We arrived late though it may be around 7pm. It felt very late as we were on the road for hours; the sun had already set and you can see the beautiful millions of stars in the night sky. The camp has to be the most beautiful camp I have ever been to.  The Auberge Derkaoua - Ras El Erg head of the Dunes is where we stayed. It is a permanent camp and can be accessed via the Auberge.

There were lamps lighted everywhere - on the main paths and in front of every tent. The desert floor was transformed by laying rugs and in the middle of the camp was a warm fire out and ready for us to warm up against with a nice glass of wine. The best part is ... there are flushable toilets - 3 of them - clean with toilet paper and all! How cool was that! This camp, by the way, is owned by a woman. She knew what we wanted :)

There wasn't too much too do as we had the camp to ourselves and we had to get up early in the morning for a camel trek into the desert.

There was a pat-pat on our tent at about 6 am and we got up and got ready as fast as we can as the cameliere and his camels were awaiting for us just outside the tents. We each got our own camels. They were not as stinky as some people say but they are cute and temperate in nature. They really like to mind their own business. Unfortunately, I forgot the names of our camels but we each gave them a psuedo name - Eva's was Benny, Sherene's was George and mine was Harold.

We had to cover ourselves with scarves as there was a chilly wind in the air. The cameliere was gracious enough to tie it properly on our heads like a proper berber though we almost ruined it (well Eva did) when Eva and I decided to roll down one of the dunes :) We couldn't help ourselves!

Waking up early in the morning and camel riding in the desert to see the sun rise was just an amazing moment that all of us will remember from this trip. Shukran Morocco!

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We leave the city of Marrakesh behind and head off to the High Atlas Mountains of Morocco towards the Sahara.  The drive is very long but the amazing terrain that Morocco displays is a geologist's dream come true. The land varies across the vast distance that leaves you with the feeling that you have somehow touched every part of every country. You can see the lush green land with olive trees or palm trees near streams of rivers. There are times where it seems like you may have landed in Scotland instead of Morocco.  As we made our way through, I was never short of amazement for this land and the people in it.

The people here are so hospitable - even when you drive by, you see kids and adults alike waving to say hello or wish you well on your journey wherever you went. You are always greeted with smiles and curiousity of where you are from. Driving through the mountains, we stopped by Mohammad's house for lunch. It is a little Berber village in the mountains and he tells us his many stories as we sat and had mint tea and almonds and walnuts before lunch is served. Mark (Mad About Morocco) has been so great in translating French/Arabic/Berber and the like to us and have also taught us some words to at least say Thank you and Goodbye and our favourite ... please :)

The weather has been cold and rainy here and with the rain brings many possibilities of landslides up in the mountains. Mohammad knowing these mountains well (and is a guide), suggested we check out the White and Red Villages that are just a couple of kilometres near his village. Magdaz was one of our stops but it was said the road was not assessible esp crossing the river. So we opted to go to the Red Village.

The path to the village was very challenging as the roads were rocky and narrow. We kept inclining and saw nothing but some people here and there popping up once in a while. When we finally got to the village, we were greeted by a crowd of children who were curious about us. We did take photos and showed it to them on the digital camera which they loved and next thing you knew, we were like the Pied Piper. Everywhere we went, you can hear the whispers and giggles behind us. One family invited us for tea. They shared the food they grew like the walnuts and almonds. They were such a nice family and were very keen and proud to show us what they did. They grew a special root, that we have yet to find out, that is helping them.

After tackling the mountains, we headed towards the Sahara where we ended up stopping at Mark's friend's grandmother who is a Nomad but has lived in the same place since 2006. She even built a small house there. The nomads usually move when the water becomes scarce but lately there has been plenty of water due to the rains. They invited us for tea while Mark gave them some photos sent by Russian travellers that were there earlier. They were amused with the photos as many people here have never seen how they looked like. We were able to spend time with the family after tea by heading off to help one of the daughters carry jugs of water back from the well. When we got back, we saw the SUV's alarm going off and I thought I saw goats jumping off of it. Mark thought it was the children. Perhaps it was both!!!!

We did get to the Sahara and the wonderful camp there with toilets (yes toilets) and such (will write more later). We got a chance to ride on the camels in the Sahara and watch the sunrise. Beautiful!!!

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The title is from the guided tour we are on now in Morocco. Right now we are in Marrakesh and staying at the Riad Elizabeth which is so very nice. The decor is mostly black and white and very classy with a Moroccan feel. The family who owns the riad runs the riad like a family so do not expect to have keys to unlock your room because you do not have one. Instead, it is all based on trust and the staff here is so helpful in every way. The cutest thing about this riad is that they named each room after their 6 daughters :)

We wandered about in the Medina in the old section of the city to take in the souks and a religious boys school. The school was wonderfully built - the courtyard had a pool of water for them to wash the faces and hands everyday and the rooms were quite simple.

We did not expect to do any shopping but we did! Eva did some awesome haggling and is now a pro at this. The people here running the souks as well as the people in general are very friendly. The speak French if you do not know Arabic but we have made an effort to try our sad French and also learn a few words for thank you and please :) The people running the souks can be persistent but overall would not be disappointed if you left with nothing. They are super happy just to meet you. The city in general is also safe to wander about. You can get lost in the Medina but we had our guide today Omari and he was fabulous. If you are here for the first time, it is definately recommended that you would hire a local guide.

OK ... this will be short as we will be heading out to the Medina tonight to try some local food from the stalls. Eva and Sher were able to last night and loved it. I was a bit ill and stayed in bed so tonight I will get a chance to try this yummy sheep head that Eva raved about :)

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