Morocco!

Morocco!

Absolutely loved Morocco and this last port was amazing and I really feel that I have ended this voyage in the  best way possible.

Day 1

 

Getting off the ship and into Marrakesh was LONG. Once we got off the ship at 10am it was a 2-hour line for customs. The line was crazy long and they only had 5 agents to process about 700 people. Took forever and there was one boy who got to the front and realized he forgot his passport and had to do it all again…
So Bridget, Morgan and I did Morocco together and it was awesome!

We got in a cab first thing once we finally got through customs to head straight to the train station to get to Marrakech. Our cab driver didn’t speak a word of English but kept spraying coconut oil in the car and all over us to cover the fish smell as we were driving through the port and it was hilarious even though the combination of smells almost made us throw up. The train to Marrakech only had 2nd class available and was very crowded and hard to find a compartment. We finally found one and Morgan literally sat next to the real world babushka. Ill post a picture later. Morgan had a box of cereal and as she was opening it accidentally spilled it all over the old lady and she stared to eat it off herself and she only had one tooth but was so cute and smiley. Then at one point she sprawled out and stuck her feet in Morgan's lap and then later when she rotated she basically had her head in Morgan's lap. We were crying trying to hold our laughter in. I was able to speak tons of French throughout the week and it was so fun to pick it back up and be able to communicate and understand and I saved our butts a few times especially asking directions with locals.

 

We got to Marrakesh and got a quick lunch outside the train station and took a cab into the old medina. The city is awesome! Finding our hostel took a lot of asking and figuring it out because there are no cars so the cab dropped us a decent walk away from our riad and we had to navigate through the very confusing and skinny waking pedestrian streets. There are so many shops and I wanted to buy so much! Tons of leather goods, ceramics, funky shoes, shirts, spices, fresh oj, snake charmers, etc. Our Riad/Hostel was definitely hostel ish but awesome- very nice staff and a rooftop terrace! We had a tour guide come to talk about options for the next day. We knew we wanted to do a camel trek in the desert so after choosing what trip we wanted we headed into the huge main square- Djema El Fna. We walked around saw the mosque, performers, street food, little shops etc. there was so much action and things to see! It was almost 9pm by this point so we got dinner at a roof top terrace Restaurant overlooking the square. We ordered this thing called a pastilla for appetizer and it was the weirdest thing- basically fried dough on the outside with chicken and almonds inside with cinnamon sugar on top- weirdest but most delicious thing ever. Other authentic Moroccan food is tangine- chicken cooked in pot with spices. After dinner we walked around more and got ice cream- duh. We went to a hooka bar and got drinks- they barely serve alcohol anywhere but our riad showed us this place and it was happy hour 5pm -1am buy one get one free! We chatted and wore silly hats and took goofy pictures until 2am then back to the riad to be up by 6:30am for the camel trek!

 

Day 2

We left the riad at 7am and met up with our group of 10ish other students from Illinois University who studying abraod in Vienna. One girl is about to do a sales and trading internship at citi this summer so she will meet Virg! And she was reading Kendall's dad's new book : The Bigs. So cool! On the way to the desert we saw lots of old Berber villages- basically one story buildings that the indigenous people live in that almost camouflage into the hills- absolutely gorgeous scenery. We drove through The Atlas Mountains which have snow at the top even though we were in a desert! Lots of time in the car but absolutely worth all the traveling because of all the cool stuff we got to see! We stopped at a UNESCO old Berber village and castle- there were gorgeous views and we had a yummy Moroccan lunch. At this location they have filmed Game of Thrones, Bible, Gladiator, Laurence of Arabia, etc- yet it wasn’t touristy or modern at all!

