Towards the source of all things...
Trip Start
Aug 04, 2008
1
18
42
Trip End
Oct 15, 2008
Khenifra,
Morocco
Sunday, August 31, 2008
After that, the rest of the day unfolded at a ever-increasing pace: we visited a very cool spot on a quite mountain lake, had a fire-cooked tajine of mutton and vegetables in the forest, drove to the source of a local river, the Oumrabiee, and drank its delicious water, and finally we were invited for supper at J's grandparents who live a few kilometers outside Khernifa - and it goes without saying that I was treated with (even) more amazingly-tasty tajine, couscous, home-made bread, and juicy honey melon...my mouth is watery all over again by just thinking about it!
Even if a lot happened, there was no feeling of rushing at any moment, and we took our time, enjoying the drive along narrow, and sometimes unsealed, mountain roads, cooking tajine surrounded only by nature, its silence broken only by the odd loggers' truck passing by, sipping tea in cool little huts alongside the river.
This last episode was particularly inspiring.
Maybe it was because by then I was completely awake and my energy were restored after lunch, but I was impressed by the way locals kitted out the place, which is a sort of minor tourist attractions: nice landscapes, the roaring waters of the river near its source, straw huts built against each other where people can relax and sip mint tea freshly prepared with the river's water...basically a gem waiting to be fully discovered by the Lonely Planet!
It reminded me a lot of similar spots in South East Asia, with the difference that while the source of the Oumrabiee is frequented only by locals and maybe some Moroccan tourist - I was the definitely the only fair-haired foreigner...- anywhere I went in Laos, Thailand, Vietnam or Cambodia I would find travelers and the category's trappings, guest houses, happy restaurants and TV sets with The Simpsons on.*
I might be generalising, and surely next time I travel the East I'll make sure I am with a local, but it's a known fact that most of SE Asia has given up its "untouched" status a while ago,, while Morocco seems to me to still be relatively remote if you exclude places like Agadir, Casablanca or Marrakesh...while driving from Tangier to Khernifa I was surprised by how non-touristy every town I was passing through looked. Or maybe it's the time of the year ...once again any comment and feedback is gold.
My point is, and with this I leave you my dear readers, is it worthy to end up on the Lonely Planet? Or any other guide for that matter, but the LP is definitely the most popular and can change places for ever.**
I personally feel that it may be, and I'm glad today that Vang Vieng was put on the map and I enjoyed being there, but where can we find a balance?
Ok, time for me to go. Stay Tuned for more. PICS HERE!
*Think especially of a village like Vang Vieng in northern Laos, which some of you may know.
**Again I'm referring to Vang Vieng in the description given on nice little book called "Another Quite American", written in 2004 (I think) by a young American living and working in Laos.
