Barcelona to Paris

Elke had located us a hotel in Barcelona via the internet. The taxi driver had never heard of it, but his GPS and a phone book got us there in driving rain that night. Another strange bedroom, the bed just long enough. We watch Spanish tv news, rivers rising, flooding all around.
In the morning it is still raining. We walk to as many Gaudi buildings as possible, taking pictures between taxis and showers.

Stop for lunch to dry off then to the ultimate Gaudi building... the still uncompleted Cathederal.
It is quite magnificent, inside, the glass, the columns, the sheer audacity of it is mind boggling. There are interpretive displays describing the man and his work, scads of tourists and much for the eye to gaze upon.

The climb up is closed due to the weather and when the power goes off briefly we get a different perspective. Down in the basement (He's buried there!) more about the man and the work to create a building so grand.
Stepping out we ride the subway to the main post office to retrieve our shipped ahead mail from Algecera. Another ride to the train station to secure our passage north.
That evening we enjoy a nice meal at one of the many restaurants close by, it is great to have so many choices.
Later we hang out in a bar that triggers many student memories for Elke. I feel old until two very marginal characters come in. They're part of the group that sings, tells stories and makes noise outside our hotel room at the all night bar across the road.
This is another place to return to, the weather has dampened our enthusiasm and our Eurailpass has only three more days of travel within the week.
Onward! Into France. Matthew has been waiting patiently (I suppose) It's hard to tell when we're communicating via email on a Kindle. We change trains in Lyon and take the commuter line west to St Etienne. Then the tram to the last station as the train wasn't running any further.
From the tram I spot Matthew buying fruit. From the back across a street I recognize my son.
A wonderful reunion, a nice meal and a long bed. Finally, not a hotel! Time to reflect and kick back, see some sights and take the days without that sense of having to be somewhere soon.
We climb the hill behind  their apartment, finding magical mushrooms,

 and great views of the surrounding area.  Then descend into a clothes shopping spree with Elke. Actually it was a highlight!
We visit Matthew's fave coffee shop, Mary's and wander the town.
Sabrina, Matthew's partner was working till the weekend. The night before we take them out for dinner and have Raclette. Matthew is definitely in cheese heaven here.
Saturday morning we all squeeze into Sabrina's car and head up into the mountains for a hike; ancient stone installations, amazing views and menhirs!

Then south to visit her parents.
On the way we check out a troglodyte village up on the side of a mountain. A carved out hillside in sandstone, both new from the 1940's and older habitation side by side.

Another great meal, a lot of challenging (I thought I knew how to speak French!) conversations. Sabrina's dad tells me the river flooded to their stairway, it is just out of view across the fields, vineyards and orchards of this rural landscape. In the morning we do a tour of the Ardeche valley. We drive by one of those recently discovered caves covered in ancient art, paintings thousands of years old.
The river, a favourite kayaking destination, shows oxbows and arches in the rock, canyons to rival many others, narrow gorges and ...fog. Still beautiful and awe inspiring. Yet ANOTHER place to return to. Castles, one lane bridges and a long drive back that night.
Next stop Paris! OMG! the Paris subway, Montmarte, the Eiffel Tower,

Arc De Triomphe,
the Louvre and Notre Dame...
Yes all of that and more in two short days.
It is November after all.
11 Euros for a coffee and Hot Chocolate, beautiful glass in the cathedrals, stone sculpture everywhere, busts of the famous "fathers of France". An intimate little Italian, family run (many generations) restaurant, endless miniature Eiffel towers for sale, the list goes on. And Paris is so full of itself!
The metro was efficient and entertaining. I watched a fellow across the track, obviously feeling the effects of the bottle he was most of the way through, attempting to chat up a lady. He made eye contact across the tracks and we had an amusing exchange for both of us.
Suddenly the last day of the Eurailpass is upon us. In the morning we board the train and continue north, back into Germany.

