Day 263 : Goodbye Morocco…

After a late night out, I struggled to pull myself out of bed, before quickly packing up my bag to check out.  My luggage was absolutely full to the brim and bulging from its seams!

While waiting for the airport bus at the medina, a taxi driver approached to offer me a ride to the airport.  I told him I couldn’t afford to pay for a taxi and only have enough to pay for an airport bus at Dirham 30.  He tried to ask for more, but seeing that I wouldn’t budge, he agreed to send me in a taxi for the price of an airport bus.  I guess competition is tough! 

Goodbye Morocco!

Night Out in Marrakesh

I met Jamal at the main square, and before we went for a night out in town, he showed me around the 2 hotels he is managing, one of which is recently completed renovating and meant to be rented out as an entire house, while the other had rooms themed in different colours and furniture completed in the same.  It was all very nice! 

We stopped for an ice-cream while walking in the twists and turns of the medina.  I was surprised that while halfway through our ice-cream, a guy walked up to him and asked if he could have his half eaten ice-cream and Jamal just gave it to him.  Jamal must have caught my surprised look and he explained that it’s typical for Moroccan to share food or similar with the less fortunate – this perhaps explained why one old lady looked at me in disgust when she approached and spoke to me in Moroccan while I was in midst of finishing my orange juice earlier in the day!

 

Day 262 : More Marrakesh and Moroccan tea ceremony

After having a quick overview of Marrakesh yesterday, I zoomed in on the highlights closer to the old town which was worth a closer exploration.

Palais Bahia

This place is completely breath taking!  Comprising a number of courtyards all nicely tiled and decorated Moroccan style and extremely lavish.  It was built in the late 19th century,with a 8000 sq.m garden with rooms opening onto courtyards, and was intended to be the greatest palace of it time.

Day 261 : Exploring Marrakesh

With only 2 full days to explore Marrakesh, I decided to check out the explorer bus, which goes on both an “Oasis” route as well as a “Historic” Route, while allowing you to hop on and off at numerous fixed stops. 

I paid 145 Dirhams for a 24hr pass and was given a set of earphones which can be plugged into a audio console on each seat, providing various language options to listen to the tour narrative as well as description of the key highlights along the route.  Most of the seats on the Explorer Bus were located on the open air upper deck, and with the blazing Moroccan sun and a burning 38 degree celsius, I was very hot!

Day 260 : Enroute to Marrakesh, the vibrant city of Morocco

It’s off to Marrakesh after my last minute shopping in the morning!

I made my way to the train station and got ready to board the train.  Standardisation doesn’t seem to be the norm here in Morocco, as the train that I took seemed extremely run down, as compared to the nice comfy train I had taken from Casablanca to Rabat.  With no seat assignments, I was lucky enough to get a seat in one of the cabins which holds 8, of which half was occupied by a family of 4.

Day 259 – 260 : Rabat

Rabat is a 2hr train ride from Casablanca and is the capital of Morocco. 

The train ride to Rabat was very pleasant in a modern looking train, and upon arriving into Rabat, was greeted by clean and modern looking town. 

As usual, accommodation was challenging.  Prices were much steeper here as compared to the other cities, and most of the more affordable ones were already taken.  I visited a few hotels, before finally settling into a room at Hotel Central, located a short distance from the train station.

Day 258–259 : Casablanca

I arrived into Casablanca yesterday and it was the 1st time I experience cloudy weather since arriving in Morocco.  It got worse towards the evening, such that I wasn’t sure if it was due to the weather or if it was actually dirt or fog. 

Casablanca is the largest city of Morocco, and probably made famous by the 1942 romantic movie named after the city.  I was expecting more out of this city when I arrive, but it turned out very different to what I expected and everywhere within Casablanca seems to be under construction of some kind. 

Day 257 : El Jadida

I packed my gear and got ready to leave Aziz’s apartment in the morning.  Aziz suggested that I take a Grand Taxi to El Jadida, which leaves almost every 30 mins, rather than relying on a bus, which comes through Oualidia 2 times a day. 

A Grand Taxi is an old school Mercedes car, and for the route to El Jadida, it was usual for them to squeeze 7 people including the driver – 4 people in the back and another 2 in the passenger seat in the front.  I had previously took one for the route from Ouarzazate to Ait Bin Haddou, but that was just a 20 mins ride and without luggage. 

