(To follow the full Morocco trip, start at TRAVEL: Morocco 1)
STOP! Camel Time.
Tym and I woke for another run, briefly dipping a toe into the town of Arfoud before turning back. It's amazing how quick the temperature shifts from cold to hot. Upon returning we enjoyed another Moroccan breakfast, a recurring welcome staple of our mornings here. The rest of the morn was pretty relaxing. We tested out the literally breathtaking frigid pool and I finished writing about yesterday's travels.
As we left the hotel, the wonderful staff gave us bottled waters and a LARGE bag of fruit for our journey into the desert. We continue to be impressed by the kindness and hospitality at the places that we've stayed. For our one and a half hour trek, we hit barren earth just out of town. There were warning signs for dust devils and we saw quite a few from the road - thankfully not on the road itself. But strangely this arid scape transformed once more into a small oasis. These areas have man-made concrete aqueducts that run along the road. We saw a fossil house that had three full replication skeletons of a brontosaurus, triceratops and T-Rex. There was a Tae Kwon Do Dojo and a confusing sign of a woman milking a camel. This led into a town with what was surely a military training academy, with many people in uniform on bikes and milling about. The whole town was heavy with bikes.
In the outskirts of town we drove through what was almost a swamp, hosting small ponds separated by squares of raised earth - I assume for agriculture reasons. As soon as we were in the oasis town we were in the desert once more and could see the orange dunes in the distance. The color made it appear they were a simple painting or cardboard cutout, especially against the vast fields of black gravel leading up to them. We saw a town that stretched along the length of its base. And then out of nowhere, we were in a community of rapid development with a pair of cranes hastily constructing an apartment complex or perhaps a mosque. We past the same gang of German motorcyclists from yesterday and saw our first herd of unbridled camels.
Our destination was just off the main road, in a small castlesque building. We pulled around the back and went in, where we were greeted by Aziz, who would drive us to the camp in his dusty SUV. We used the restroom in the back of their wildly colorful (even for Morocco) restaurant and set out. The going was pretty bumpy as Aziz wove back and forth through sloped tracks and told us a little about his life and the surrounding area. We could see Algeria just in the distance. There were glimpses of white tents here and there and suddenly we crested a dune and we were there.
Two men met us, Mohamed and Husain, and promptly took our bags and led us to an open air tent with pillows and settings for, you guessed it, mint tea. The camp consisted of brown roofed huts wrapped in ornate cloth with metal black doors. There are ground lanterns and chairs and tables all made of the same metal in a decorative style common in Morocco. There were individual bathrooms along the back of the site with large trees guarding against the dunes behind them. Mohamed showed up with tea and snacks of almonds, peanuts and raisins and after a brief rest, showed us to our rooms.
The huts had a king bed, a couple of couches full of pillows with a center table, and tented ceilings. There were lights and sockets and windows with curtains. It was far hotter than outside, but we knew we'd come to appreciate that at night. The bathrooms had toilets, showers and sinks. The whole thing was crazy impressive being in the middle of the desert. Mohamed gave us the go ahead to check out the camp and the surrounding dunes before leaving with the camels in about an hour. We settled and took off around the dunes barefoot, taking pictures, ogling the camel pen and sitting at a table chair combo randomly at the top of a dune. Tym played with a large beetle he found and let it climb over his feet. The dunes were covered in tracks of little creatures like beetles and lizards, medium ones like dogs and rabbits, and large ones from camels and vehicles.
Then finally, it was time for camels. The beasts were laying on their knees calmly in the sand, all four lined up in a row. The saddles on the back had a metal grip attached, much like a bicycle. They were tied close together, the ropes looped into their mouths. We assumed they took out a row of teeth so they could stay secure. Tym was the first to get on and it was pretty scary as the camel lurched forward to get on its legs and again when the back legs came up. The guide sat a little on the camel's neck to keep it from getting up too early.
We each went one by one - I ended up at the front - and then we were on our way! We swaggered up and down the dunes, holding tight as the camels occasionally slipped in the sand. It make me understand why people like riding horses. Getting connected to the animal as you ride, following its gait, almost becoming part of it in the process. We were told they didn't have any names, so we took the liberty to christen them: Sidetrack (as he couldn't seem to stay in the line), Lil' Wheezy (because he wheezed a lot) Poopy! (The only camel to poop twice during the trip) and Benedict Camelbatch (because I was feeling clever; I regret now not naming it Camela Anderson). These guys made all kinds of lovely gastro noises and Sidetrack liked to chomp his teeth in a circlular motion. It all took about 15-20 minutes (which was enough for me) where we stopped at one of the higher dunes. The guide took our picture from multiple angles - he was quite the pro - and we dismounted in the same way we got off, with the guide holding the camel's neck and making a shhing noise.
