Last 24 Hours in Morocco

After leaving Chefchaouen, we bussed north to Tangier and had soup in café Hafa, which apparently is where the Beatles used to go. You sit on terraces overlooking the Gibraltar Strait, and can see the lights of Spain across the water. It was too dark for a photo, but a very cool experience.

Then, the overnight train back to Marrakech.

Arriving in Marrakech after 10 hours on board

We had been looking forward to using our (hopefully) expert haggling skills to get all sorts of bargains upon return to Marrakech. Unfortunately, we discovered that the town was a lot more geared towards tourists than our memories of it from a week earlier. Amazing how much a week of travel can open your eyes! The shopkeepers weren't prepared to haggle properly, rejecting fair offers in favour trying their luck on the next unwitting tourist who didn't know better.

In the main souk

We were meant to be staying in the same riad as last week, but through a mix-up of theirs they had to move us to somewhere else nearby. To make up for it, they gave us a free three course dinner with wine, plus airport transfers the next morning! Now that's what I call good complaint resolution.

The next morning we felt ready to go home as we headed towards the airport. Morocco was a wonderful part of the world to experience and I would highly recommend it to anyone, but we sure were looking forward to a hot bath by the time we got on the plane!

Chefchaouen

I am in love with Chefchaouen. It is easily the most wonderful place we've been so far in our trip around Morocco.

Nestled in the Rif mountains in the north of Morocco, Chefchaouen is just a few hours drive from the coast. It boasts an unusual hybrid between Arabic and Mediterranean. There are just as many mosques as in every other town, and the architecture is undeniably Moroccan. Yet, somehow you don't need to be told that Spain is geographically closer than Mecca; you can just feel it.

And boy is it picturesque. The whole town, almost, is blue.

Our room

Sunset over the city, from the pool at our riad

Dinner

In the morning we woke up to the most spectacular sunshine we've seen so far in Morocco. We couldn't wait to get out and explore the blue back-streets.

The Rif mountains in the background behind the pool at our riad

A typical street in Chefchaouen

Powder dyes on the side of the road

  

The kids in Chefchaouen are gorgeous. Seeing that we're not Moroccan, they greeted us with "hola" by reflex. One thing they had in common is not liking to be photographed. This photo is my favourite photo from our entire trip in Morocco. She looked so cute walking up the stairs by the blue wall that I whipped out the camera. Instantly, she whips out this horrified look, waves her finger at me shrieking "no, no no!" I suppose I should feel bad for publishing it without her permission. But she's just too cute!

A highlight of walking the streets was climbing the tower in the ancient Kasbah. the view was stunning.

Back at the riad, we relaxed by the pool for the afternoon, wishing we could have stayed in Chefchaouen longer, and vowing to return.

Fes

My impression of Fes is that it's a more authentic version of Marrakech.

Frankie and I in front of the Blue Gate; the old town entrance nearest our riad

There's the same hustle and bustle, but it's much easier to get lost. The souks seem to exist more for Moroccans than for tourists, which leads to both higher quality and a better starting price. For these three antipodeans hoping to discover 'real' Morocco, it felt like a pretty great start.

A shoe shop closing up for the night

While Paul visited the museum, Frankie and I headed over to the tannery. A guide passed us a handful of mint to disguise the smell, then walked us to the best vantage point where he proceeded to explain the month-long process of getting raw hide to the type of leather we see every day. He also told us that the tannery in front of us was the largest in Africa, supporting 320 families. It began in the 13th century and had been handed down from father to son ever since.

Overlooking the tannery

I found a jacket I loved, but unfortunately their asking price was aimed at rich French tourists... even with heavy haggling there was no way I could get it down to a reasonable level.

We took an hour and a half to get home, lost in the maze of tiny alleys, dead ends and high walls. We're not even sure when we crossed the river to get back, but somehow found ourselves wandering into familiar territory and were able to retrace our footsteps back.

When we returned to our room there was a curious note from Paul that said: "on the roof (amazing!)".

We ventured upstairs and discovered a breathtaking view over the city. We sat there and chatted awhile before Frankie and Paul went to grab some dinner. Thankfully, I didn't have to watch them eat. I had a bath instead.

The next morning by daylight