Pictures: Lyle Such
Words: Thu Buu
Camera: Canon 5d MkIV
After breakfast, Mustafa filled us in on the plans for the day. It was another long day of driving through the desert. He offered to take us really off the beaten path to visit the Berbers of the desert. So instead of hiking along the valley floor in the Dades Gorge as was our itinerary, we opted for a little insight into another way of life in Morocco. We passed by some movie studios and a nicer, modernized kasbah that was not in ruins. Our experience at Ait Ben Haddou was too lovely and just enough. We stopped for a quick picture of the outside but decided to skip the internal tour.
A family of camels quietly grazing in the desert with no harnesses or colorful carpets on their back is a rare sight indeed. Luckily with Mustafa’s off-road adventure, we not only met a Berber family, but also came across these guys. There was no question of stopping or not. As we slowly approached the family, the older camels orderly walked away from us. The baby however was intrigued.
The camel was definitely not afraid of people; he came so close to the camera Lyle had to step backwards. The teacher in me had to address the problem. This baby camel needed a heart to heart on respecting personal space. When he approached me, I noticed how sincerely apologetic he was staring at me with those long eyelashes. His lack of manners was quickly forgiven.
Mustafa pulled off the road and stopped on the top of a mound. He got out of the car stating that we’ve arrived, which confused us at first because we saw nothing but desert. We followed him off the mound and realized that we literally had been standing on the roof of someone’s desert home. Desert Berbers dig caves about six feet wide and twice as long in the hillside. They burn the inside of the roof to keep it from crumbling. At this home, there are three caves side by side. One is the kitchen, with a gas stove and bags of provisions stacked around the perimeter. The other two caves are sleeping areas. Mustafa led us into one of the caves where we found the grandma sitting on a carpet. She had been expecting us and had the mint tea ready to receive us. The family we visited consisted of a set of grandparents who were watching over their four grandkids. The children’s parents were away from home watching over their herd of cows. Since they live so far from the closest village, the kids did not attend school. The grandma whose leathery face was etched with deep lines evident of the hard life she’s lived explained that she has ten children of her own. They are all married and many have moved away from the harsh desert life and are now living in the villages and cities. It has been a long time since she’s last seen them. As we left, our hearts were heavy from the encounter.
We drove through a small village right as school was letting out. Kids dispersed from the school, walking every which way. Hang had some candy she wanted to pass out. Our vehicle was soon surrounded by kids with outstretched hands begging for a treat. We quickly abandoned the mission and had to beep our way out of the situation.
Just past the village, the pavement turned into a bumpy dirt road with deep ruts carved into the path. We hadn’t expected to be off-roading in Morocco, but thank goodness we had a 4x4.
Our next destination was to drive up one of the curviest roads in the world in the Dades Gorge. We had originally planned to stay the night in this area and hike along the gorge, but since we still had a lot of sunlight left in the day, we decided to go on in order to shorten the drive the next day.
The steep limestone cliffs of this canyon make the Todgha Gorges seem exceedingly narrow. The low flowing water was deceivingly warm compared to the chilly wind blowing through the canyon. Our night’s accommodation was past the gorge, along some developing roads. The Moroccan government is also gearing up for a large increase in tourism in this area. A few new hotels and restaurants were also just breaking ground. At our hotel, we talked to the owner, and the same laments about private rights versus common goods were espoused; many homes have been collapsed as the roads have expanded after the government declared eminent domain in the collective interest of the country. The few remaining families will all likely relocate within the year.
Our hotel felt like we had stepped into the world of Games of Thrones. Take away the daybeds, cushioned ottomans, and replace them with simple long wooden tables and we would’ve invited ourselves to the murder banquet.
The next morning even though we knew Mustafa was carefully watching the time, we were adamant about stopping to explore the dense area of palm trees that filled up the whole gorge just outside the narrowest part of the canyon. Across the gorge, against the cliffs sat a cluster of abandoned dirt homes that immediately grabbed at our imagination. We conveyed to Mustafa that we’d be back in an hour, so if he wanted to nap, this was the time.
For some reason, I did not expect to see organized fields of crops and vegetable gardens carefully cultivated between those palm trees. That was just silly of me. Everywhere we went, we witnessed the life-giving powers of water. Whereever the river coursed, there sprung green vegetation and life. Especially in this desert region, just a soccer field away from the river, all is hard, dry and barren. There’s something romantic and haunting about ruins, as if you can almost sense the lives of those who used to live and love between these collapsed walls if you just look hard enough. We could have easily spent a couple more hours there, but we were on a definite schedule this day.
We like to try out Pringles in other countries. There are so many flavors of Pringles around the world that we are not privileged to in the United States. In Morocco, ketchup flavored Pringles are stocked at many travel stops. The final verdict , however, is NO. Two thumbs down, way down.
All morning, Mustafa talked about stopping at this shop where we can dress up in festive Berber clothing. Of course Hang and I jumped at the chance for some cheesy fun while Lyle looked on cringing. But we forced him to be our photographer and so he too can be labeled “those tourists”!
The Sahara Desert
All day the skies were gray and the weather forecast threatened rain. At lunch, we discussed alternative options but decided to proceed with our plans in the end. We made it to the Sahara Desert in Merzouga just in time for our sunset camel ride into the desert.
Our caravan consisted of eight camels. Riding a camel is anything but luxurious or fast. The camel’s steps are undulating and even abrupt at times. On downhill slopes, if feels like you’re being thrust forward as if the camel’s front legs are about to buckle. The funny thing is that the guide walks in the sand leading the whole caravan. We could have all walked to the camp just as well. It’s definitely a one-time sort of experience for me, I would say.
In front of us, behind us, beside us, other slow moving camel caravans noisily chattered as they made their way towards the same dune for the obligatory sunset picture even though there was no sun in sight. We did not feel as if we were in some far off desert, isolated from civilization one bit. On the contrary, tire tracks could be seen on some of the dunes nearby. ATV and dune buggy tours also share this narrow stretch of the Moroccan Sahara Desert. We even passed by what looked like a photo shoot. An elegant model dressed in a long cumbersome dress struck an elegant pose as cameras snapped away. If we had more time, a couple days’ camel ride into the desert may have given us the solitude desert experience we wanted.
When we arrived at our camp for the night, it was more than we had expected. We realized they had upgraded our reservation. Our tent had its own shower and restroom. Lucky us. Metallic lampshades cast warm intricate shadows throughout camp, adding to the mystique of the desert night. As we prepared for dinner, the promised rain appeared. We stayed a little for the after-dinner drumming entertainment, but quickly retired to our tent. The wind howled and rain gushed down on our tent all night long. Under what felt like ten layers of wool blankets, we did not feel the cold’s grip. Of all the nights during our whole trip that we wanted a clear sky, this was the night. Yet, it was not to be. No starry night photography for us.
We awoke to a quiet morning. The rain subsided just as we mounted the camels for our return trip. I had thought the camels would smell so musty from having spent the night outside in the rain, but they didn’t at all. Being the first caravan to leave that morning, we enjoyed the serene ride back so much more than the previous day. The beauty of the orange desert presented itself to us as we greeted the morning.
From Merzouga we had a six-hour drive through the Mid-Atlas Mountains north to Fez, where our desert road trip ended. It was a fantastic drive through varied geographic landscapes and amazing views. Driving through the forest we spotted Barbary macaques close to the road. These monkeys are so used to people feeding them that they have no fear of people anymore. One monkey went up to a lady and snatched her ice cream right out of her hand.
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