Le Zat Ouarzazate

... You can travel second class, which saves you 6 euro but also allows you to sit or stand with whoever you (don't) want First or second class it's definitely best to bring your own sandwiches, as they're more expensive than the fare. <br> <br>We stayed the night in Marrakech in a really wonderful Riad, Which a had a beautiful internal courtyard with a fountain in the centre, the guest rooms around the edges ...

Just quick entry to set the map pin. Suffice I lucked out and nabbed a guide in Merzouga who just happened to be headed to Marrakech to pick up 3 Spanish clients to guide them on a 10 day tour of Morocco.<br><br> Thus, instead of struggling w/ mind-boggling taxi negotiations to navigate to Quarzazate (about 8 hrs. from Merzouga), I ...

... contests - goat herding involves lots of stone throwing.<br>Some firewood gathering is involved &amp; the Berbers are into bread making each evening. There are other nomads on the move (some with tourists) and we get the invite to tea at a random cave complete with smoky fire; pretty soon if it's not dusty it smells of smoke.<br>Quite a lot of the trek is on dry river beds &amp; that is not the easiest - it's much more interesting on the ...

Ait Ben Haddou is one of the oldest Kasbahs in Morocco. Onthe way to the hotel we saw goats on the side of a maountain. And from the roof of the hotel I took pictures of the kasbah and the neighbors garden. We met 2 German girls the next morning and gave them a ride to Casablanca. They were lots of fun.

... We also managed to smuggle in 3 bottles of wine. So after most were in bed we hiked out into the desert night, set up a blanket and started pouring some drinks. Our guide, Yousef, then came out to join us. Following the wine was a few hours of Yousef singing Berber songs and us dancing to it under the clearest sky you can imagine. Today was less adventurous with just a lot of driving back to Ouarzazate ...

... morning as the sun heated us up like baked spuds in our sleeping bags. Last night we had gone to bed early but i couldnt sleep because their was some Ramadan festivities going on around the town like singing and drumming all over town. The heat is scorchingly hot not long after the sun rises and most people sleep during the day because of it, its only us idiots that walk around in it. It gets to 55 degrees here in Summer and we are just coming out of the Summer season ...

... Next morning: storm has stopped buses from leaving Zagora so we were bundled into a car with some locals and began our journey to Todra just as my (Steve) body began a not-so-well-timed series of evacuations. If I'd held onto a post with one hand I'da spun like a Catherine wheel! Meh....what can ya do but use every stop as if it's your last. 12hrs, 2 small taxis and 2 grand taxis later we were in the Todra Gorge, 15km north of Tinerhir ...

... the group went to visit a local Berber family for tea and cake. Paul was tired and so he opted to stay behind at the gîte, but Mel went along. The house was constructed in the same manner as our gîte and had similar simple facilities. The family kept a front living room to which they welcomed their guests with their best furniture and tea cups. The group was served some delicious warm cake that tasted like "ma lai goh" (Chinese sponge cake ...

... shake them off, telling them I don't have any money. One kid runs to the passenger side of my car and sees my 75-300m Tamron zoom lens, and says "Yes, you do have money." At this point I was getting rather nervous - the car wasn't locked. So I quickly went back to my car, luckily, because as I just got into the car, and just managed to push down the lock of the door on the passenger side of the car, the boy tries to open it. I close my side, having to really ...

... tired people who then climbed into the 4x4 for our trip back to Rissani. Also after Rashid's ultra cautious driving, the speedy 4x4 driver was not appreciated. We were relieved to get back in the Hyundai, and also the luxury of a much needed Air-con. The next leg of the drive took us through another amazing Oasis, to Todra Gorge. A huge gorge, with rock walls climbing as high as 300m. It was also the biggest tourist attraction we had visited ...