Aussie Family in Marocco

After a relatively quick easyjet flight from Nice, we landed in Marrakesh and certainly felt the north african heat from the moment we arrived. We were greeted by our transfer and began the short but crazy drive to riad zanzibar ( traditional moroccan guesthouses ) within the medina. To put it simply, th ere are very little road rules in marrakesh and you certainly need to be agrressive to get past the people, cars, camels, motobikes, horse & carts and everthing else. We arrived at our lovely riad and greeted by the very friendly hosts Pascal and Asma. Ludo got a firm run down on how things operate in morrocco in regard to business, barganing, muslim rules etc then it was off to the world famous djemaa el Fna where all the action  & souks (markets). To say it was crowded and intrusive was an understatement but we soon got use to that (perhaps not Elodie). We found a restarant and tasted our first taginne which was not only super cheap but delicious. This was to be the first of MANY tagines over the next 2 weeks. We spent first 4 days in Marrakesh visiting palaces, parks, musems and wondering through the endless souks buying stuff ( hayley anyway) along thhe way. We found most of the same stuff everywhere, was just a matter of who offered the best price as barganing was half the fun! Hayley was lucky enough to be escourted by the lovely Asma for a shopping trip and no doubt got the local prices for her goodies and finished off with an amaxing massage, thanks Asma greatafternoon out. Enjoyed many great rooptop restarants overlooking the square accompanied by wonderful food & water!! Being a muslim country, very few restaurants served alcohol especially inside the medina. Seeing we will be livingvin France soon we saw this as a positive - mini detox and no hangovers!
Asma and Pascal suggested we go out on our last night in Marrakesh  and see the local night life. Bars, night clubs, fancy restaurants, Marrakech has it all!  Champayne everywhere, such a contrast from the medina. Later in the night we try to get into a night club but unfortunately we had to cut the night night because Ludo was wearing thongs! Sorry sir, No shoes no access, Ludo felt like a ... real tourist. Anyway we headed back to the riad to finish off a couple of bottles of wine hidden in Pascals cellar.

We then picked up our car and headed out from the maddness of Marrakesh towards the western coast to Essouira, the capital of the winds.  Lots of history as it was one of the main ports of the Triangle trade. We stayed just outside the town in another riad which was our little paradise for the next couple of days. Chloe was pretty quick to jump in the lovely pool. Being on the western coast meant we also got to watch the gorgeous sunset whilst feasting  on the local fresh seafood caught just hours earlier. We then travelled further south via the stunning coastal road, blue rugged ocean on one side, granite sandy rock on the other side with camels out popping out of nowhere.....what a contrast it was! We arrived at a non touristy and very cool surf town called Imsouane ( bells beach off morocco ) where we ate tangine overlooking the atlantic ocean.

Long long drive next day further south and inland  towards anti Atlas Mountains to Taroudant. We picked another great riad outside the town with another lovely pool which we were all very happy to jump into on another hot 35 + degree day. Oliver, a very friendly & eccentric frenchman owned the riad convinced us to change our plans which we were a little sceptical about! Staff at this riad were absolutely brillant, cooking us a gorgeous 3 course meal, playing with the girls, painting our toenails, washing our clothes and so much more! Highly recommend les bains berbers riad! Oliver was a spa consultant (yes that's right) and travelled all around the world to inspect the most prestigious resorts. No wonder his riad was great. Another very long and  hot drive but stunning and diverse scenery past many kasbas down to Tafraout where we picked a hotel on the hill because of its pool plus the bonus of a hotel serving beers which at this stage went down verrrrry well! The town is the highlight of the region with many berber villages around it plus the backdrop of the Atlas mountains - simply stunning. We also managed to visit a traditional berber house in one of the villages which was very interesting and like travelling in the past.

After 2 nights we packed up the car and headed north via a notorious dangerous road Tizi n Test where the saddle peaks at 2500m. After a thousand turns, a couple of stops due to car sickness (especially from the back bench) and 8hrs driving we finally arrived to another beautiful riad. Pool alcoves, fountains,  water bridge... Note that we never paid more than 500 dirrham - less than 50 euros per night for the entire family including continental breakfast (and the delicious fresh orange juice).  We couldn't get that price for a tiny room in a Formule 1 hotel on a busy French highway. Obviously this is not the listed price but there's always room for negociation which Ludo down packed...thr little family on the road far away from home etc. French owners were very comprehensive and Morrocan are crazy about kids. Elodie was our ticket entry to so many doors. She got so many stares, cuddles and kisses from everyone one. We could get free baby sitting every night if we wanted too!
We are now in an eco friendly resort on the foothill of  snow capped High Atlas Mountain. The view is absolute stunning with villages and mountains around us. The program tomorrow involves hiking with the plan: Ludo and Elodie in the kangourou bag & Chloé and Hayley on the mule. Rock and Roll.
We'll then head back to Marrakech where we'll stay at Asma and Pascals riad again plus a special guest: Christophe from Sydney and his motorbike for the next adventure.