First Impressions: Morocco

It’s only been seven days since the boys set foot and bike in Morocco but it feels like months of touring. So many miles have been covered; over mountain passes, across deserts and through canyons. Morocco continues to amaze us.

Sean’s Impressions
Bonjour! My first time in Africa and my first time in an Arabic country has been eye-opening. Parts are hot, so hot that I’m constantly thinking about dehydrating and chugging more water than I’ve drunk in my life. The country itself is beautiful. Every part is a panorama waiting to be captured. We’ve experienced tourist towns and we’ve been in the wild. The people are wonderful, super friendly and very helpful, even the police who we passed at every check point, smile and wave, despite the road spikes.

Neil’s Impressions
After my initial “Oh shit! Welcome to proper Africa” thoughts, things have been awesome. Yes it’s a bit hairy sometimes. Cars overtake on blind corners, you share the road with trucks, people and donkeys. The road surfaces are a bit harsh but the Teneres’ love it. A cold beer is nice at the end of the day but sometimes it’s a little hard to come by and we’re too knackered to look for it. For the most part it’s been as expected, albeit a lot hotter but there have been a lot of nice surprises.

Geri’s Impressions
Being only exposed to the tourist towns so far, it’s hard to get a feel for the entire country. I’ve never been as hot anywhere as I’ve been here. It’s old, new, rundown, rustic, sandy and windy. There are palm trees, cactuses, deserts and rocks for miles. In some places it’s so wild and desolate you can’t imagine anyone living there and then you see a lone Berber walking with goats. It makes you think about extremes – wealth, poverty, mountains, desert.

Hot. Windy. Sandy. Camels. Old Peugeot and Mercedes taxis. Scooters. Motos. Tagine. Cumin. Dirham. Cats. Kittens. Coca Cola. Heat rash. Water. Donkeys. Carts. Hash. Goats. Sweat. Potholes. Haggling. Fish. French. Arabic.