Not! Our drive to Marrakech was twelve hours driving most of the day through desert terrain and many Berber villages. We stopped often for breaks and a stretch. Naps took place in between photo stops as we followed the edge of the High Atlas Mountains for well over 300 miles.
We stopped for a late lunch at a remote village and Ali surprised us with a Berber "pizza" his brother had made for us.
After lunch we began our climb west over the mountains. The nice paved two lane highway quickly changed to a one lane road shared by cars and trucks in each direction. The road got steeper and narrower and passing was an E ticket ride at Disneyland...yikes.
As we approached the remote Berber villages high in the mountains the road became dirt and rock and at times barely wide enough for the vehicle. The steep drops on each side were unnerving.
We stopped for a visit at a small carpet weaver were Hans got a great deal. We visited an UNESCO site of an ancient mud village and climbed even higher. AND, then it began to rain.
We reached the summit of 8500 feet after dark. The downhill drive was no less exciting as we wove through the canyons and down into Marrakech. Good thing we couldn't see over the edge.
We arrived with wet luggage at our beautiful riad around 9 pm. Another 12 hour day on the road for the Leopard people and an amazing day!
The continuing adventures of Tom and Bobbie Lucido and the World Travel Club...this year we descend upon the Mediterranean starting in Madrid. We will travel through Andalusia to Portugal. Flying to Casablanca we travel to Marrakech before departing for Munich where we will spend a day exploring before catching our continuing flight to Turkey. Next we will board a Greek Isle cruise. We’ll visit ancient Greece before ending our nine week journey in Egypt and Jordan.
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