27 to 7.5C

Posted on October 28, 2024 by Clunegapyears

26th October 2024 – a climb in altitude, but plummet in temperature

We drove up to the Middle Atlas. Leaving sunshine and my shorts behind. To fog and some rain. J still in shorts! Shopped at Mr Bricolage to buy some nylon rope to replace chewed and knotted guy ropes, damage courtesy of one of the campsite dogs.

Stopped at Ifrane. Built in 1920s by the French. Ski resort so orange pointed roofs as against the standard flat concrete ones. Could smell the money – nice villas and a Maserati.
Picked an empty restaurant for lunch, hoping they would let Corrie in. 7.5C and J still in shorts! A good lemon tagine. €20 incl tip.

*Ifrane, built in 1920s … a weekend destination for Moroccans.* *And skiing here from December*

Changing landscape and monkeys onto Azrou.

*Onions piled up, drying on long stone walls, covered in plastic*

Met Brian at the luxurious Emerates Euro (! – name covering all bases) campsite – chat about routes going south – and we repossessed our wine stock, which is slowly dwindling….. winedling… Then on to Azrou for the booked accommodation – very spacious with bright pink living room!

27th October – Dayet, Day-not

Sunday dawned like a brass monkey at 6.0 centigrade!!! Summer Time finished in UK but no actual summer time here… we breakfasted and drove to look at waterfalls, lakes and rocks. The waterfall had disappeared – the lakes were dry (apart from me peeing on the side – J obvs). Arabic for lake is dayet. Apparently, most of the water is re-directed for irrigation. We saw a LOT of apple trees.

And the rocks were not exactly rocking in the distance, blurred by fog. But loads of sheep and hungry wild dogs..

*Rocks, just visible top left. The others are lost in shrouds of mist*

Back to the apartment for lunch. Tomorrow will race up to 10 degrees centigrade – whoopee – bikini time?

28th October -Another bloody cold day

A short drive to the Tioumiline Benedictine monastery. The King had inaugurated it as a museum to bring Muslim and Christianity closer. There’d obviously been some investment, but now the museum was shut, and looking through the window, some displays were on their side. Testament to global peace and understanding!

*The monastery had originally been been a boys boarding school for colonial drop outs. And then a large conference centre. Finally closing in 1968. https://www.archnet.org/sites/20485*

The place is now inhabited by monkeys and dogs. The joint barking and squawking were unpleasant. A tiny thin puppy. We gave him the dog biscuits we had. As we left, we spotted another dog, with what looked like entrails hanging out his bottom. Animal welfare here is worse than I’d anticipated. I read that Islam states that if a dog licks a plate, you should wash it 6 times and then with soil. 😔

The cedar forest museum was also shut. We drove and walked the track to a dead tree! Notable for its size and age. More monkeys and dogs.

*Lovely blue green of the ceder trees and grass*

Back at Azrou, the local museum was open. A few artisans were working in a neighbouring building. Lovely smell of the ceder being worked.

Being cold (c. 10C) with the promised rain arriving, we had lunch out. Well in, and Corrie allowed in. My tagine was full of potatoes and acted like porridge, warming from the inside.
Lovely landlord brought us an oil filled rad for the apartment!

*Azrou rock which gives the town its* *name*

Mountains and Caves

Posted on October 24, 2024 by Clunegapyears

21st October 2024

The first stop was Grottes of the Pigeons. No pigeons, but the car park(€0.30) money collector’s chickens. They were allowed inside. We weren’t. Peered through the fence and could see that there was a vertical excavation section. They’ve found evidence of human life from 100,000 years ago!!! Findings show that the cave was used as a workshop, for cooking, a necropolis etc. A major find is the oldest trepanned skull ever found- (medical procedure, drilling a hole – I googled that!).

We attempted to get to the grottes des Chameux but the whole road was closed under repair. Probably land slip. So we continued along the Zegzel gorge. It didn’t live up to its hype. Problem is, yet again, spoilt by gorgeous Greek gorges.

