Summary - Home safe and sound!

On the plane now, trying to summarize the trip.  I think I will interview myself as if I am not me.  (Just go with it...)

Was it a good trip?

yes, but it is a complicated question.  It definitely had some highs and lows, and some things that were difficult.

What was your favorite part?

from a "where we visited perspective", wandering the alleyways of the Fes Medina and imagining what life was like in the past when the Riads were still functioning as family homes was a highlight.  It is still a medieval walled city so it is easy to time travel.  From a "what we learned perspective", confirming our suspicions about moderate Islam was a definite highlight.   As practiced my most Moroccans, it is a wonderful moderate religion - very different than what is being portrayed by the media.  This conclusion is drawn mostly through interactions with our guide and our driver, but also through observation of what was going on around us.  We also really enjoyed the massive contrasts that were everywhere.  Having Fred become ever so slightly indebted to Greg for life was pretty special too."

Least favorite?

tummy trouble/fear of tummy trouble/the food

How was the food?

disappointing to say the least.  We had very high expectations for the food, perhaps incorrect.  It was never great, occasionally good, often mediocre and inedible once or twice.  I am not exactly sure if we went to bad places, or it is just not a "foody" culture, but the Moroccan food we have had in other countries put it to shame for the most part.

Did you learn much about the country?

I don't think so.  We had a very knowledgeable guide who answered any and all questions honestly (we think), but the nature of the trip was an overview.  We got a very thorough and broad overview of the country and its history, we saw many of the important historical and cultural sights, but we were definitely skipping along the surface.  Given the cultural and language barriers it would be difficult to do it any other way.

Will you go back?

It would be fun to immerse in one spot, maybe Fes for an extended stay and learn about the culture in a different way.  Or a service mission to help the people of Morocco somehow.  Tough as hell to pull off though so I guess the honest answer is: "I doubt it."

Would you recommend it to other travelers?

Yes but... I would want to spend some time managing their expectations.  It is a country full of contrasts, and you need to be ready for them to really enjoy it.  I think time immersing yourself in the language and culture would pay big dividends for people wanting to travel to Morocco.

Did you feel safe?

Yes... There were a few instances where our complete lack of Arabic, Berber, and halting French combined with my complete lack of situational awareness made me feel uncomfortable.  There were a few instances where I was damned glad to have a driver and a guide too.  We hit a few tough neighborhoods in our pursuit of Jewish morocco.  Our guide had his ears up a few times.  But all the things that we were afraid of before we left were simply wrong.  Biggest risk is getting clipped in traffic. Food borne illness is probably a real risk too.  Terrorists, MERS, and Ebola are not really on the radar.

How were the accommodations?

I thought they were nice.  The tour operator asked us whether we wanted 4 or 5 star hotels and our group chose 4, assuming this would keep us in "real Moroccan" places as opposed to sterile international high-end chains.  The standards are different and what is considered nice is different.  This is a different kind of travel than Europe or the United States. (Thank goodness!) Some of our accommodations were amazing.  Quirky, ancient, over the top, but amazing.

Did everyone in your group get along?

Well, since they are reading the blog, I will criticize them each in turn!  Actually, we all got along surprisingly well.  There were a (very) few times where decision making as a group was tough, but this group did extremely well together.  

Did people know you were Jewish?

We didn't shout it from the rooftops at every opportunity, nor did we hide.  We celebrated Shabbat twice with candles, wine and b'rachot.  Our guide and driver knew we were Jewish and interested in touring Jewish elements of the country.  He took us to many.  We visited synagogues and cemeteries etc. when we could.  Morocco has not always been a great place for Jews to live, but it has seemingly been a lot better that many of its neighbors.  Additionally, the country has accepted that the Jews were part of their history, and that history is worth preserving.  This is also an improvement over many other Arab countries.

Were you ever uncomfortable being Jewish in a Muslim country?

Yes, but it was due to biases that I brought with me.  When I first arrived I felt a little skittish and defensive, but that feeling eased over the course of the trip.  That was a big takeaway for me.

Did you buy some cool things?

A few small handicrafts and some goofy slippers.  Handmade goods are still a big part of the economy, we tried to get some things to remember the trip.  Come on over and we will show you!

Anything else you would like to share?

One of the joys of traveling is coming home.  We are truly blessed to have been born in the time and place that we were, and we can't wait to see our friends and family back home!

Back to Casablanca

We traveled today from Marrakech to Casablanca so we can catch an early flight tomorrow back to reality.  We are now back where we started in a cool Art Deco hotel called Le Doge.  Not too many pics today.  Just a selfie:

And the brooding moody shot from Rick's Cafe

Weirdest thing... Everything was in black and white as soon as we walked in!

Actually it was pretty damned good for a "reality follows fiction" themed restaurant.  Fortunately they went easy on the theme and heavy on the restaurant.

We will hopefully compose another post from the plane (if we are awake!) with some final thoughts.

Until then!

Ruth and Greg

Whirlwind Marrakech

Today we toured all of the important historical highlights of this imperial city as well as a more modern palace- 1600's I think; and a few sets of gardens.  I would remember more, but we followed it up with a couple of hours lost in the grand souk.  (Totally what Greg wanted to do in Marrakech!). We emerged triumphant at the end of our wandering with a few purchases, our wallets still in hand if not completely intact.  We have been training for this  whole trip... No problems really at all, but enough was enough by the end.  Though the market is huge and brimming with stuff, it is a lot of the same merchandise in many of the shops.  The throngs of people, aggressive merchants and the knowledge that this is one of the worst places in the world for theft and dishonest dealings does leave you exhausted after a few hours.  That is why everything I learned early in the day has fallen out of my head.  Because we struck out on our own, there was much less photography today... Too busy keeping wallets and purses protected.  Here are a few for you though:

Jardin majorelle

Tummy trouble still haunts us all. But we endure!