 

After a few more hours in the car we got to the desert and got on our camels! It was so awkward when they stand up with you on it. Feels like a sea saw and as they get to their knees them butt up then rise all the way up!  Everyone was in pain on the hour and a half trek on the camels especially the boys. There was a gorgeous sunset over the dunes as we rode. Sunset was also around 8:30pm! At the campsite there were about 7 tents around a campfire and eating tent. The stars that night were actually insane. There was even a meteor shower that night and I was able to show my friends some of the stuff I have learned in astronomy. The locals started drumming and it was one of the most peaceful and content moments of my voyage- lying in the sand in the desert listening to drums, watching the most incredible stars and meteor shower with 2 of my best friends- doesn't get much cooler than that.

One of the locals was a bit creepy to morgan so we had one of the boys from IU sleep in our tent to protect us! At one point in the middle of the night I woke up to go pee and it was still dark but I was the only one outside and was able to see the stars that only 5 hours later had rotated and I sat and watched the moon rise around 4am- it was awesome.

 

Day 3

 

They woke us up at sunrise with drumming and we were exhausted but the sunrise was beautiful coming up over the hills and dines. We had tea and bread for breakfast then camel trek back. It was another long day in the car but absolutely gorgeous views and had some really wonderful conversations with our new friends. We were back in Marrakesh by about 5pm and I showered quickly then we were back out to explore the city. We went to a very nice dinner to celebrate Bridget and my Birthday again! We got avocado and crab, chicken pastilla, veggies, and traditional Moroccan pancake bread- yum! Morgan surprised us and ordered a desert and they sang to us at the end! We went back to our hooka bar and stayed out late again. I feel so lucky to have such wonderful friends and we have had some of the deepest and most thought provoking conversations that have really stretched me and made me think and consider so many new ideas.

 

Day 4

 

We knew we wanted to take every advantage of our last port and see as much as we could so we were up super early again to head to Esuarra- a super cute beach town 2 hours away. We tried to get the bus but it was full so ended up taking a taxi there. When we arrived we knew we made an awesome decision because the town was like a more calm and gorgeous seaside Marrekesh. The old medina was all walking with windy little walking streets with shops, restaurants, art galleries, riads, etc. We walked around and had lunch at the best Italian place ever- all fresh homemade pasta- delish! I talked to the owner (in French) and he and his wife moved here from italy 20 years ago, opened the restaurant and they are the only ones who have ever cooked and served. We walked the cute town more, got crepes (lots of French influence) and “space cakes”, visited the port with the boats and just enjoyed the beauty and fun of being there together!

We got happy hour mojitos, margaritas, and caprihanas and watched the sunset over the water. We enjoyed a 4 hour dinner talking and just hanging out. Being there in the moment reminiscing on the good times of the voyage and thinking about all we have seen, how we have changed, and what we are looking forward to all in this setting was absolutely perfect. We headed back to our riad, hung out with some people there and were fast asleep by midnight.

 

Day 5

Up early again at 6am to make sure we made it back to Casablanca by on ship time! The streets were bascilaly empty when we got up which was a big change but really peaceful. We were hilariously exhausted and after going to 3 different bus stations, trying to figure out directions in French and time tables of buses we finally just got a taxi to take us back to Marrekesh then train from there to Casablanca. After 7 hours of traveling we had time to go the the famous “Rick’s Café” ( from the movie Casablanca) in Casablanca!! We made it in time for the buffet brunch and we stuffed ourselves with eggs, pastries, fruit, yogurt, pancakes (with real Canadian maple syrup!!), fresh oj, all kinds of cheeses, and delicious coffee- oh the joys of an awesome breakfast buffet! We even made it back to the ship with an hour to go! Almost cried getting on the ship for the last time- crazy how time really has flown….

 

Highlights:

bridget and morgan not showering once the whole time in morocco (I did twice!)

not having one single hotel reservation until the day of- (proud of myself because I am usually such a planner)

enjoying the last port with two girls who have inspired me in so many ways and are truly beautiful inside and out!

 

Its 4 days on the ship then London where I will meet up with my mom for a week of traveling through Ireland! I have one exam and we have the alumni ball to look forward to (everyone gets dressed up and we have a fancy dinner and dancing!) As the voyage is coming to an end it is very bitter sweet but I am going to live it up these next 4 days and enjoy every second!