The view is impossible to describe so I won't even try. We played about in the sand and took tons of pictures, of course. Tym leapt into the side of a dune and made a sand angel, ineffectively. Ellen made yoga poises for the camera and we made fun shapes with our long shadows. We saw four-wheelers zoom by and even an ambitious truck. At one point another pair of camelers came up the dune and settled by us. In no time, more sightseers gathered. It felt like Fourth of July with everyone vying for the best spot. One decided to roll down a dune and got so dizzy he looked like he might get sick. As the sun started to set, cars drove in the far distance, dust in their wake like chemtrails. When the last sliver of sun disappeared over the mesa, people clapped.
The journey back was rather uneventful at the desert cooled, with the exception of my camel losing its bridal and the guide struggling to reaffix it with a distressing amount of panic in his eyes.
Upon returning we found we were staying with a couple of other Americans, George and Terra from Portland, Oregon, retirees going on a sort of world tour. We sat by the fire for a while listening to some drums before dinner. They warmed the heads of the drums on the fire before playing, to tighten the camel-skin heads. Mohammed told us a little about the history of the Beber people, and how the are far more in the south here, with the Arabs and French speakers in the north.
Then it was time for dinner. The spread was enormous and just kept on coming, dish after dish. There was bread, spicy olives, cumin soup, avocado with salt, steamed cabbage, baked potato, rice with tomatoes and oil and a tajine full of zucchini, potato and carrot in an onion sauce. Ellen got lamb, as the only meat eater in the group. They asked if we wanted wine, the first time ever alcohol has ever gotten mentioned since the country is mostly Muslim. We didn't have any to keep the streak going and out of respect. There was way too much food and we ate beyond our limits.
The night ended with a campfire under the stars and another drum circle, this time with a large crew who sang and played these metal castanets in addition. They were very lively and at one point let us give it a go. I got too into it, channeling my dormant drumming roots, and bruised my ring finger. Sleep descended fast, and we turned in for the night smelling of campfire and ready for the sunrise ride tomorrow.
Tym and I woke for another run, briefly dipping a toe into the town of Arfoud before turning back. It's amazing how quick the temperature shifts from cold to hot. Upon returning we enjoyed another Moroccan breakfast, a recurring welcome staple of our mornings here. The rest of the morn was pretty relaxing. We tested out the literally breathtaking frigid pool and I finished writing about yesterday's travels.
As we left the hotel, the wonderful staff gave us bottled waters and a LARGE bag of fruit for our journey into the desert. We continue to be impressed by the kindness and hospitality at the places that we've stayed. For our one and a half hour trek, we hit barren earth just out of town. There were warning signs for dust devils and we saw quite a few from the road - thankfully not on the road itself. But strangely this arid scape transformed once more into a small oasis. These areas have man-made concrete aqueducts that run along the road. We saw a fossil house that had three full replication skeletons of a brontosaurus, triceratops and T-Rex. There was a Tae Kwon Do Dojo and a confusing sign of a woman milking a camel. This led into a town with what was surely a military training academy, with many people in uniform on bikes and milling about. The whole town was heavy with bikes.
In the outskirts of town we drove through what was almost a swamp, hosting small ponds separated by squares of raised earth - I assume for agriculture reasons. As soon as we were in the oasis town we were in the desert once more and could see the orange dunes in the distance. The color made it appear they were a simple painting or cardboard cutout, especially against the vast fields of black gravel leading up to them. We saw a town that stretched along the length of its base. And then out of nowhere, we were in a community of rapid development with a pair of cranes hastily constructing an apartment complex or perhaps a mosque. We past the same gang of German motorcyclists from yesterday and saw our first herd of unbridled camels.
Our destination was just off the main road, in a small castlesque building. We pulled around the back and went in, where we were greeted by Aziz, who would drive us to the camp in his dusty SUV. We used the restroom in the back of their wildly colorful (even for Morocco) restaurant and set out. The going was pretty bumpy as Aziz wove back and forth through sloped tracks and told us a little about his life and the surrounding area. We could see Algeria just in the distance. There were glimpses of white tents here and there and suddenly we crested a dune and we were there.