Day 256 : Last Day in Oualidia

I spent some time with Carmen in the morning, and explored some of the roads we have yet to explore around Oualidia, before Carmen made her way to Casablanca at noon. 

I have decided to stay an extra day to relax in the pleasant town of Oualidia, and also to spend more time with the company of interesting and hilarious people such as Aziz and Hissham. 

Day 255 : Oualidia and Seafood

Carmen and I woke up in the morning and decided to explore the town of Oualidia while Aziz went to work.  Oualidia is an extremely modern town, very clean and absolutely empty.  It’s located along the coast line and has a beautiful lagoon in the vicinity. 

Unfortunately it was too windy and as the wind blows, it was really chilly, that there was no way to spend anytime by the beach.

Enroute to Oualidia

I got in touch with Aziz, a friend whom I was staying with in Oualidia.  He suggested that we take a bus to Safi instead, a town next to Oualidia, as he will be going towards Safi that afternoon with another friend, and will be able to travel together to Oualidia from Safi. 

Carmen and I arrived much earlier in Safi than expected, so we found a place near the bus station and had an enjoyable conversation over a meal.  Both of us had similar impressions of Morocco – from the locals and the behaviour and their concept of time.  We also exchanged a number of funny stories, based on our encounters we had so far in the country, and it was interesting to finally hear a female’s encounter and impression. 

Day 253 - 254 : Essaouira

I had originally planned to stay 2 nights in Essaouira and this was shortened to 1 night due to my extended stay in Agadir, and was I glad it worked out well, as there was not much to offer in Essaouira.

Essaouira is a 4 hour bus ride along the coastline from Agadir.  The town’s activities are centred around the small medina, with a big fishing port located next to the medina.  The fishing port is characterised by the numerous blue fishing boats in the waters, and is bustling with activity during the day. 

Day 252 : Extended Stay in Agadir

Many whom I have met along the way, have said they did not like Agadir because it is a modern city.  But after experiences in the desert and the gorge , it felt good to be in a modern environment again.

It was also a huge reprieve to have no one hassling you continuously, or the feeling of being cheated by strangers along the way. 

In fact, people in Agadir are much nicer – I had put up my guard a few times at the beginning when people offered to show me the way, as I thought they would take the opportunity to ask you for money.  But all they wanted to do was just to help.

Day 251 : Agadir Beach and the Souk

While at the coast, I wanted to check out the beach of Agadir and took a 15 minute walk to the beach.  The shoreline was extremely wide and long, and I decided to walk from one end of the beach to the other. 

As I was walking, one guy approached me and started speaking in French.  I replied in English saying I don’t speak French.  He subsequently asked “Spanish?”, and although I could speak some, I said I couldn’t and can only speak English. 

Day 250 : Coast of Morocco – Agadir

Finding accommodation online outside of the main cities of Fes and Marrakesh was challenging, and it was even more challenging when there were no internet access in the places I had been over the last few days.  Not wanting to be caught in a homeless situation, I flipped through the travel guide at Hotel Marmar and took down the address of a hotel in Agadir (Hotel Tiznine) which looked decently priced, before catching a taxi to the bus station to catch the bus to Agadir.  And I was right, I had been ripped off by the taxi driver yesterday, as the taxi back to the train station only cost 4 Dirhams!

It was a 7 hour journey, and the view along the way although was rather barren, there were some impressive landscapes.  There was also a really beautiful sunset as we approached the city of Agadir. 

Day 249 : Ouarzazate & Ait Bin Haddou

I got up early and checked out to catch a taxi back towards Tinehir, in order to catch my 8.45am bus to Ouarzazate.  As I reached the bus station, guess who I saw!  The same irritating guy from yesterday waiting at the bus station.  I happened to catch a glance of him and immediately just ignored him, and caught him saying something smirk about going off without him.  He gives tourists a bad impression of Berber and Morocco, such a disgrace!

The bus journey towards Ouarzazate was about 3.5 hours, and on the way, I met a lady from Netherlands who had spent the last few years travelling in Morocco whenever she has leave from work.  She shared with me about her experience in Morocco and the people – very similar stories of what I have heard from others as well as my personal experience till date.  The locals will constantly hound you and will rip you off where they can, which is a huge turn-off for tourists. 

