Hi and Shukran for a fabulous trip. I just can’t say enough about it. And, we have been talking with four couples who are so intrigued about our trip. We have passed along your information. Thankfully, we put Morocco at the start of our 5 week long adventure. Hamid was great. He was kind, very thoughtful in terms of the details he considered to make our trip great. He bought me a bouquet of flowers for our anniversary! It was very touching. We learned a great deal from him not only about the historical background but also about today’s Moroccan society, culture and politics. And, he was masterful on those crazy Moroccan roads. I was reminded that when you sent his bio, you said he was a good driver. At the time, I wondered why that was the focus of your positive comments. Ah, it quickly became apparent. He really made the trip pretty fabulous for us. I developed a sinus infection and cough. In Marrakech, he took us to a pharmacy and had conversed in Arabic with the pharmacist. I purchased an antibiotic. In 3 days, I was feeling great!
The riads were a fabulous surprise. Walking down the narrow unadorned alleyways of the old cities and finding a beautiful door was, in itself, a fun surprise. Upon opening the door, to that beautiful inner world of the Riad, was breathtaking. We loved the riads – everything about them. Each one was its own unique surprise. The staff at the riads were gracious, warm and we were treated like royalty.
The desert was beautiful. Hamid took us shopping for our scarves. I will send a photo later. He made sure that we got good quality scarves. And, the camel man was an entrepreneurial young man from a Berber family who settled in a small village. He owned the two camels we rode and walked 90 minutes to our camp and back again in the desert at night. We surmised that he navigated those undulating dunes using the stars or the camels knew how to get home.
I am grateful for the extra day in Skoura, as you said we would. We both had massages and tried the hamam. What a treat! We rode a very fancy horse drawn cart to the open market in the morning to purchase our vegetables, escorted by an employee whose education had focused on plant biology, with a specific interest in date palms. He was very bright and interesting. He told us about his family and I loved that he thinks his sister is the smartest one in the family. We cooked a tagine – mine was vegetarian and John’s was with chicken. The cook at the restaurant there prepared everything and the biologist translated her cooking directions. I have to say, it was great. We loved it so much, that the tagine we purchased here, when we returned, is in the sink soaking. Can’t wait to try it. I am hoping it came with some of the magic of the desert.
Debbi (Sept, 2024)