*We had our picnic just by the interesting section*

With the road closed on our end, I reckoned there had to be a way to join it part way along. The other option was to drive into Berkane … with no guidebook mention. The lure of ice cream almost swayed the decision, but I held out for the mountains. Anyone who knows me, will find ice cream loosing out, unbelievable.

So we took a non motorhome road with fabulous views, as well as steep twists. J wouldn’t look down! Back to the apt in Oujda.

21st October 2024 – Driving day

To be honest the only thing comment worthy was that the scenery was of 2 halves. The first half was a massive expanse of flat dessert. Not sand as such but dirt and small stones. Very few habitations. I commented to J that I wondered what they did for water. Outside one house, I spotted a tractor hooked up to a water tank. Don’t know what the other properties did for water. A few herds / flocks of goats / sheep, although who know what they grazed on as no scrub. A tough area to live.

The second half had a hilly national park to our left. We could’ve diverted to walk to a waterfall, but it would have added 1.5 hours in driving time to our journey. We saw crops and green things. Truly a drive of 2 halves.

We bypassed Fez to a campsite North of Meknes. Mostly motorway on our 5 hr drive and €11.90. Our destination was where Brian and Zoa were already encamped. Arriving before us is proving useful, as Brian scopes toilets, showers etc. We arrive and are greeted as long-lost friends by the owner, as Brian has pre-announced our arrival.

*This is the green half. It’s all relative.*

Chefchouan

Posted on October 18, 2024 by Clunegapyears

12th October 2024 – Chefchouan

15th October dawned dry after a night’s heavy rain – so tent de-erecting (new word?) was good. Each time (only 3 so far) it gets quicker. When K and I got together I was an apprentice for multiple erections – woops! No double entendre intended. She grew up camping. Interesting mountain drive – not for motorhomes! Lots of farming ladies walking laden with branches of trees – K thought one group was a donkey trail, until closer inspection revealed 4 bent over ladies of burden.

Arrived at the campsite in Chefchouan (phonetic pronunciation Shefshooan). The only suitable tent site with electric would have placed us in the way of running ground water! Manager offered us a hostel – beyond basic – we declined! Booking.com produced an apartment 300 metres away – 2 bed very comfortable – booked for 4 nights for €100. Delicious hot and powerful showers! Worth every penny. We drove into town and dropped laundry, ours and Brian’s – early supper – K and I had excellent chicken and lemon tangine – Brian had chicken with veg – Zoa was entertained by wild cats – they are everywhere

More Shefsauntering tomorrow Inshallah …..

*I only just managed to pull Corrie away from the bottom tray in time!*

16th October – Dressed for Rain

Another bad night. K ended up reading till 3.00am. Grr. Mindfulness daily Calm this morning was about appreciating unexpected moments of inactivity and trying not to fill them.
We collected Brian. Drove down to the centre. Collected the laundry. €12 for what must have been 3 loads. 😊

Did a mapmycity app walk, which took us through a couple of squares, along the fortified walls and to the source of fresh water. People do laundry done at the top. Then, the water is collected in the town as drinking water! All the walk was through pretty streets. And lots of crafts such as knitting, weaving, painting, pottery etc going on … evidence that not all the handicrafts are shipped in from China. And all the while, it rained. Full body wet weather gear, including wellies. Even the backpack has a cover.

*Complete fluke to capture the canopy and man str*ipes

Easy p.m. back at the apartment… to appreciate the inactivity!

17th October – a short Shef walk

I’d even packed a lunch. Didn’t get a chance to eat it as the walk was so short. But in the time (embarrassing 1 mile in 1.5 hrs) we could have done 5 on the flat. It was steep. Not helpful to watch a young chap stride up and disappear from view within minutes. Down was worse for me … I slide and my knee started to give out. Did at least one section on my bum! Ho hum. Refreshment at the water source!

