Oscar Ouarzazate

... thought that a 4 x 4 would suit are needs, as we were off to the High Atlas Mountains and the Sahara! However on closer examination at the rental car office a wreck of a Clio type car would be just what we wanted, they told us not to go off road or in the desert. We hoped not to return the car on the back of a truck, Chrisy said that it would be better if we didn't tell them about the Fiji hire car story ...

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 ...

... the family and get the tents up whilst Ahmed produces that Lamb Casserole with soup.<br>The goats live pretty much by daylight so it's an early night before the 5.30 dawn chorus.<br>The next 6 days then follow the pattern of early starts and trekking up to 6 hours and a lazy afternoon waiting for the goats to catch up. We climb to 3200 metres &amp; experience the temperature swings at that height as well as some residual winter snow.<br>Overnight ...

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.

... sat with the bags. Not sure what had happened but it was quickly sorted and headed through. I had hoped to get food just in case but we were late so we headed on through. The guy checking our boarding cards said that someone else was doing the race but we couldn't see a likely perosn. As we boarded Neil made hinmeslf known he'd packed all his stuff onto the plane. We were concerned in case he got seperated from his running shoes. We ...

... handler, we were heading away to Quarzazate then on to Ait Ben Haddou.... or were we? We have noticed that it is better to travel by bus overland because in a hire car or plane you miss being close to the people of the country and seeing how they really operate. Always just as buses leave, there seems to be a scuffle or brawl break out or somebody freaking out. Remember the guywith the axe? This time we think someone had snuck onto the bus with no ticket and because the seats ...

... melt in the infrequent desert rainstorms and disintegrate if not regularly repaired, resulting in plenty of ruined casbahs throughout the Valley. Our main stop in the valley was Ouarzazate, a Berber desert town and tourist center of the south with plenty of shops, hotels, and a large UNESCO restored casbah. Ouarzazate is also considered the movie center of Morocco and home to several successful film studios as its desert surroundings can easily double for many parts of ...

... because the group of children pull my door, with angry faces. It does eventually close and I start driving as fast as I can away, seeing in my rear window that the children start throwing stones towards my car, with hatred in their eyes. That was scary! Luckily none of the rocks hit the car, otherwise I would have had a large bill on my hands once back in Marrakech!<br><br>Because of my late departure that day, I only just managed to get to Aït Benhaddou that night ...

Ssalamu 'lekum!! We left the cool, overcast coast at 6:00 am. and headed east by bus. Three hours later we hailed a taxi to start our trek on the road of a thousand kasbahs....over the Oued Zat and began to climb up towards Tizi n' Tichka - the top of the pass over the Anti Atlas - winding our way through the valley of green fields, and beautiful scenery. Everywhere we turned a new little town (Aits "place" of....) appeared ...

... be snow on the mountain still even though it was spring. I guess i'll have to return another time in the future which doesn't bother me at all. We stopped a few times for photo ops High in the mountains. I almost feel like I would do it no justice if I tried to explain what it looked like. I might just save it for the pictures and even that won't offer any justice. I took a lot of pictures and at times felt I was strapped down by the camera. All ...