Sunday, December 29, 2013
Hotel Palais Amani- Christmas Eve
It was almost dark by the time we arrived, although we had been driving through "Nouvelle Fes" and along he walls of the medina walls (60 miles in total) for sometime. We eventually found the correct gate (there were originally only 7) and waited in a car park for someone from the hotel to fetch us. It ended up being very close, but would not have been possible or fine by ourselves. There are 8000 small alley type street- few signs, and as they are all in Arabic, one might say there are no signs. Also no cars- donkeys bring EVERYTHING in and out. Forget using an umbrella (it did rain a bit yesterday and we heard that it was major flooding in Tangier), as the passageways are not wide enough. Also everything is cobblestone so comfy and safe shoes a must. All women have at least a suni (head covering but you can see face) and some a seeii (covers entire face) and a jalaba (long robe with hood). Men also are wearing jalaba a or western dress(younger men). Our hotel has only 14 rooms on 3 floors- an amazing restored Riad with huge interior courtyard with beautiful orange trees and other plantings. More mint tea and hot towels as we were welcomed and given a map etc. it turns out that there are now color coded route signs which a tourist can (attempt to) follow- a route for historic sites, for the tanneries, for the carpet sellers etc. Our rooms were again very large with wonderful bathrooms (no tub but rain showers again. When we booked the rooms we had been told we would be obligated to dine at the hotel for Christmas Eve. Drinks and canapés 7-9 in a courtyard level common room where they set up a bar, as too chilly (it is 15C and drizzling now at 1130am and I am told was 5C at night but I thought warmer) for the 3rd floor Terrance where there is a bar. We showered and "donned our gay apparel" as it approached 8pm. We enjoyed the other guests, Simon and his wife from London whom now have retired to Avignon, an American family from California with 3 daughters ages 17, 15 and 13, and an Indian couple now retired to Calgary Canada with their son who had just arrived from Japan ( he went to Harrow...). We made our way to the dining room at 915pm. Four hours and seven courses, and having gotten almost the entire hotel to join us to sing Christmas carols, we retired to bed.
Our Toyota land cruiser and driver Ali
Ali comes from near the Algerian border of the Sahara. He says he makes 75 dhm per day and construction workers make 150 dhm per day. Beggars approached his car window and I asked about unemployment which why he shared his salary. Of couse who knows if it is true. He says anyone can find a job who wants to work. Is this not the way of the world.
Saturday, December 28, 2013
Sunrise in the east
I missed it. Despite setting an alarm and having awoke at 539am and gone back to sleep, I woke with a start as the sun poured through a crack in the door- it was 8. There was supposedly hot water but after letting it run a bit and given the air temperature inside the tent was quite cold- I put on my fire smoked clothes from yesterday and left the tent. A table had been set for us outside. The air was chilly but the sun strong and warmed us up quickly. Silvana was the only one who got up for the sunrise, but did not want to take a chance of a tongue lashing from anyone so enjoyed the beauty in solitude. Hot mint tea, yogurt, bread with the usual bowls of honey, olive oil, fig jam (delicious), another jam (maybe a0ricot), African Nutella. Hard boiled eggs, la cache qui ri chese, and coffee. Usually groups leave by 8am... Apparently it is very unusual to do a 2 day desert trip. We set off maybe 10 and headed toward our first stop in Rissani where we saw the mosque of the founder of the current dynasty as the family originally came from this area. We then were taken to a xxzxz with small dank , dark passageways made Andrwa gag. She and Niles ten recouperated in the sun and the rest of us were sheparded into a co- op store. Probably the nicest things we had seen and the prices also seemed good. There seemed to be some antiques - but how can you tell? I loved an old leather shoe with tassel and silver that was hung on the wall like art, a coffee grinder made of brass, silver and some special wood , tea glasses with an unusual simple silver stripe (would be a pain to polish), cool knives and swords, genie type oil lamps of all sizes.... Silvana was looking at rugs, and poofs, Julian at hookahs (collapsible travel size with its own carrying case). We ended up resisting everything.
Next stop the ancient irrigation system in xxxeach family had a row of wells about 10 meters deep which fed into an under ground river (now a tunnel) 15kn long.
Next stop lunch at an attractive restaurant that had been organized in advance by the company that arranged the desert camp and Ali our driver. Lovely private tables with vines thread through bamboo- however very crowded and we probably waited 20 minutes before someone cleared dishes from last people.. Food was great but when Ali re- appeared to ask how the meal was, we actually had just received the salad course. So- we were very rushed..... Next up
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