In the afternoon, J, Corrie and I had another town wander, an ice cream and a tea. I found a lady selling knitted hats and jackets. I bought 4 big balls of wool from her … €15. Unbelievable value.

Friday 18th – Magic Moment

We had thought 4th night here a waste. We’ve been into the city 3 times now. But we had a luxuriant slow (as in up at 11.00) start. I even unrolled my pilates mat and, even better, used it!

Drove to near the Spanish mosque. The path started as steps, then became a scramble. I was thinking I’ll be on my bottom coming down again. And I’ve only just bloody hand washed the trousers after yesterday! But once at the top, we spotted the easy route down.

There are unexpected magic moments. And this was one of them. Great views. A cafe with chairs facing the sun. And a lovely traveller singing with her guitar. Not for money, but for sheer joy. We sat. Basking in the sun, and the sound.

*The Spanish Mosque up there. Some folk go for sunset*

A short drive back into town. J had an oj whilst I went into the castle. Unremarkable at €8, but a tower with views. My drink was apple juice … I was offered it with oj or milk?!? Supper on the square people watching.

Car now 70% loaded. And off along the N coast tomorrow.

And Breathe … Tangier

Posted on October 15, 2024 by Clunegapyears

Thursday 10th 2024

I’d pinned some sights in Tangier. Off we set with Brian and Zoa. the Hungarian Vislar. He (Zoa!) got sooo much attention from the men … cos he looks butch. Little do they know that he is a girl’s blouse. Most women and kids seem to be terrified of all dogs, even our puss, Corrie. And it’s obviously very unusual for Moroccans to see hounds out with their owners.

Tangier was a good intro to Morocco. Walked the medina and old walls. This side of Morocco is much more European due to proximity to Europe and occupation. Spoke to some young ladies during our coffee stop. “This is Morocco, so women are liberated and we wear what we want”. These ladies worked in expensive restaurants and wore Western clothes. One displayed her midriff!! When pressed … married women tend to cover heads. And in the country, women are scared not too. It’s shameful not to comply.

*So many British,* that an Anglican Church was built. Garden very much in the style on an English country garden with Mediterranean plants. Entrance gate guarded by a seriously viscious cat who wanted to take chunks out of our dogs.

*Hotel Continental top left. The place to partei, during French occupation*

Carrefour hypermarche on the way home. Booze in a separate section. A bottle of mediocre red €14. A young chap ahead of me needed a thick blue bag to conceal his bottle of vodka! But I do like the prices here for veggies.

*Two large tomatoes equivalent to €0.27*

Friday 11th

Do not trust any weather forecast. Weather here seems to be totally contrary. Parc Perdicaris called us for a walk. Interesting drive up along Rue de la Montagne. Super sized walled and gated villas. Security guards on many. I googled … min price >€2m. Rebat is the capital, so presumably the Ambassadors live there? So who lives here?

*About 30 street sweepers along millionaire’s row*

*Lots of locals out too … including* *solo runners* *and walkers of* *both* (*main)* *genders*

Walk was progressing well. Nice paths. Nice scenery. Till we felt the first drops of rain. Rain that wasn’t forecast till late pm. It turned into a monsoon. Having set out in sunshine, we’d no jackets. Suffice to say, we drive carefully back through standing water to the apartment … stripped off every soaked garment and had hot showers!

After lunch the sun came out. Forecast was rain! Back up past the huge houses to Cape Spartel. Every place we go has “officials” who “help” you park. But for a euro or so, we’re happy to have the car watched.

*Not much there other* *than* *where Med meets Atlantic. But busy with locals.*

The next stop was the Caves of Hercules, where he is reputed to have stayed before accomplishing his 11th labour. And the Barbary Apes are said to have navigated underground passages to inhabit the Rock of Gibraltar. Super busy with locals, and another €1 private car park.

At €8 pp entry, they were a little disappointing, except for the patterns where the rocks had been carved out

Last stop of the day was Asilah. Two brothers had a vision of lifting the town out of depression. In the 70’s, they invited artists to paint the town. It now has an annual mural (graffiti!) festival.

