Monday, September 30, 2013

Sept. 28. Camel Ride in Desert.

Hotel. Chergui. We are in the desert. It is hot, dry, and Berber people.
Bedroom was dark. Small window that was covered with cloth to keep out the sun. High ceilings. All tile and our laundry dried in no time. This is the best hotel they can find in this desert area. The pool looked like an oasis.


Every bathroom has had a bidet.






All the meals were buffet. Good food and so many different items. They roast all types of vegetables. Salad of all types. Hot prunes, raisens. All cooked in Tangines.


As we left the hotel we were serenaded with music.



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We loaded into five four wheel drive Toyotas. This is one of the cars.



Nothing but desert. There were some building in the far distance. The sand storm made it hard to see.


Strong wind. It was hard to stand straight. Look at my hair!


Merzouga desert, sand dunes. Edge of the Sahara.
It took about one hour to get to the location of the camel ride. The road was paved, then stone and then just tire tracts. In a sand storm, the road would be covered. Bumpy and fun. We could see some Berber houses / tents. No schooling for the kids. Life is just survival. No electricity, Do not know know how they can live in such conditions. There was a hotel near They would need to walk to wells for water. where we rode. It we had gone on the OATS tour we would have spent two,days in this god forsaken place. And it would have been in a sand storm. Sleeping in a tent! We arrived at the building and were seated in a room. Sand was blowing everywhere and the building had quite a lot of sand in it, on the floor. We waited and waited for the storm to calm down. So the camel riders began to play music for us.



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Video of the wind and blowing sand.

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It was finally decided we could, would ride the camel. Jack and I got geared up. Scarf covering our faces with eyes out. Some people put a scarf over the entire face. I wore my RUTH scarf that Rosa And Ed bought me years ago..









Many of the men were not wearing shoes and there was camel poop everywhere. Notice how their face are covered.





My camera got sand into it and stopped working. Thanks goodness I got it working with a hair dryer and my finger nail. Luckily some one took a picture of jack and me. I had to take a picture from their camera. They left their iPad somewhere and it is being mailed to their home.



The young girls were sitting on a sand dune watching. My joke is - it was Sat. Night and they were Waiting for their dates. No true . When we were coming in from the ride, there were motor scooters coming from the hotel nearby.


Fattah, our guide.


There were 23 riders in our group. We were in the middle. I was afraid to turn around and photograph in the back and then the camera got the sand in it and stopped working.





Food at the hotel. You can not eat in local resturants. As it is my stomach is shaky. Only bottled water everywhere. And the Moroccans have to purify their water.
A plate of starters


Desserts.











One night we had the broccoli casserole hot and the next day it was served as a cold salad.


Salads


Raisins, beans


Chicken


Red peppers with ground vegetables



Location:Erfoud

Sept. 27 Midelt, Erfoud

The entire day was spent on the bus traveling thought the Atlas Mountains. Luggage out at 7:00. On the bus at 8:30. And we arrived at our hotel at 6:30. We went from plains with date tree to desert and up mountains. We made a stop , town Zeda, where I bought a lipstick for $2.50. Got out of the store and the cap broke on it. Now I need to find someone that will give me a piece of tape and maybe it will work.


Used a squat toilet. Many places you have to pay for the use of a toilet. And you always need to have toilet paper in your pocket. Many of the places, the guide Fattah will pay for the whole group to use the toilet.



This was at a stop in a ski town. Very modern and green.


Lunch was in a new looking building. The soup was carrot and no cream. I did not like the taste or smell. Must have been some spice. Then we had a whole trout which was the best. We were in apple country, so they served us apple tart for dessert.
Even in a new building there is detail.














The bus. We have a driver and what we refer to as the counter. He counts us every time we get back on the bus. Passes out the water. I understand he can also drive the bus, if needed and do repaired. We have the same staff and bus the entire two weeks.





Women use a branch of the tree to hit the clothing to wash them.








Girl getting water from a well.


Jack looking in from the other side of well. It was VERY deep to get to the water.


Rissani - 18 th century Ksar. Community is a warren of a
Let's. With doors to homes everywhere. Walled community we visited.


Old ruined mosque.





They need to use every area of the medina. These are storage nooks.


The kids came running to see us. We gave them pencils, candy. Even thought the guide said not to give candy. Turns them into beggars, which they already are. Then they did not want us to take pictures of them but they kept following and hounding us for things. A father / man came and yelled at the kids and then they stood back.





Lucky is the child with a bike. He can go all kinds of laces. I am not sure girls had bikes. I have not seem one woman or girl ride a bike. Here is the man that got the kids to stand back. The girls are not outside playing. It is just sad.























The inside of a restored mosque. We are not allowed to enter them.


We ran into a group of USA students doing semester abroad. Girls go to Howard University.








The date trees. Bags were put on the branch of dates.


A large clump of dates. Harvest time is October.





One not ripe date.


Sijilmasa- ruins of a trade center once. Tribe of Ait Attta destroyed the city in 1818.











Ceiling of house.


We walked through a persons house to get to a different part of the kasbah.



Ceiling in a hall.


Air hole in hall.