Morocco Storybook Tour – Day 7 can be found here.
Another travel day today. We opted for a later departure so that the kids could enjoy more of their favourite pastimes. Namely: 1.) Running up the sand dunes; 2.) Rolling down the sand dunes; and a distant 3.) Sandboarding.
Exhibit A.) One very well-trodden dune
Everyone had another great night’s sleep – I expect helped by the novelty and exhaustion of the previous day. It also gets cold here at night, but they have some exceptionally warm blankets on the bed. Definitely helps one to fall asleep and stay asleep.
Unfortunately, sand is also beginning to get absolutely everywhere – both in our luggage and on our persons. So it is definitely time to go. We could likely manage another night here, but I think that would be about it. Two nights feels like the sweet spot.
However, we are not looking forward to another full day on the road. It’s been a lot of driving – including almost an hour and a half to and from the oasis yesterday – and we’d like to have a break. But instead, we’ll be driving 3 hours through the Sahara, and another 3 hours on the other end to reach Skoura.
But not yet. First, we have a delicious breakfast to enjoy, and the aforementioned sand-dune based activities.
And me? I get to drink some coffee, listen to the birds, and enjoy the cool of a Sahara morning. Well, and a bit of golf with the kids too.
Too much coffee to get a clear photo of the birds, apparently
Another delicious breakfast – the same as before with Moroccan flatbread and accoutrements, accompanied by a Berber omelette.
Then we finished packing. We’re getting quick at this – managed it in record time. So we sent a text to Ali, and asked him to pick us up early.
He’d hoped we might see some gazelles on the way out, as they like to graze closer to the Anti Atlas mountains. No luck, though we did see some tracks.
Apparently the gazelle, the oryx, and the ostrich were all dying out in this region – overhunted by the local towns and the nearby military bases. They’ve been reintroduced with the help of the Qatar Foundation, but the population has continued to struggle with the ongoing drought.
We also spotted a nearby offroad racing competition – a bit of online research suggested that it was part of the Carta Rallye, an amateur “rally raid” that spans more than 2,000 km over the course of 7 days.
We then did a little racing of our own – setting down to a good (but safe) pace along a dry lake bed, replete with a mirage and a Titanic-themed restaurant.
Image credit: Titanik Iriki Restaurant facebook page
This led to a conversation with Ali about how Celine Dion seems to have pervaded every country around the world – to which he confirmed that, in fact, Celine Dion’s songs were sung in Moroccan music schools.
We were ‘only’ off roading for about two hours or so today – less than the three hours we’d feared – but it still made for a long drive.
Eventually, we reached the town of Foum Zguid where we stopped for lunch at Restaurant Chegaga.
Sadly, it did not go as planned. Some sort of fight seemed to break out with one man attempting to throw a rock at some other men. This excitement seemed to have distracted our young chef, who served the chicken kebabs only partly cooked.
My wife was the one who found that out… and it’s a real shame, because the seasoning on those kebabs was excellent. (I seemed to be the one person whose kebabs were actually cooked through. That, or I have an inexplicably cast iron stomach. I expect it’s the former…)
So we ate their fries instead – which were quite good – and got back on the road.
We made a brief pit stop a little further along, where I managed to get a few shots from their rooftop terrace.
I’ve made a point of getting an espresso pretty much everywhere we’ve stopped, and I’ve really enjoyed it – it’s been a 5 minute interaction with a local business owner, but it’s helped to connect me to the people in Morocco in a way that might not have been possible otherwise.
Once more back in the car, and back through the Anti Atlas mountains:
Until the Atlas mountains themselves came into sight:
Until we arrived at Dar Faracha (House of the Butterlies) on the outskirts of Skoura. Total travel time was roughly five and a half hours, including breaks. Again, Ali made excellent time.
Carla (Black Tomato’s local partner) had said that – were she to build a house in Morocco – this is the kind of house she would build. Having stayed here, I can absolutely say why she would say that. It is gorgeous.
Grotty Tilley hat not included
The full three bedroom, two bath, one pool house is ours for our entire stay, with breakfast and dinner provided by the on-site staff, Mohammad and Ayesha. They very kindly welcomed us with a beautiful platter of tea, peanuts, and some kind of sugar cookies that I completely forgot to photograph.
I did, thankfully, get some of the view.
The house has a spectacular view of the nearby oasis as well as the Atlas Mountains. It’s also a beautiful temperature here, particularly after the heat of the Sahara.
We enjoyed some well-earned respite after our long travel day, reading and lounging by the pool before enjoying yet another round of Dungeons & Dragons and an absolutely delicious dinner of lentil soup, tajin, couscous, and some of the lightest, fluffiest chocolate cake I’ve ever eaten.
There was a brief hiccup when we – again – ran into some hot water troubles. But we figured that out in short order and managed to get it sorted. Alas, not before our children had their only lukewarm showers and went to bed. But at least they had a fire to warm them before falling asleep.
Tomorrow should be a semi-relaxing day. Only two brief excursions planned: a walk through the oasis followed by a trip to a nearby historic kasbah and lunch, and a sunset horseback ride early in the evening.
Hard to believe that we’re already more than halfway through the trip. It’s been absolutely lovely, but we’re ready for a quiet day.
Continue reading Morocco Storybook Tour – Day 9.