This is how the cool kids dress.  Abdul can pull it off very naturally.  Greg began "shvitzing like an old Jewish man" as soon as he put it on.

We liked this sign.well dressed men and veiled women only? 

Just to document the fact that Greg was on the trip

Storks on the palace wall.

Cat of the day

We actually bought some spices, but not here.  Smelled good though!

Weird stuff for sale in this section of the market. Herbal (and other) remedies.  They also sold turtles and lizards and snake skins!

We have a nice dinner planned for tonight at a neighboring Riad, and we are off to Casablanca in the morning to get ready for our flight home.

Until later!

Greg & Ruth

High Atlas mountain pass and into Marrakesh

Today Abdul the driver really earned his dirham.  He drove us over an incredible pass through the high Atlas Mountains that pretty much gave everyone the willies... Sheer cliffs on both sides hairpin turns for at least two hours.  Wow.  Then, if that wasn't enough, he drove us into the madness that is the big central square in Marrakech.  Love it or hate it, it is a circus.  Snake charmers, story tellers, monkeys, pickpockets, glue sniffers, grandmas, children, thousands of tourists from all over the world.  Beautiful hand crafted goods and Chinese made crap.  It is all there waiting.  I (Greg) tend to love this kind of thing and I found it overwhelming.  It is maddening for photographers.  Really incredible things to see and photograph but... You will get shaken down if they catch you.  So, please excuse my lack of a long lens and a steady hand.  Enjoy some faces of Marrakech after a few shots documenting the journey.

Ruth is complaining about being asked to strike a "vanna white" pose, but this is the beautiful Riad we stayed in last night.

Yep, that is the road down there!

Faces of morocco:

 

And a bit of other stuff!

You thought I made up e part about the snakes didn't you!

Until next time!

Ruth and Greg

The marakesh "local" (as opposed to the express...)

Another leisurely day headed roughly west between the high atlas and the mid Atlas Mountains on the way back to marakesh .  This is the route of 1000 casbahs.  We learned today that a casbah is merely a particular type of dwelling, often a wealthy merchant, tribal leader or local dignitary.  They were/are composed of a fairly fragile mud brick construction so without constant refurbishing they erode to ruins.  So... Lots of ruined casbahs, some reconstructed ones.  This area is also the Hollywood of morocco where many films have been made. So... Hard to tell what is real and what is constructed for your viewing pleasure.  I guess in the end it doesn't matter.  Given the fragility of the materials used for construction.  Nothing was meant to be very permanent anyway.

We are now relaxing by the pool in a really beautiful riad somewhere near Ouarzazate.  There is a ruined casbah visible just beyond the pool.  Tomorrow we head to marakesh.

Just a few pictures today. And yes... We did climb that bad boy. Beautiful view from the top.

Sahara! 52 days walk to Timbuktu

We are now out of the Sahara, rumbling towards our next destination so I thought a brief description of the last 18 hours or so is in order.

We were picked up in 4x4 toyotas and driven about 50 km east towards Algeria to erg chebi which is a series of sand dunes that runs about 25km further towards Algeria.  After the ubiquitous welcome tea we mounted dramaderies and headed up the dunes to watch the sun set.

We then returned on our dramaderies  to a group of tents where we had dinner, sat around a campfire and then slept.

This was a very touristy experience to be sure.  There were hundreds of other guests doing the same thing, the tents contained modern plumbing (sort of) and a bed shrouded with mosquito netting.  Despite the cheese factor, it was still very fun, and the sunset was stunning.

We are all doing well and having a good time.

Unfortunately, more of our group are getting sick.  I think just about everyone today was contemplating the distance from the dunes to the nearest WC, and how long a dose of Imodium lasts!.  

Enjoy some pics!

And a few scenes from the rest of the day... 

Pre camel hair cut...

Weird timing today.  We are basically goofing off before we get picked up in some 4x4 vehicles to be driven into the dunes at sunset.  From their we will be "glamping" in the Sahara.  

We went to a fossil emporium this morning... Not really my thing, but pretty interesting to see how they take these rocks and turn them into touristic gold.  Apparently this corner of the Sahara was under water at one point in prehistory so there are a lot of fossilized sea creatures.  They then get crafted into.... Well, anything you might buy!

From there we visited the small town center and market.  It is the date season, and this is the region where many originate, so the market was mostly dates, meat that you don't want to eat, and the usual bric a brac.  Good people watching of course!

I got my hair cut at a local barbershop.  I am not sure if my fellow travelers were bored or fascinated, but everyone watched.  I was relaxed about it.  The barber's name translated to "trust the one who is unafraid."  So I did.  

Interesting method of sterilizing the straight razor though: douse it in alcohol (good), light it on fire (showy), run it under questionable tap water (not so good), and dry it on a nasty rag (bad).  Fortunately this was all to the body of he straight razor and made no difference as he slid in a disposable blade before he went at it. (The only part that actually mattered.). For my wet shaving friends: a British blade I have never heard of in a Turkish razor I have never seen nor heard of!

We then headed back to the hotel where we are chilling out before our ride comes.  I am sure I will have another post containing sunset in the dunes, camels, flies etc.  we took some pictures throughout the day.  Zoom for flies!

This is how you look cool while chipping fossils out of rocks all day.

Abdul, our guide recommended I get my hair cut here... Of course he wears a hat!

Want a date?  I am sure all dates come from similarly fly swarmed regions.  Actually seeing the flys on the dates made them less appealing for me.

Or it could be that there are still remnants of the feast of eid laying about.  That may be what put me off my feed.

This is what dates look like right off of the tree.

Happy guy... Bad teeth.

Happy camel, bad teeth.

Until next time!

Greg & Ruth