aziz along with his views on the subject.
- Berbers prefer to be known as Amazigh, "free men";
- Berbers have to choose an Arab name from a list (even today although King Mohammed VI is trying to change this) and can only keep the family name;
- Berbers usually have lighter skin then Arabs;
- The Berber symbol "Z"/zed means "we are free" and resembles a man.
- There is a Berber upside down triangle used in jewelry and decoration. A Berber woman wears one if she is single, two if married;
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Neither the electricity nor water were operating at Hotel Kasbah Le Touareg when we arrived. Not just here but throughout Merzouga. However, there were assurances that it would go back on n a few hours which it did. While ex-Marine and I opted to sit by the swimming pool and relax for a while, the entire Explore group went out for a three hour 4X4 excursion. This optional trip was heading around the dunes and a visit to a local Berber house. They'll come back to the hotel after that with time for those who are taking a camel ride into the desert and overnite in the Berber tent to pack up a few nighttime necessities. Only few others in the group were not going to spend the night in the tent and I just hoped there would be something edible for dinner. (The hotel cooks dinner and transports out to the tent.)
The Erg Chebbi is a range of gold-coloured sand that stretches into the "Sand Sea" of Morocco.The word erg is Arabic for "great sand dune area." Most visitors stay put in Merzouga but there are some great longer trips that really do go into the desert for days. Most are by camel and leave from Ouarzazate, another one of our destinations on this trip but not via camel. The dunes are simply stunning with colors that change from minute to minute. Light beige to yellow at dawn. Gold under the intense midday sun. And deep orange at sunset. Just keep snapping away.
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Into the Hotel Restaurant Dar Lamrani...View image next to the Maison Berbere in Rissani for a taste of Medfouna/Madfoune/Madfoun. Whatever way you spell it and I saw at least two different signs in Rissani with two different spellings. Medfouna is a Moroccan pizza traditionally baked in hot desert sands. Not the case with our lunchtime pizza which will be baked in an oven. Madfouna is very similar to a calzone with either spicy meat or vegetables tucked between the crusts. The group had a choice of vegetarian or meat and the Medfouna quickly appeared on the round tables for sharing. We ate the vegetarian that contained a mixture of carrots, lentils, and onions. Our opinion? Tasty, not spicy at all, and the two of us would never order it in a restaurant. However, others in the group beg to differ. To each his/her own.
Too bad there wasn't time for one last sight in the Erfoud/Rissani region. The old Foreign Legion Fort of Borj-Est built as an outpost of the French Army. Can't you just visualize the dashing Gary Cooper standing in the fort being attacked by Tuaregs in the classic movie, Beau Geste? Oh well. Rissani is the last sizeable community and end of the vegetation belt before the dunes of the "Sand Sea" begin. The bus began the short 25 kms/15 mile drive southeast and into the great and golden colored sand dunes of Erg Chebbi.
Continue reading "Eating Medfouna/Madfoune/Madfoun, A Moroccan Pizza and Merzouga, Morocco" »
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