On the road again

Leaving the desert - my story is that the camel ate my iPhone and I'm sticking with it - we began traveling northwest toward our final destination of Marrakech.  The first couple of hours was through the area which resembles west Texas, then into the foothills and spotty trees appeared as we climbed higher until cedar trees were abundant.  Now we were entering the High Atlas Mountains, up to 2400 meters (and that's a LOT of feet).  Winding brought the mountains is also the Dades River, along which are what's called "palmeries", great bunches of date palms crowded together.  Berber villages are spotted here and there along the river, and the people gather and sell the dates to make a living.  This paved road was once a caravan route and is still referred to as the Road of 1000 Kasbahs, because travelers carrying their goods on camels would stop in these villages to sleep in raids, ancient hotels built in a square with rooms around the exterior surrounding an interior courtyard for the animals.  We turned off the highway to follow the river into an incredible gorge with steep sheer cliff sides about 500 ft high.  No wonder it's a popular place for serious rock climbers; there are over 150 routes bolted into the canyon walls.  I took photos with my camera, alas not available until I get home, but you can see this natural beauty on the Internet - Todra Gorges.

Leaving the gorge, we approached our hotel, the Xaluca Dades, a charming place in a rustic area, high on the hill overlooking the valley below.  A great place to stay, one in which I'd be happy to revisit.  And I had my first glass of wine since leaving home!  There's no alcohol in my Muslim host's home...and little anywhere during Ramadan.  Great room, spotless, really a luxury hotel.

The following morning we continued toward Marrakesh.  My guys were great, Yousef, the driver who is also brother to the owner of the company (Morrocan Countryside Tours), who spoke little to no English, and Hmad, the guide, whose English is heavily accented and took me at least one day to become acclimated to it.  But sweet, attentive and considerate of me all the while.  Now we really got into the High Atlas and the curvy roads could be scary!  I silently questioned the need for seat belts because the cliffs were so steep with no guard rails that if you went over, there'd be nothing by scrap metal at the bottom!  Snap gets deep here in the winter and it's a popular ski destination.  Imagine, skiing in the morning and sleeping in the desert at night! Descending on the western side of the mountains, we came into the city of Marrakesh around 6 pm.  Happy Hour was approaching for the Muslims, as they could break their fast from food and water at sundown, which would be about 7:30.  We can't imagine voluntarily fasting from both food and drink (yes, even water) for so .  I