A 7-days unforgettable discovery of Morocco, starting at its heart in Marrakesh all the way to the Sahara Desert (Merzouga), crossing Ouarzazate, Thingir and finishing in Fez. A Moroccan experience to its fullest! 🇲🇦
Day 1-2
I started my trip around Morocco in Marrakesh. My first impressions were of a chaotic city.
There were no clear roads, sidewalks, or parking spots around Marrakesh medina (city center); old cars were circulating, honking, motorbikes were taking over, and donkeys were marching, stocked with merchandise accompanied by their owners. It was sunny and warm and the air felt dry, which helped with a variety of breezes. Locals were staring at me all the time, which made me slightly uncomfortable, observed, and unsafe. This scenario was actually kept in most of the cities I visited.
When I look back, each corner was a novelty to me in such a living city. I was particularly aware of what was happening around me.
My first stop was the Bahia Palace. Surrounded by crowds of people (tourists), I felt more comfortable. The Arabian-style palace was a good surprise: I appreciated the diversity of colours and patterns on the walls, ceilings, and floors, with small and different shape tiles, making the different rooms of the palace lively and fresh; the interior gardens felt very green and peaceful.
I enjoyed the time to walk around Marrakesh medina, passing by the city's biggest mosque, Koutoubia, and had a stopover at the so-called souks (marketplaces), a must-see where a wide range of colours, smells, and sounds are in the air, due to the selling of ceramics, jewelry, spices, fresh vegetables or even exotic animals like snakes!
The next stop was Ouarzazate. During the ride, I had the opportunity to cross the imponent Atlas Mountains, just before exploring the astonishing red-earth city of Aït Ben Haddou, UNESCO heritage.
It is a group of clay-based houses, or Kasbahs, assembled on a hill, with great landscapes at all angles. Yes, Moroccans actually live in Kasbahs which for me was a surprise. Exploring the Aït Ben Haddou made me better understand how fragile Kasbahs can be (suffering from wind erosion) and, for instance, how weather conditions and accessibility to water impact the way people settle in Morocco! Aït Ben Haddou is now barely inhabited and it was used as a location in several movies, including The Mummy, Gladiator, and Prince of Persia.
With many different feelings in such a short time, it was absolutely only the beginning of such an enriching journey!
Day 3
The third day started with a car drive through the Draa valleys, crossing the Anti Atlas Mountains, all the way to the top of the rugged Tinififte. The sunny weather intensified the contrast of a blue sky and the reddish layered landscape.
A visit and stay at the Oscar Hotel by Atlas Studios High were another highlight of the trip. Besides being a comfy hotel with a great panorama, it is a huge property with many different scenarios constructed for the purpose of filming. Prison Break or Game of Thrones have been recorded there! I could travel to the entertainment world…
Day 4
On day 4, I visited the iconic Berber village Skoura Ahl El Oust. A guided tour provided insights into the ancient Moroccan lifestyle, like the fact that a man could have 4-5 spouses, having, for each one of them, their own kitchen in different corners of a Kasbah. A typical Moroccan dish followed, served in a so-called tagine. It is common to associate the traditional Moroccan kitchen with couscous, mixed with a wide selection of vegetables. At that time, I chose boiled eggs, also a very common dish there.
It tasted as good as it looked!
I experienced an amazing steep ride through the rocky landscape of Ait Sedrate Jbel El Soufla. From the top, one can have a glimpse of the beautiful curved path.
Later, in Thingir, the road between the two gigantic Todra gorges wowed us, while the sun was beautifully projecting different shades of orange on them. It was surprisingly refreshing too.
Day 5
Day 5 was finally there, together with the highlight of the Morocco trip, the Sahara Desert! Before that, I sought t find Oasis, refreshing lively spots in the middle of extensive deserted areas, with beautiful green palms and sources of water. The targeted Oasis was located at a road dead-end, which we were keen to take. From time to time, one could observe beggars, on the side of the long, empty, and dry road, which made me think about why were people on such roads and how could they survive. At the Oasis's location, a group of Moroccans was suspiciously standing and trying to approach us, blocking the road. Uncomfortably, we didn't respond, did not take the risk to leave the car and explore the Oasis, and drove back to the main road, towards Merzouga. No signs of rain so far and the more we got closer to the desert, the more one could feel the drought in the air. Camels started to appear on the road. After a moment of waiting, there they were, the camels! The sandy desert is so quiet. You can only observe orange dunes and an immense blue sky. Despite some dunes, the landscape is mostly flat which makes sand move due to small breezes of air. I met the “camel man”, who was guiding our path through the desert. He was a young boy, who never had the chance to go to school. He was sent by his parents to the desert to work and collect money for his family. He learned French by himself with the tourists, he said. Despite his life circumstance, he was very funny and happy with his job. His life story was quite touchy and made me put my life into perspective. At the end of the ride, we fed the camels with the fruit of the desert, a plant that grows exclusively in a deserted environment. Riding a camel through the Sahara Desert was such a great experience!
As part of the "desert experience", an overnight stay at a "luxury" tent right in the desert was waiting. It was such a great, unique, and relaxing experience having had dinner in the desert, experiencing Moroccan food, and having watched the sky full of stars by the sound of Moroccan tbilat on a chill dark night.
Day 6
The 6th day started with, probably, a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity to watch the sunrise in the desert. At each second, the sun slowly took over the sky rising and shining in an orange-yellow colour sensation. After breakfast still in the desert, it was time for an almost 6h car ride waiting until we would reach our final destination, Fez.
Despite the significant amount of time spent inside a car, we were amused with beautiful landscapes, by either having to cross mountain after mountain towards the North, some with engraved Arabian scriptures, or having seen large light-blue lakes. We were refreshed with some rain showers here and there, so needed in such drylands.
Having arrived in Fez in the evening, there was still time to have Morrocan-style and spicy food at Fez medina.
Day 7
We were delighted by the breakfast in the beautiful Riad Batchisarai, where we were hosted by such a lovely French couple. It was an amazing place to stay.
Before the flight returned, I walked around to get to know the main attractions of Fez city, its souks, gardens, and medina.
It was an overall enriching experience, my first in Africa lands, in an in-development country with standards and ways of living very different from the European ones. I left with the feeling I had deeply explored the Maroccan lifestyle and, in retrospect, this trip makes me feel fortunate given the fact I can, in general, give for granted access to key dimensions of human development like water, food, education, or safety.
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