Winter Escape 2023: Part III Malaga 1

I arrived in Malaga after a quick and uneventful flight from Marrakesh; well, except for the 40 or so in the “Inspired Jewish American Women” tour group who livened things up at our 7 am boarding. They were on route to the Gibraltar bus tour leg of their tour. They were a lively crowd. Their …

Winter Escape 2023: Part II – Morocco 16

Last Day: Free Day in Marrakesh My last day in Morocco I clocked 17 km wandering the streets of Marrakesh. My first priority was to shop and buy some presents for grandkids but also do some sightseeing. On the way to the Souks, there is a lovely Cyber Park (so called because it is sponsored …

Winter Escape 2023: Part II – Morocco 15

On to Marrakesh! https://youtube.com/watch?v=iESvFdkdLEc&si=EnSIkaIECMiOmarE We left Essaouira the next morning for the hour and a half drive into Marrakesh and our hotel, where we would have a City Guide take us to on a tour to: the Bahia Palace, the Jewish Quarter and the entrance to the Souks beside the Djemaa el Fna Square, inside …

Winter Escape 2023: Part II – Morocco 14

A Day in Essaouira Nicknamed the ‘Windy City of Africa,’ strong "Alizée" trade winds make the city’s crescent beach popular for surfing, windsurfing and kitesurfing. but it was warmer here than anywhere we had been in days. The wind wasn’t very bad at all. Morocco’s Atlantic coast at Essaouira. I had a free day to …

Winter Escape 2023: Part II – Morocco 13

On to Essaouira! Goats in Trees, anyone? The goats eat the nuts and poop out the seeds which are/were picked up off the ground around the tree and used to produce argan oil. Now, machines are used to remove the pulp around the nut. I guess that guy didn’t object when his job was mechanized! …

Winter Escape 2023: Part II – Morocco 12

Day 10: On to the High Atlas Mountains for a Hike and Gite Stay Our circular route had us head north/west almost into Marrakesh and then an hour and a half south to the OuirganeValley and our destination: Armoud Village. We left Aït Benhaddou the next morning heading through the High Atlas Mountains. The sign …

Winter Escape 2023: Part II – Morocco 11

At Aït Benhaddou (Continued) I finished up the last post writing about Aït Benhaddou and its role as a TV and film location. I had too much to write about for Day 9 on our way to Aït Benhaddou, so I will resume where I left off at the last blog and continue from the …

Winter Escape 2023: Part II – Morocco 10

Tour Day 9 - On to Aït Benhaddou! After one night at the Hotel Amazur near the Todra Gorge we had another long drive to get to Ben Aït Haddou, but the driving time flew by as there were so many things to see along the way. Our destination: Super zoom lens on the way …

Winter Escape 2023: Part II – Morocco 9

Westward to the Todra Gorge! Yesterday I gave you a wrong steer when I promised today we would be at the Atlas Movie Studios. That is tomorrow, today we drove to the Todra Gorge, itself a pretty neat bit of geography! This topo map shows the route we took from the Merzouga Desert, bottom right, …

Winter 2023 Escape: Part II – Morocco 8

The Merzouga Desert Part 3 Our second day in the Merzouga desert was so jam packed I had to split it into 2 blogs! In the last post I described the 4x4 Desert Tour. In this post I will finish the day’s activities. We arrived at about 2:30 for lunch (yes, lunch time was generally …