Day 9 - 31 December 2007
Trip Start
Dec 23, 2007
1
10
16
Trip End
Jan 07, 2008
Tinerhir,
Morocco
Friday, April 25, 2008
Group dinner
. John and I did our best to make her see sense but it was left to the ever patient Mohammed to calm her down. Just what he said to her, I have no idea but she later apologised to us for her behaviour and went on to have some sort of truce with Leoni for the remainder of the tour, thank God! She wandered off to visit a local family she had befriended so I was left in much longed for peace. I walked down the hill into the centre of Tinerhir, which is a pretty unremarkable small town set in the Atlas Mountains. The centre is modern and the villages around the two oases are mainly made from mud by the owners themselves. Apart from the lush oases, the only redeeming feature is it's close proximity to Todra Gorge.
The market was setting up so I browsed for a while, buying fruit and bread then walked back up the hill to the hotel. John was already stretched out on a bed with his book. I chose a nice spot with a great view over the valley and settled down on the sunbed in the warm sunshine. The peace was wonderful, the first I had experienced since Chellah and it was fantastic lying there, alone with my thoughts. After about 30 minutes, I could feel my eyes closing and I was about to fall into a much needed sleep when I heard a coach pull up outside the hotel. Out of it's doors spilled the most vociferous Spanish tourists I have had the misfortune to hear
Happy New Year!
. They swarmed around the terrace and pool, shouting in their deep voices, and that was just the women. I tried ignoring it but 10 minutes later found it unbearable so gathered my belongings and went inside for coffee. An hour later they had gone and I was able to continue relaxing and having the odd conversation with John. It was bliss. Strange to think it was New Year's Eve, it certainly didn't feel like it.Mohammed had arranged for us to have dinner at a small restaurant in the next village. Unfortunately it didn't have a drinks licence, so we decided to return to the hotel bar after the meal, to celebrate the New Year with a drink or 6. The restaurant was freezing so we ate in our coats, but the food and warm welcome more than compensated. Yes - another tagine but beautifully cooked and absolutely delicious. Kim had sneaked in a bottle of red wine and persuaded me to join her with a glass. Against my better judgement, I did but it made me gag and I had to leave it. Decided to wait until we got back to the hotel bar and then hit the vodka. Just after 10pm we said our goodbyes, and drove back to the hotel. Feeling buoyant after a good meal and pleasant evening, we charged through reception and made our way to the bar -WHICH WAS CLOSED!
There we were, stuck in a hotel in the mountains on New Year's Eve, without a drink to toast the New Year in with
Hotel Sahgaro
. Unbelievable! Of course, as far as the Moroccans were concerned, it was just an ordinary evening and the bar staff had gone home at 9.30 due to the bar being empty. We wandered around the hotel in search of action but there wasn't any. Everyone else seemed to be tucked up in bed. We found a large room filled with floor cushions, and here we stayed playing charades and other silly games, just waiting for midnight to arrive. The problem of not having a drink with which to toast the New Year was solved by me brewing up cups of hot chocolate on my trusty little travel kettle. Hilarious! What a bunch of party animals! On the stroke of midnight we hugged and kissed each other, sang Auld Lang Syne and then scurried off to our beds. Outrageous (if only).