We soon arrived in Ouarzazate, and hopped on a taxi and asked the driver to take me to a hotel which I had pulled off from a travel guide.  I was surprised when we arrived that the taxi driver demanded 10 Dirhams for the short distance as the people at the bus company had told me that it should cost only about 5 Dirhams.  Being in a foreign land without the ability to argue my way through, I had to pay him the 10 Dirhams. 

Day 248 : Torda Gorge

My alarm woke me up at 5.30am while I quickly packed my stuff and got ready to leave the camp site at 6am, so that I could catch my bus at 8.30am.  Everyone was still asleep when I got out of my tent.  My guide got my camel ready and walked me back to the lodge.

While enroute, the sun slowly peeked out from the sand dunes and started warming the atmosphere, and in the distance, one can see tiny figures on top of sand dunes eagerly waiting to watch the sunrise.  Other than the sound of the camel trotting away, there was dead calm in the desert.

Day 247 : Sahara Awaits

I have seen many famous movies set in the Sahara desert, and never in my wildest dreams did I ever think I would visit the Sahara desert in person. So it was something I had no intention to miss when I am in Morocco.

My trip to the Sahara along with the travel plans for the next couple of days had been arranged by the Fes Riad owner, and all I had to do was to get my bus tickets to each of the towns.

After a 10hr overnight bus ride from Fes to Rissani, I finally arrived at 6.30am, and boy… was it cold!  Rissani is the bus point closest to Messourga, one of the entry points to the Sahara desert. 

Day 246 : Ripped off!

My plans in Morocco has been changing on an almost daily basis.  Up till this morning, I was still undecided if I will head to Chef Chawan or to the Sahara desert, but since Betty leaves in the evening, and I wanted to time my departure from Fes around the time she leaves, the best option was to take the overnight bus trip to Sahara! 

Day 245 : Discovering the Medina of Fes

It is back to the hustle and bustle of life in Medina, lined with opened shops and crowds in the narrow streets. 

We headed out in the morning with a key destination in mind to visit the famous tanneries, visit the sights along the way and to see what the shops has to offer. 

 

 

Day 244 : Day Trip to Meknes

We were informed by the owners of the Riad that shops are closed within the Medina on Fridays, and we were advised to hire a driver and take a road trip towards Meknes and visit some of the other nearby attractions along the way, such as Volubilis and Moulay Idriss.  So we got the owners to make arrangements yesterday night for our day trip out.

We woke up and headed downstairs to have our breakfast that was included with our accommodation, before heading out.  What a spread!!!  This is perhaps the largest breakfast spread I had so far on my whole trip! 

All the various types of bread and pastries, and as much as we tried to give each of the item a try, we were completely stuffed before we could savour every single item on the table.  We thanked the owners and headed towards the Blue Gate to meet our driver.

Company Finally!

Betty arrived briefly about an hour after I checked in, where we gave each other a big hug. 

It’s been a while since I saw Betty, and I felt relief on my part to finally have some familiar company in a foreign land after travelling for 8 months! 

We quickly helped her settle in, before heading out for dinner near the Blue Gate, and settled at a cafe overseeing the traffic of the Medina.

We ordered each a set meal, comprising of a soup, a main (I ordered a Chicken dish, while Betty ordered a lamb kebab) and ended off with dessert, while we took the opportunity to catch up on each other’s lives over the last few months.

Food was average (it definitely look better when we were there, than in pics!), but what I love most was perhaps the dessert, even though it was just a simple dish of cut oranges with a sprinkle of cinnamon… the combination was just yum!  I should do this when I am back in Singapore!

By the time we finished our meals, it was already about 10.30pm.  The streets of the Medina was almost deserted, as we made our way back to our Riad – a total contrast of the hustle and bustle I encountered during the day!

Tomorrow we shall start our travelogues together! :)

Day 243 : Unexpected Adventures or Culture Shock?

It’s the 2nd day in Fes, and I can’t wait for this evening, when Betty arrives in Fes and joins me for a Moroccan weekend. 

Having more that 10 hours before Betty arrives, I decided to first check out what Fes has to offer.  Armed with a map, I was keen to take a different route from yesterday (despite warning from the riad staff to stick to the other route, since it looked shorter on the map), and try my luck walking through the complicated and windy narrow roads of the Medina – hopefully without getting lost!

1st Day in Fes

The 1st day in Fes has been rather interesting and a little intimidating. 