Safi to Barcelona

Time to see the sea again. I choose Safi, pronounced Asfi, a confusing detail when buying a ticket to get there. The guide book had no information, only warning that El Jadida further north is the playground of the Casablanca folks and not really tourist oriented. The map was not much help either.
More dirty train windows. I was tempted to run outside when it stopped to wipe them clean, a risky venture without knowing how long we'd be in each station. Lots of people getting on and off, likely returning home from the holiday.
Arriving safely in Safi we schlepped our bags across the road to a cafe and sat watching the other passengers slowly dwindle away, picked up by taxis, trucks and buses. Since we didn't know where we were going it seemed prudent to ask someone in the cafe. With the little info we garnered I stood on the road waiting for a taxi.
Where did they all go? Eventually a fellow with a truck (we rode in the back to start with) took us from one hotel to another till a suitable room with a long enough bed was found.
The town has no real beach, a big harbour, a naval base and a promenade along the cliff. Walking there, we speak with a couple of men who talk about, among other things, the sulphur coming from Vancouver to make matches(?). I recalled the great piles of it on the north shore, visible from the Lion's gate bridge.
We wandered through the Medina and now having some experience, successfully purchased a few items.
Due to the holiday the only restaurant open was a specialty chicken place and what a deal! Soup, bread and a delicious spice mix on the more than abundant meal. No other choices! So much for seafood.
In the morning I found a manhole cover worth photographing.


On the bus north, fields and fields of vegetables both sides of the road and adjacent to the lagoon-like inland waterway. Looks like a great kayak destination.



The young men in the seat in front of us wanted to talk (French) and later in El Jadida they take us to a great hotel.








After arranging our room we headed to the beach where we saw a camel and pony (dog and pony show?) all decked out for rides along the sand. Our friends from the bus were having tea and coffee in one of the many establishments along the promenade so we joined them getting more lowdown on the town.

The Medina there is a an old Portuguese fortification, the souk or market takes place across the road and up a main street, fruit, veggies, spices and meats off to one side then clothing, pottery and everything else lining three streets around. I found us a place to sit at a juice bar, a triple coloured treat of avocado, strawberry and mango.

For the first time in Morrocco we saw beer for sale, although no women in any of the establishments catering to such trade. I purchased a few to go and we enjoyed a quiet beer over dinner in our hotel room.

The folowing day walking north along the promenade past football (soccer) players, surfers and fellow walkers spotted an immense seemingly abandoned building. I imagined... real estate opportunities...
On our way to the train the next morning overhead a flock (!) of Storks flying inland.

We'd been told "Casablanca is not worth visiting". Since we were changing trains there anyway, we enjoyed breakfast at the cafe across from the station watching myriad "petite"taxis dropping off and picking up. Each registered and numbering in the thousands! We made a contest of spotting the lowest number while waiting for our train back to Tangier.
Our plan had been to spend the night but it seemed possible to take the ferry that evening. After walking along the promenade looking to exchange our local money (good only for novelty outside Morocco) a generous cabbie dropped us sans fare at the ferry slip. More than one company and more than one ferry made for confusion.
The trip across, in the dark and rather rough made picture taking untenable. But the bus waiting at Tarifa was a relief, and I was happy to surrender my last piece of chocolate to a fellow passenger with insulin challenges on our way to Algecera.
Another night in the hostel next to the market, this time at the back of the building! Not a sound did I hear.
The (only) afternoon train in Spain ran mainly in the rain, through some awesome terrain... back to Ronda! And then on to Barcelona, one of our original destinations...

the tour

We signed up for a three day excursion. Bring a change of clothes, camera, water and some lunchtime snacks. But...
Buyer beware with these guys!
We found three different prices, possibly three different tours and everyone meets at the same place, at the same time is assigned a bus and we all go off together!
Does driving here in Marrakech look scary? How about through the High Atlas? Hairpin turns one after another as we climb and climb, snow patches beside the road. An incredible vista at every turn, drops of a thousand feet, tiny villages clustered in the valleys and up the hillsides. Jokes are made about all the pictures being taken, and I cannot take enough to really show what we experienced. At one point later on a group of motorcyclists went by, one had a camera on his helmet. Now that's how to record it.
I'm reminded of Afghanistan, Pakistan or Turkey none of which I have actually seen... A brutal landscape, the greenery limited to watercourses, rivers and irrigation once we are on the other side and into rain-shadow. Along the river benches; alfalfa, apples, apricots, olives and pomegranates, poplar, walnuts and almonds, figs and dates.
We visit Ait Benhaddou site of many popular movies and spent time wandering up through this mud and stone city that is at least 500 years old. Renovated of course but still evoking a time before this...
Then on through breathtaking geology, as the sun sets (pictures taken, out and through the window) into Dades Gorge.
In the morning, the holy day, we inch our way through the throngs dressed almost entirely in white returning from morning prayers at the mosque. Visit a vast garden valley and the Berber weavers. "No, as much as I love that carpet, I am not buying it." A visit to Todra Gorge and a brief stop to view ancient fossils polished smooth for tabletops and sinks, attractive, not within my budget and heavy. As I recall, we are backpacking.
The sand begins encroaching on the road. I see what look like animal pens with sand drifting in, some obscured in all but one corner. We approach our last stop of the day, the biggest dune I can imagine.
This is the Sahara, dune buggies roaring around on the big dune and a group of camels waiting patiently to carry us into the next phase of the adventure. We all climbed on and as the camels rose off their knees, they pitched forward, then back to upright. Once settled they strode slowly, rhythmically as the guides led us into the desert.
The ride was timed to coincide with the setting sun. Try as I might it was near impossible to capture as I grasped both the camera and the metal bar on the saddle. I pitched from side to side back and forth. Enraptured by the sand and flowing vistas, yet unable to capture much of it, I stowed the camera...





