By way of intro, my brother Nick got mugged for $700 in the Fes medina and my other brother Jeremy did a morocco tour which he liked so it made sense for me to likewise do a tour for this leg of the journey for enjoyment and safety as well as convenience given the country speaks primarily French and Arabic, languages in which I do not even know swear words
The tour guide told us when to eat, sleep, do wee-wee and poo-poo, and when to take happy snaps, I felt like a primary school kid which was a nice change to mix things up after foraging across India. Our tour group had lots of fun and friendly personalities from all walks of life and with a shared sense of adventure for this trip. Here are a couple of the real highlights from my perspective
1 the sahara desert
We rode the camels, camped under the stars, and heard and danced to traditional music, and there was one moment high on the sahara sand dunes when our group stood and sat in silence. It felt like the same silence that has accompanied travellers across the desert for millenia. I thought of loved ones lost, salama alicum
2. fes medina
This 9th century labyrinth of over 9000 streets but no obvious landmarks for orientation was designed to confuse any would-be invaders and stood as the world's largest city in the 11th century. The high walls and narrow streets mean that when viewed from a high vantage point it is not possible to see any activity which gives the impression like some Escher illusion that the city is abandoned when in fact it is bustling with donkeys, tradespeople, a thousand-year old tannery and more exotic things than you could fit on a caravan of camels
We did lots of other cool things, suffices to say: roman ruins, ancient stables, palaces, grand mosques, majestic mountains and gorges, souks and plenty of silliness with new friends
Below are some pics thanks to the many generous snappers in our group...