Kasbah Hotel Xaluca Maadid Erfoud

... we'll head in the desert proper and camp there for a night before making our way back to Khenifra, my guide's hometown, for some rest, hammam, and homemade Ramadan breakfast. Still having trouble uploading pictures, which is a shame as I've been through some amazing landscapes, stopped in beautiful, quite spots, and met interesting people. Stay tuned for more.

... huge pile of sun burnt orange dunes - what a sight! We passed a heap of camels before arriving at our auberge where we would store our big bags for the night. We packed out little bags and had a bit of mint tea then hopped on our camels. I was the first one on but the last in line. Along the way i got some cool shots of all the camel shadows on the dunes. About an hour into the ride we were surrounded by ...

... morning some hardy souls decided they needed to get up and see the sunrise. I am informed it is very nice. Kawasaki made it all the way to the top again (no one else did, not needing to in order to see the sunrise), then looked back and saw his jacket up there and made it up a third time. As you sit there in the desert - atop the dunes or in camp - you wonder again why and how anyone ever crossed the Sahara, or thought to live in this landscape. I climbed one ...

... turbans, the four of us set off to climb one of the largest sand dunes in the Sahara, carrying all of our ski equipment. What I didn't realize is that at this time of year, the sand is extremely soft. So when you walk on it, it acts similar to quicksand (yes the same stuff from the movies). Needless to say, after 45 minutes of hiking with our equipment straight up the sand mountain, with a congested head cold, we were barely half way ...

... that you can twist the throttle and leave the annoyances behind - a far cry from the backpacking days, when touts clung to your backpack like barnacles until you scrape them off at the hotel of their choosing. Park the bikes, check into our Pension and then its time to immerse ourselves in the famed medina. If you haven't been there, think of the best bits of the Indiana Jones market scenes and stretch them all out to cover about 300 football fields ...

... think he has sold so much Coke in his life!! Coke is everywhere though - they barely have electricity and running water, but they have Coke. . . . . . Back on the bus for a long days driving to get to the Sahara desert, we were supposed to see the sunset over the Sahara, but we were late (cause of the walk) so we ended up having a night time under the stars camel ride. I'm not a good rider so I was not really comfortable, camel kept lurching in the soft ...

... who thought he could get us a two day camel trek for 500dirhams, but when we talked to his brother the price went up to 800dirhams. We bartered a bit and got it back down to 550, but the guy didnt seem too happy about it. The trek was great, the desert dunes were amazing and riding a camel is an experiance unto itself; watching the stars at night is something i will never forget, if not for the sight of an unblemished sky then for the hilarious stories that the guys told.

... little oasis: palmerie fed by a trickle of spring water, fossils for sale and a local musical group. Gnaou musicians are descended from the west africans brought as slaves to Morocco along the Arab slave routes. Gnaou music is fantastic - chanting, drumming and of course, we all have to get up to dance. As we wriggle out the door, CDs for 'Les Pigeons de Sable' are a Number One hit. The local school kids are waiting for us ... all 5 of them. Not a good showing for class ...

... as far as my ass could handle. I was a level of ass abuse I had truly hoped never to experience......again. On arrival at the oasis we dismounted and hobbled off like drunken John Waynes. Since it wasn't quite dark yet we set off to climb the gigantic sand dune overlooking the oasis to watch the sunset. Unfortunately, though, about halfway up I got some sand in my shoe and we had to stop. Meanwhile, Hassan was setting up a table and lounging area outside ...

... of making me a bit claustrophobic. The next day, we took an insanely crowded bus to Er-Rachidia. The bus went through the Atlas mountains, which were covered with snow and very beautiful. Lots of waterfalls as well. The bus was supposed to take nine hours, but of course it took eleven. It was a crazy trip, with lots of funny and scary moments. It would take me a whole page just to talk about all the stuff that went on the bus. I think it was the ...