Near dusk we arrived at a small encampment of tents, where tea was served. Then music and eventually dinner, in tagine of course.

Rising early to hands clapping we packed and remounted the camels, to trek back in the sunrise. I wanted to spend an hour or three photographing shadow and sand, tufts of grass and tiny footprints.
Instead, breakfast then back in the bus. We stopped briefly a few times but drove constantly, arriving as promised back in Marrakech at the predicted time. Sadly, early on, the camera batteries gave out.
The sunset especially and vistas on return even more spectacular than the trip in. If I return I'll rent a car, stop when I want and take a few more days to do it, now that I know the route.

Marrakech

That song ran through my head, people got on and off, rain pounded against the windows, the train got slower and slower... 3 hours late it arrived. A taxi ride to the Medina and another Ryad.
In the morning we hear the bleating of an animal down below. Looking down I could see a grilled hole in the centre of the room into the main kitchen where the animal was being kept.
Looking up, another balcony and then a covering over an opening which used to be open to the skies. Makes for good airflow (drying laundry!) and interesting acoustics.
Up on the roof it was possible to see all around, the ubiquitous satellite dishes and mosque towers along with the hint of mountains to the south through the smog. Impossible for me anyway, to get a sense of where we were in the Medina with just roof tops as far as one could see.

Out the front door a press of people, mopeds and motorcycles whizzing past, shopkeepers enticing us with offers of tea and promises that we don't have to buy anything. Yeah right.

However there seemed to be less push, less intensity and I felt a more friendly atmosphere than Fez.

The experience there had jaded me slightly so I was more wary and we spent more time exploring outside the Medina, watching numerous sheep go by trussed and not, transported in all manner of vehicles.

I spotted Chicken of the woods (a mushroom!) in a park
and a dinosaur slide.




It was tempting of course, so many baskets, musical instruments, carpets and beautiful handcrafts. We watched a master craftsman felting bowler hats in rainbow colours and Elke almost bought some shoes.
Always there were more photographic opportunities, examples of the plaster and tadelakt in the Royal Theatre, museum and Koranic school, plus wandering around looking for lunch down one passageway after another finding ourselves not where we expected.











The big square beside the Medina in Marrakech, Djemaa el Fna is deservedly famous for it's musicians, storytellers, snake charmers and food stalls. Night time brings out masses of people, motorcycles streaking through the crowds horns beeping, l.e.d. lights shot skyward on mini parachutes, and every food stall with a man or two trying to lure us in to sit and eat. Each one "the best" and when a customer returns the next night spontaneous applause from the cooks and waiters. This IS a competition!
A variety of cuisine, from vegetarian to animal organs, including stalls dedicated just to snails. We had seafood one night, finishing off with spice chai and some strange dessert, looks like chocolate but isn't, sweet with a chalky consistency.
Standing beside a crowd listening as men played a variety of unfamiliar instruments ... wait I recognize the drum, the tambourine and is that a BANJO?!
We're "invited" in to sit after dropping a few coins in the hat. These masters of persuasion had tourists joining with the woman dancing. Elsewhere a heavily made up woman dancing... then the penny drops, it's actually a man!






In the morning the juice stand vendors won't let you by easily, not making eye contact is the best strategy, although fresh squeezed orange or grapefruit is hard to resist.


Water sellers, horse drawn carriages, henna tattoos for luck, incense and herbal remedies, knit and crocheted hats and men with monkeys.
Those last I found a bit hard to take. Give them money encouraging the enslavement and likely abuse of some innocent humanlike animal?
I don't think so.

In our travels around we saw many offers for excursions, to the desert, ride a camel, see the gorges. We negotiated a good price and in the morning, stood expectantly waiting...