Two men met us, Mohamed and Husain, and promptly took our bags and led us to an open air tent with pillows and settings for, you guessed it, mint tea. The camp consisted of brown roofed huts wrapped in ornate cloth with metal black doors. There are ground lanterns and chairs and tables all made of the same metal in a decorative style common in Morocco. There were individual bathrooms along the back of the site with large trees guarding against the dunes behind them. Mohamed showed up with tea and snacks of almonds, peanuts and raisins and after a brief rest, showed us to our rooms.
The huts had a king bed, a couple of couches full of pillows with a center table, and tented ceilings. There were lights and sockets and windows with curtains. It was far hotter than outside, but we knew we'd come to appreciate that at night. The bathrooms had toilets, showers and sinks. The whole thing was crazy impressive being in the middle of the desert. Mohamed gave us the go ahead to check out the camp and the surrounding dunes before leaving with the camels in about an hour. We settled and took off around the dunes barefoot, taking pictures, ogling the camel pen and sitting at a table chair combo randomly at the top of a dune. Tym played with a large beetle he found and let it climb over his feet. The dunes were covered in tracks of little creatures like beetles and lizards, medium ones like dogs and rabbits, and large ones from camels and vehicles.
Then finally, it was time for camels. The beasts were laying on their knees calmly in the sand, all four lined up in a row. The saddles on the back had a metal grip attached, much like a bicycle. They were tied close together, the ropes looped into their mouths. We assumed they took out a row of teeth so they could stay secure. Tym was the first to get on and it was pretty scary as the camel lurched forward to get on its legs and again when the back legs came up. The guide sat a little on the camel's neck to keep it from getting up too early.
We each went one by one - I ended up at the front - and then we were on our way! We swaggered up and down the dunes, holding tight as the camels occasionally slipped in the sand. It make me understand why people like riding horses. Getting connected to the animal as you ride, following its gait, almost becoming part of it in the process. We were told they didn't have any names, so we took the liberty to christen them: Sidetrack (as he couldn't seem to stay in the line), Lil' Wheezy (because he wheezed a lot) Poopy! (The only camel to poop twice during the trip) and Benedict Camelbatch (because I was feeling clever; I regret now not naming it Camela Anderson). These guys made all kinds of lovely gastro noises and Sidetrack liked to chomp his teeth in a circlular motion. It all took about 15-20 minutes (which was enough for me) where we stopped at one of the higher dunes. The guide took our picture from multiple angles - he was quite the pro - and we dismounted in the same way we got off, with the guide holding the camel's neck and making a shhing noise.
The view is impossible to describe so I won't even try. We played about in the sand and took tons of pictures, of course. Tym leapt into the side of a dune and made a sand angel, ineffectively. Ellen made yoga poises for the camera and we made fun shapes with our long shadows. We saw four-wheelers zoom by and even an ambitious truck. At one point another pair of camelers came up the dune and settled by us. In no time, more sightseers gathered. It felt like Fourth of July with everyone vying for the best spot. One decided to roll down a dune and got so dizzy he looked like he might get sick. As the sun started to set, cars drove in the far distance, dust in their wake like chemtrails. When the last sliver of sun disappeared over the mesa, people clapped.
The journey back was rather uneventful at the desert cooled, with the exception of my camel losing its bridal and the guide struggling to reaffix it with a distressing amount of panic in his eyes.
Upon returning we found we were staying with a couple of other Americans, George and Terra from Portland, Oregon, retirees going on a sort of world tour. We sat by the fire for a while listening to some drums before dinner. They warmed the heads of the drums on the fire before playing, to tighten the camel-skin heads. Mohammed told us a little about the history of the Beber people, and how the are far more in the south here, with the Arabs and French speakers in the north.
Then it was time for dinner. The spread was enormous and just kept on coming, dish after dish. There was bread, spicy olives, cumin soup, avocado with salt, steamed cabbage, baked potato, rice with tomatoes and oil and a tajine full of zucchini, potato and carrot in an onion sauce. Ellen got lamb, as the only meat eater in the group. They asked if we wanted wine, the first time ever alcohol has ever gotten mentioned since the country is mostly Muslim. We didn't have any to keep the streak going and out of respect. There was way too much food and we ate beyond our limits.
The night ended with a campfire under the stars and another drum circle, this time with a large crew who sang and played these metal castanets in addition. They were very lively and at one point let us give it a go. I got too into it, channeling my dormant drumming roots, and bruised my ring finger. Sleep descended fast, and we turned in for the night smelling of campfire and ready for the sunrise ride tomorrow.
Out in the desert
on the back of a camel
I can't believe it
Today's Workouton the back of a camel
I can't believe it
Running: 3.1 miles
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