Gorge-ous

After four days of feasting and relaxing in Marrakesh, we decided it was time to bite the bullet and head East towards the Sahara Desert. Marrakesh was seriously hot, and we knew that the desert was going to be even hotter. Yikes! En route though, we had other fish to fry.


The bus ride from Marrakesh to Ouarzazate took us over the Atlas mountains and through some of the most interesting landscapes we've seen so far on our trip. The eastern side of the Atlas range is stony desert. The desolation was captivating as it was such a contrast to the lushness of Europe. Ouarzazate is the "Hollywood" area of Morocco, where big budget productions come to film their desert scenes. Conversation with the locals consisted of their encounters with the film stars they had met, fed and worked with and the nitty-gritty of film making. Our first person-hunt involved trying to find a man who generously housed Dennis in his last trip to Morocco. Unfortunately, after hours of walking around town and asking the locals, our friend Khandil was untraceable.

After Ouarzazate, we headed to explore the two most famous Gorges in Morocco: the Dades and Todra Gorges. The Dades Gorge had some lovely moments but Todra was spectacular. We slept in the Gorge itself and wandered in the surrounding palmeries. The palmeries are the genuine "oasis" in the desert. These things are the real deal, with palm trees, rivers, and highly productive gardens springing up out of what seems to be a barren land of stone. It is amazing to stumble upon such paradise after driving through hours of stony hills and plains. A true welcome for anyone lost in the desert!




After a few days of procrastinating in paradise, it was D-Day: Desert Day!

Happy Birthday to Suzi, Mateo and Alana (1st Birthday!). We hope you all had a great day. We would have called from Morocco but extortionate telephone rates made it impossible. Love you guys!