🇲🇦 Marrakech · Sahara · Chefchaouen · FèsInteractive itinerary
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Marrakech
Arrival in Marrakech and first impression of the medina: Jemaa el-Fnaa, copper and brass souks, madrasa and popular neighborhoods. Pick up of the Suzuki Jimny and dinner amidst the colors of the red city.
Almost missed the flight because of the time difference not calculated by the iPhone. Crazy souks: copper beating, brass lamps, fabrics and colors of the madrasa. Tour of the popular neighborhoods — face full of dust and exhaust fumes. Pick up of the Jimny.
Marrakech → Ouarzazate
Crossing the High Atlas through the Tizi n'Tichka (over 2000 m): barren landscapes, oranges from the farmer, and a stop in Ouarzazate, the Hollywood of Morocco, among kasbahs and film sets.
Endless hairpin bends, oranges bought at a stall, Ouarzazate closed or almost. First day towards the mountains with the Jimny.
Ouarzazate → Nkob
Crossing the rocky desert of Jebel Saghro: canyons, gravel, and black mountains. Google Maps ends in the middle of nowhere, but a local motorcyclist shows us the way. Arrival in Nkob, kasbahs and palm groves, with chicken and prune tagine.
Track disappeared from Google Maps, saved by a local motorcyclist's map. Chicken and prune tagine in Nkob that was worth all the effort. View from the terrace over the kasbah.
Nkob → Merzouga · Erg Chebbi
Arrival in Merzouga and the great dunes of Erg Chebbi at sunset. Jimny stuck multiple times, local guide deflating the tires, smoky bonfire and 'Berber' drums playing Waka Waka. Sunrise over the dunes without getting stuck.
Tent camp 80€ per person: tourist trap. Jimny stuck, recoveries, girls on the wrong dune. Bonfire and Waka Waka. At dawn, we all drove on the dunes without getting stuck.
Merzouga → Ifrane · Azrou
Ascent from the desert to the cedar plateau: landscape changing from ochre to green, sudden cold, snowball fight and encounter with Barbary macaques among the cedars of Azrou.
Total change of scenery: green, cold and cedars after the desert. Snowball fight and friendship with monkeys. Bought two 'salsicce' of dried figs.
Meknès · Volubilis
Meknes, a silent imperial city and monumental mausoleum, then the Roman ruins of Volubilis with intact mosaics under the scorching sun. Found a last-minute hotel from a somewhat shady guy, but clean and cheap.
No hotel booked: found a clean and cheap place thanks to a somewhat shady guy. Volubilis beautiful, heat like Sicily in August — jeans a wrong choice.
Asilah · Chefchaouen · Fès
Last intense day: ocean in Asilah with snails in broth, the blue city of Chefchaouen among carpets and shopping, and a grand finale in Fès with fines, bargaining, a tannery, and a slaughtered chicken at the market.
Moroccan highways surreal, snails in broth in Asilah, shopping in Chefchaouen, attempt to drown the Jimny. Fès: Marty's fines, reverse parking bump, 12€ hotel, haggling, tannery and slaughtered chicken. Return saved by a kind soul.
The Great Moroccan Loop
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