Casablanca/Ourzazat, Morocco - The Trek To The Trek; Part 1

We we're off the ship relatively early at this port regardless of the face-to-face inspection with immigration. All went smoothly and they shuffled all 900 of us through and onto our tour buses in a couple of hours.

We were going on a camel trek through the Sahara Desert. I couldn't have been more excited about the adventure! However, we did have a LONG bus ride ahead of us to get there. It was going to take about a day and a half. I wasn't looking forward the bus trek to the camel trek...

Casablanca is a city from what I could tell from my bus window. Different only by culture, it had every creature comfort you would need. I did hear that some people were headed to "Rick's Place"...the hangout in the movie "Casablanca". I was jealous for about a minute thinking that we would not have time to visit but the. I was told that it was build after the movie's success. Ok, just another Hard Rock , in my opinion.

Transportation in the city has the widest variety I've seen yet. Cars, busses, trains, mortocycles, scooters, bicycles, horse-drawn carriage or side saddle on a mule. Take your pick!

Through Casablanca and to Marrakech, "land of the good". It was here that the nomads of Morocco set their sites as they caravan end across the dry and desolate Sahara desert, through the rugged terrains of the High Atlas mountain range to settle. The plains where the ground was fertile and the living was good. Medina, The Old City, also known as "the chatter of the city" because of its lively atmosphere, was built on the 10th century and remains the hub of this cosmopolitan city.

We had already driven a good 4 hours so I thought I might pass some of the time napping. I settled in as comfortably as I could. I stared out the window to lull myself to sleep but once we entered the climb to the top of The High Atlas, all bets were off. It is probably the most unbelievable mountain range I had ever driven through.

Just outside Marrakech, we crossed a plain and you could immediately see the difference in landscape. The earth was dryer and the vegetation much more space than in Marrakech. As we ascended into the rocky red clay mountain range, the environment became increasingly barren. But the settlers here terraced the hillsides which produce lush green grasses and yellow flowers. The main crops grown here are barley and wheat. Further up the mountain, the terrain becomes even more different. Signs of possible falling boulders dot our path. The red clay is always present but is now coupled with layer upon layer of golden stone, so much that the mountain face reminds me of a well-constructed baklava. Here, the residence grow olives trees, apricots, poppies, thyme, mushrooms, almonds, argon trees, lavender, and birch trees. Switchback after switchback, the mountain range then becomes smooth. These mountain peaks look as if they were poured here. Overlapping mounds of dark greenish-brown soil although barren, safeguard the dense vegetation in their valleys of tiered crop lands. Shepherds and their flocks can be seen throughout the mountain sides, wandering and searching for a place to graze. And always in the distance, the snow-capped mountains reaching 14000 feet.

Hours later, we reached our lunch destination, an authentic Moroccan restaurant. We had learned that the main cultural influences of this country are Berber (originals to morocco), Arabic and French. My palate was looking forward to this cuisine! The restaurant was situated on the mountainside where the view was spectacular of the valley below. We were greeted by a drum band, singers and dancers all dressed in traditional costume to make the complete. We ate a fresh salad and an tangine dish made of eggs. Dessert was a fruit salad. I have to hand it to Chris. The 3 main foods he refuses to eat are raw tomatoes, olives and eggs. All were present throughout the meal and he survived it! It was delicious, but I set my expectations higher.

We continued our drive. Done with the High Atlas, we were now decidedly in drier weather and on to conquer the Anti Atlas - the desert side of this mountain range. Jagged windswept mountainsides. Horizontal grooves in the red clay walls. Here it was much more rocky and jagged. The boulders were bigger and more abundant. Tight switchbacks through the chiseled stone and clay as we climbed higher. The became air was cooler but drier and dustier. But in the distance...an Oasis! A densely covered area of grasses, palm trees and pink blossomed plants. The contrast of the red barren mountains and the green healthy vegetation of the oasis is truly unremarkable. We passed several oasis's throughout our tour of The Anti Atlas which are decidedly a sight for sore eyes!

We reached our destination, Ouarzazat, the quiet city and we were taken to our resting stop for the night, The Hotel Palmarie.

To Be Continued...