*To be honest, all this geometric stuff ain’t to our taste. Bristol has a graffiti festival and that is art!*

*The walled old city was worth wandering. However, there seemed to be only 2 gates. How on earth would folk evacuate if a fire, let alone fire tenders get in?*

Having eventually found a gate to exit the old town, we walked to the Jewish cemetary. Closed sadly. Retraced our steps for refreshment. I had a milk shake … a novel version as it was whipped cream, two ice cubes and smothered in caramel sauce … I coped!

The rush hour drive home was like being in a video game, but with higher stakes. No rules and nerves of steel! Clare and I have cancelled the hire cars when the family comes over to celebrate my 60th in Marrakesh we’ll get taxis!!!

Another oops!

Posted on October 11, 2024 by Clunegapyears

6-7th October 2024

Slainte folks – my first blog for some years (J here)….. on the sandy Spanish campsite of San Jose we met Karen and David – friends from Turkey Sundance Camping in lock down 2020 – but originally met on a boozy day in Espana 2016 – fellow motorhomers. They know this area very well – we perambulated along lovely beaches for 20km over the two days. Coffee and vino tinto we forced ourselves to imbibe – no difficulty there.

*Cape Trafalgar, no battle whilst we there*

*Snails* *attached to every twig and br*anch

*Surfer beach … lots of schools and lots of falling off. Super long sandy beach.*

On the second night we supped in a local hostelry – pizza, lasagne and excellent tuna…do I need to say vinlyrinto, oops, it was good !

On the walk home David did a good impersonation of Indiana Jones by leaping backwards through a timber fence into an eight foot deep drainage channel! Not intended but spectacular to see his feet disappearing ! Only a grazed elbow resulted… and all he did was lean on the top bar.

We drove to Veger with K and D – a spectacular town with all white buildings – a good walk and a little wine…

8th October 2024

It rained on our new tent overnight – what a cheek! Dismantling and packing away was better – the second time. K and D sent us on our way with beakers of tea and coffee – we hope to see them in December – hasta pronto friends…..

We met Brian and Zoa for a long day in Algeciras centre – ferry tickets and Corrie vet visit. An anomaly with her rabies vaccination (K: I was 18 days late with one rabies vaccination which invalidates her titer tests) led to more time in the port – another vet appointment tomorrow to see if we can actually travel to Morocco! The lovely vet had communicated with the Spanish Defra in the evening, and we were told to get another titer test done, which they will email to us. Appointment at 10.00 with the vet.

A late (8:00 pm) drive to our booked hotel – very smart and quite retro. The restaurant initially looked expensive but K’s dish of cod and my salmon were both reasonably priced and delicious. Bedtime in a large bed brought quite a few noisy little feckers – mozzies! Not the best sleep but an excellent hotel.

9th October

Being anxious, we were super early. Vet confirmed that there was absolutely no chance of Corrie having insufficient antibodies given years of vaccinations. She showed me a thick wad of titer tests done and emailed for other travellers. We could travel to Morocco!

We bolted to catch the 11.00 ferry, but gates shut at 10.50. So a long wait for the 2.00, which was 1.5 hrs late. Ho hum.

All very confusing on arrival. But Brian had travelled at 0800 and sent us descriptions of what to expect: through a scanner, customs, then sim card and car insurance. On being asked to open the boot, I explained we had camping equipment and that I had packed it. He sent us off, to the chagrin of the cars in front of us having to completely empty everything. Took us just over 2 hours, which I believe is quick.

We arrived in rain and wind at the Tangier campsite where Brian was installed. The chap wanted to charge €40 to pitch with Brian or €30 up a bit with no electric!!! All immaterial as we couldn’t get a single peg into the hard-core under the manicured shingle. Abort! Found an apt nearby for not much more. And we are dry!

Clune Gap Years

A journal and reflections of our motorhome travels

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