Arriving in Fes just before night fall, I made my way to the hostel first via an airport bus, before switching to a taxi.  Unfortunately, the taxi driver seemed to have stopped me at a different location from where I needed to be dropped off, and I found myself lost in the narrow streets of the Medina.  It doesn’t make it easier when there doesn’t seem to be any street names in English.

Day 242 : Escape 2 Africa (not the movie)

It is the first time I am taking a budget airline in Europe as I boarded Ryanair bound for Fes, and OMG!  Did I feel like I was in a marketplace!

The overhead storage compartment was packed with suitcases and not even space to squeeze anything else.  It was also free seating and with numerous Moroccan family travelling with young kids, it got rather chaotic.

Day 241 : Dali & Surealism

The last highlight of my trip in Spain… Dali Museum.  Dali is known for its eccentric art, and I was strongly recommended to visit the museum by Konstantinos when I first when to Athens and it was also the first time I heard about the concept of Surrealism. 

Located in Figueres and about 30 minutes by train from Girona, I had woken up much later than I had hoped for (perhaps it was because I was still trying to recover from my flu).  I quickly got ready and headed off to buy my train ticket, and by the time I reached Figueres, it was about 1.30pm. 

Upon leaving the train station, I followed the signs towards the Dali museum, and after about a 15 minutes walk, I reached the museum and paid for my admission. 

Day 240 : Girona

Girona is a small and compact medieval town, and worth staying at least a day to visit the beautiful sights the city has to offer.  Most of its sights are centred within the Old Town, enclosed within the ancient walls. 

Day 239 : Typical (or not so typical) Catalonian lunch

I was invited to join Miquel and his friends for a Sunday lunch at his friend´s place, which he says would generally last through till evening.

We arrived at his friend´s place (Mariona and Fernando) at 12noon, and both of us couldn't believe that we ended up staying till 10pm before walking home!  Miquel shared that this is not common, as they usually meet at a restaurant and will typically be chased out by around evening, but this is the first time they do it at someone's house and lasted much longer than he expected.

Wrap Up : Barcelona

Dates : 2nd – 3rd September 2011 & 28th February – 3rd March 2012
Highlights :

• Gaudi Influence Architecture eg. Sagrada Familia, Park Guell
• Parque La Ciutadela
• La Rambla
• Montjuic
• Montserrat

Day 238 : Last Day in Barcelona

After spending 3 days here, I had not had the chance to visit downtown Barcelona, as there are just so many other things to do in this city. 

Since it is my last day here, I decided to make a day trip to the downtown area and re-acquaint myself with the city scene such as La Rambla, the port area, and get lost with the crowd.

 

Day 237 : Cirque Du Soleil

I have never seen a Cirque Du Soleil production before, but have heard rave reviews about their production from others who had seen previous productions such as Saltimbanco and Allegria.  So when I chance upon a brochure about their performance in Barcelona for a production called “Corteo”, I was excited and quickly looked online to check seats availability.

Tickets were pricey, and better seats were already taken.  So after some contemplating, weighing out the price and seat allocation factor, I decided to buy the cheapest ticket at €48.00, and hoped that I would still get a fairly good view even though my seat was in the last row. 

The show was taking place in El Grand Chapiteau, a special tentage set up at the Zoo Marino Platform, located next to the sea.   It took me a while to find the venue, and had to ask for directions in one of the nearest mall.  I barely just made it to the venue about 5 minutes before the show was due to start. 

Day 236 : Montserrat

Located 1.5 hour from Barcelona, I took a day trip to Monserrat, where it is well-known as the site of the Benedictine abbey, Saint Maria de Montserrat.  

There are a couple of ways to get to Montserrat, which often involves changing from a train to either a cable car or Funicular.  I opted for the Funicular version, and took a train from Placa Espana to a station called Monistral - Central, before changing to the Funicular.   

Dinner at a Catalunyan Restaurant

Just got back from a late dinner (late in my normal dining hour, but eating at 10pm is a usual time in Spain!), and had a great meal at "Taverna Can Margarit" which Davide told me was typical Catalunyan food.

Located in Poble Sec, the entrance was filled with wine barrels in all shapes in a long corridor.  We were each given a glass and was asked to help ourselves from one of the 4 barrels a glass of wine.

The options were between 2 red and 2 white, and I chose a dry red wine to start, while Davide and I sat down in the corridor to finish our drink before being seated inside in the dining area.  Davide shared with me that staff employed at the restaurant are gays.