Travel Update 5 - More Rock'o

Leaving the outpost of Dakhla, I travelled northwards through the Western Sahara. Only three days it took me to get to Morocco. Comfortable busses on a straight stretch of tarmac. Many people warned me that some 1800 kilometres of sand would be boring. Well, it was not. The landscapes were awesome. Once again I was surprised by the diversity of the desert landscape of sand and rocks.

I found refuge in a city called Ouarzazate, beautifully perched between snow capped mountain peaks. Cold in the morning, but wonderfully sunny with an adorable twenty degrees C in the afternoon. I wanted to hike, but decided it would not be wise to try to figure out which mountain track to choose all on my own. I bought a map, which showed only roads, no paths, and for travelling by road all a Dutchman really needs is… a bike.

Three days long the bike carried me through the Atlas mountains. I have to admit that, for more than half a day, I had to drag it up a rocky road, too steep to bike, cursing why on earth I had brought the damn thing along. Climbing would have been easier without it. The way down, though, made it all worthwhile.

Leaving the Atlas mountains behind, I headed for the town of Fez. I hadn´t seen such a bustling tourist industry in years. And they don´t come in vain: The old city centre, the medina, is worth a visit. After getting ripped off by a ´guide´, who charged me for showing me virtually nothing and tried to sell me stuff at the same time, I decided to explore the medina all by myself. Undoable, the locals would tell me. Quite enjoyable, I experienced.

Then I escaped the tourist madness as fast as I could. I headed for Tanger, to catch a ferry to Spain. Europe, here I come!