Morocco day 5 – Fes to Sahara

The start of our longest day…

Up early for a traditional Moroccan breakfast our riad in Fes…

afterwhich we were picked up by Adil our driver for the next three days. He gave us a quick tour around the Ville Novelle, Royal Palais and Jewish quarter in Fes…

Before we headed on our way…

First stop Ifrane – also known as Moroccan Switzerland for it’s Swiss style architecture and nearby ski slopes.
(these photos really don’t do it justice)

To Ifrane National Park to see to see its Cedar forest, Barbarous apes and gorgeous lakes.

past a camp site

Through the middle Atlas mountains.

A quick visit with a native Berber family who live as Nomads  in the Middle Atlas mountains.

Stop for lunch at Medelt the apple capital of Morocco
(photo borrowed from the internet)

Further through the mountains

a dam (whose name they couldn’t tell us)

Past the stunning Erfoud Oasis
(suddenly the word Oasis makes sense)

On to Merzouga…

where we changed transport to camel and headed out into Erg Chebbi. We asked Ahmed our guide for the camels names and he told us – Whatever you like! Jimmi Hendrix and Bob Marley. So Eli and I left ours as Jimmy and Lachie called theirs Kevin.

We stopped midway to our journey to watch the sunset over the picturesque dunes.
(well some of us watched the sunset and others rolled up and down the dunes)

Then on to our tents where we stayed the night.  Dinner was a yummy chicken tangine (which Lachie luckily loved – phew!) and a desert of fresh fruit. Lachie ate three bananas!!!

After dinner we did a little star gazing and then went to sleep to the sound of native drumming humming across the desert. Good night!