Apr 8
Tuesday was a long travel day from Fez to Erfoud, south through the middle Atlas Mountains. We had a quick stop in Ifrane, a ski resort that looked out of place in Northern Africa. Most interesting sight there were the storks nesting on the chimneys. We bought stamps to send home postcards only to find out a few days later, the clerk had cheated us on the stamps she sold us. I am guessing she pocketed the difference.
Our drive continued through Errachidia and the lush Ziz Valley arriving in our Erfoud hotel in the early evening. Erfoud is a village at the edge of the Sahara Desert and is fairly close to the Algerian border.
We saw distinct changes in the terrain on this bus ride – from farm land to mountains and then dry desert. We saw red rock formations, adobe structures, sheep herds. Our bus stopped for picturesque views over the lush Ziz Valley, known for date production.
Our hotel in Erfoud, Kasbah Xaluca, is part of a chain and is a delightful building in traditional style, decoretd with rugs, tapestries, fossils. The rooms are beautiful though the beds were very hard. We ate dinner at the hotel, a buffet that looked better than it tasted. The hotel has a flat roof and would be ideal for sunset views. We left dinner at sunset but the skies were very hazy so the photos were disappointing. After dinner, we sat by the pool and listened to some local musicians after dark.
Apr 9
Pat and I decided to skip the included Gate1 morning tour to Rissani and the fossil store to recharge and enjoy the hotel amenities before the afternoon excursion to the Sahara Desert.
The Sahara excursion was the bomb! We left the hotel at 3pm with four of us in a 4×4 vehicle with a driver. Once we got through Erfoud, a decent sized dusty town, we drove offroad most of the trip. There were mountains in the distance on one side and sand and red dunes on the other with only a few structures. The drivers were racing each other and spinning through the dunes for some adrenalin rush. Best to keep your seatbelt on! We made a stop at the tent of a nomadic bedouin family where we met a recently widowed grandmother and her five year old grandson. It was the only tent in the middle of the desert. The family tends goats and sheep, moving every 4 months. They have a separate tent for cooking. They were gracious to let us take pictures and offered us tea, though only Robyn drank the tea.
We had a stop at a beautiful lake where migrating flamingos hang out. Most of the 4×4 drivers took out their prayer mats and did their prayers in the sand.
After a drink stop at another Xaluca hotel, we headed over to meet our camels. We had our 39 travelers and another 50 people. There was one camel guide for every four of us. We all wrapped scarves around our faces and heads to protect against blowing sand. The camels were fairly easy to mount. They kneel down for you to climb on and you hang on tight when they stand up. The guide led his group up through the beautiful sand dunes. They stopped a few times for photos. It was a surreal experience that I am so grateful to have experienced.
We saw the camps for the overnight excursions which we heard were another great experience. However our trip with Gate1 did not include the overnight. On the way home, we took the road and got back to the hotel in 45 minutes. I was a little worried that we would be driving overland in the dark.