Well, we went to Morocco! It was absolutely fantastic! After a little deliberation we decided to leave the van in a carpark in Tarifa and hop a ferry to Tangier.
Fully braced for a third world comfrontation, we landed and set about getting our feet down, when we realised that this was NOT India and things werer different here. We stayed in a hotel where Kerouac and Burroughs had written classics and sipped mint tea on the slopes of a shaded cafe and watched the sunset where the Rolling Stones had hung out in their day. We proceeded to get completely lost and ended up walking almost every inch of Tangier before finding our place again.
From Tangier we headed along the Mediterranean coast to a small fishing village called Oued Lao. The hour long drive out there, squished 6 passengers in an old mercedes, followed some spectacular scenery. As the Rif mountains plunged into the Med, we wound in and out along a beautiful road often praying to make it around the next bend. Small fishing villages appeared between the mountains and sheer cliffs gave way to stunning beaches. As the tourist seasong is over we had the place much to ourselves and appreciated Moroccan cooking and hospitality.
From here, we moved onto Chefchaoun. This is the centre of Moroccos massive hash trade and every man and his dog could offer you some. This place is nestled into the Rif Mountains and provided a cool change. The Medina, a warren of small stone streets a metre wide formed an ampitheatre as it is built into the side of a mountain, and you could listen to children running and playing all afternoon from the cafes or the rooftop of our hotel. We smoked a shishah (the big water pipe often called a hooker) and visited a beautiful Kasbah. This was a true blessing and we found it hard to leave but the lure of Fes pulled us on.
Arriving in Fes, we decided to stay in the medina and not the new town. The medina is world heritage listed and has been preserved beautifully so that walking the 9400 little streets is like going back in time. We took a guide and visted all the main spots inculding the Fes tanneries, famous through photos and postcards. The stench was horrendous and they bargained like nothing weve seen, but we loved Fes and all it had to offer. The new quater was very nice and easy to get around, it offered a nice contrast to the madness of the medina.
After 2 nights in Fes we moved on to Asilah, which is on the Atlantic coast, in search of a place called Paradise Beach. It turned out that you couldnt stay at the beach and that a round trip would cost 20euros! After being informed the beach was not all that, we decided to skip it and move back to Tangier for the final trip back to Spain and the trip up the mediteranean.
Weve since come back and visited Granada where we saw the mighty Alhumbra complex, a beautifully preserved muslim castle and water gardens where too many hours couldnt be enough. Granada was a groovy place where sitting with a cerveca/sangria and eating tapas seemed the only real way to spend time.
We moved on up the coast and visted Valencia province. We drove in through the rice fields at sunset and the light burning onto the land was welcoming beyond description. We rolled into a little village called El Palmar, which is 11km out of Valencia and credited with being the birthplace of Paella. so of course we dinned, and how was it? Lived up to every expectation, worthy of a photo and totally satisfying.
Weve been spending the last fews days chilling on the coast between Valencia and Barcelona. This place Benicasm is like an episode from the Golden Girls as school is back and the beach belongs to the elderly. Its a little challening but you get used to it. Pictures of all these great places will be added very soon.
Love to everyone, we do think of you all and hope you are well
Rosh & Lozza