From the desert area, I took an unforgettable 12 hours public bus ride with the locals to Fes. I was lost in the maze in Fes and I know that was normal. Nevertheless, I visited the remarkable sights of the Chouara Tanneries which is worth for the trip. After 2 days in Fes, which I think was too long, I took the 5 hours coach ride to the blue city of Chefchaoue
Said is a mountain guide. If you do want to have some trekking experiences in the mountains of Morocco, you could contact him to arrange for the trip.
I took the train from Casablanca and arrived in Marrakesh. Getting out of the train station was like walking into an oven. The weather during August was more than 40 degree C. Luckily, I have made arrangement to stay with the Berber family in the mountain. The weather in the mountain is cooler.
Said took me to the small town for some food before we proceed to the mountain.
This man post for me to take pictures and later he asked me for money.
Finally we reached Said’s house. I had the chance to taste the home-cook traditional Moroccan food.
Said took me out to show me the surrounding area.
In the late afternoon, I followed Said up to the mountain and watched a football match.
Arrived in the romantic city of Casablanca on a sunny Saturday afternoon. From the airport, I took the train to the city.
I got off from the Gare de Casa Voyageurs station and took the metro to meet my contact.
I only stayed 2 nights in Casablanca but I managed to visit some interesting places.
This market place is full with people. It sells almost any things from fruits, clothes and others. With my limited French, I managed to get myself a pair of slipper after some bargaining.
The next day, I walked around taking pictures and I reached the Grand Casablanca. I did not manage to get it as it was closed.
I walked further and take more pictures.
I found a restaurant called Chinatown. There are also McDonald’s and Burger King.
I passed by the beaches and hotels.
I met up with Mahdi in the cafe. I stayed in his apartment for 2 nights.
I took the unpleasant train ride to Marrakesh. I think they might have over sold the second class train tickets as many people couldn’t even get into the train when it reached the Casa-Oasis railway station. I had to wait for 2 hours for the next train. Moreover, the train was delayed for 30 minutes. I had a tough fight with the other passengers to get myself, my 28 inches luggage and haversack up into the train. The cabins were just physically full and many of us had to stand along the narrow pathway for 3 long hours. Next time I must get first class ticket so that I could have a more comfortable ride.
I had an interesting chat with the Berber on the public bus from the town in the mountain to the city of Marrakesh. My seat mate was so helpful that he asked his friend to drive me to the hotel, in the Marrakesh square.
I had a delightful night in the Marrakesh square with Morocco food, pea soup. mint tea, belly dancers, charming snakes, mischievous monkeys and Arabic music.
From Marrakesh, I took a 3 days and 2 nights magnificent tour to the Sahara Desert. It was a long 2 days drive from the city to the border of the desert.
We stopover for a mountain view. We also visited the mountain pottery making place.
We had another stopover at a cafe for lunch .
We had dinner in the hotel and stayed there for a night. I shared the room with another 2 people.
The next day, we visited the carpet making place.
We proceeded for more sightseeing.
Aït Benhaddou (Arabic: آيت بن حدّو) is a historic ighrem or ksar (fortified village) along the former caravan route between the Sahara and Marrakesh in Morocco. It is considered a great example of Moroccan earthen clay architecture and has been a UNESCO World Heritage Site since 1987. We visited this place.
Finally, we reached the border of the desert in the late afternoon.
We rode on the camel into the desert for about one and the half hour before we reached the camp side at about 8pm. Dinner was well prepared for us. We were entertained by the locals with songs and dances under a wonderful Arabic starry night. We left the desert in the next morning at about 6am.
Reached Tanger in the late afternoon. This Melting Pot Hostel is difficult to locate if you do not have someone to bring you there.
When the taxi dropped me at the entrance of the Medina, this man rushed to me saying that he will bring me to the hostel. This looks like I have made arrangement with the hostel to pick me up but I did not. After a few turns of corners, I asked the man do I need to pay him. He said 5 Euro. I stopped. He also stopped and looked back. I said 10 Dirhams. He said okay. We continued for another few more turns before we reached the hostel.
Normally, I will book a hotel that provides breakfast when I am travelling.
After I have settled down in the hostel, I went out for dinner in this expensive petite restaurant.
The next morning, I saw the man waiting outside the hostel. He offered to show me around but I refused. I walked alone and got lost in the maze again. However, I managed to find the way back to the hostel after a few hard tries of turns.
The next day, I took the ferry and crossed the Strait of Gibraltar to Spain. The immigration and customs checks were easy to pass through with a Singapore passport.
