(have posted some pix on facebook)
in no particular order..................just swept the inside of the truck. Dave the Canadian is doing truck security today so i left him to it. (last night some pesky little kids were playing with the lock). I am stuck here while the others are walking and climbing in the gorge, because my toenail half came off last night while i was putting my pants on. Canadian Sarah and Kiwi Craig helped by putting some antiseptic cream under the nail and wrapping it up. it had been getting looser recently. i would have preffered it had come right off.
Bush camping randomly off road has been fun. woken up in some beautiful locations. we try to set up camp before dark, 530pm, so its easier for starting cooking etc.
Yesterday we drove here to Tinehir and met Abdullah the Berber - our guide. He took us to the markets where we bought chicken and vegies for dinner. Then he took us to his brothers hotel for lunch (too exy so made me own sandwiches). Some of us got in the freezing swimming pool. So cold all over, no way you could stay in. Its warm here in the sun but it is winter and we are quite high up.
A bit further along stopped at Abdullahs guest house for the night. It is made of mud and straw. The location is beautiful alongside the gorge, red rock and the river. Japanese Mayumi, Canadians Katie and Dan, Pommys Mike and Jeremy and Kiwi Phil and i slept on the roof of the guest house under the stars, a very clear night so lots to look at, and when we woke all we could see was the sheer cliff of the nearby gorge, and blue sky.
Last night Abdullah showed USA Lena and Kiwi Craig and me how to prepare traditional Moroccan Chicken Tajine and salad for everyone. We did a good job, although basically its just a stew.Abdul became annoying when he kept asking us for alcohol.He is offering lunch today for about six euros - bread and soup. come off it, dude.
hoping my toenail sorts itself out before i miss any other adventures.
26.11.09
22.11.09
Fez, Morocco
Well in no particular order.....all is well on trip. Morocco is great, and as i said, the locals are really friendly. some nights we bush camp with no facilities, but for the last few nights in Fez we have been staying at a good site with hot water and loos.
Our driver is Gavin, a proper Aussie bloke, with a good sense of humour and is a safe and confident driver and should be a good guy to have in charge in the coming months, even though he and Summer, the other guide, have not been this way before. Some of us are a bit unsure why we are spending so long in Morocco. We have had a few "rest days" when we could have moved on. Still, a chance to do washing and chilling.
The 23 of us are split into teams and each team of 3 has different duties each day, but our team seems to have got off quite lightly so far. We did cook kebabs and cous cous for everyone when it was our turn. it took ages but was good in the end. Dinner is normally finished by pm and there is not much to do after that so most are in bed by 9pm. There is nothing to do, partly because the campsites are so far from, the towns.
But we did go out in Casablanca. We went to some very local pubs which was fun. not ,any ladies in the pub, and they might have been ladies of the night. The locals got upset at being in the background of our photos because Berbers dont like being photographed which we did not really know. Anyway one of them got chucked out for shouting at us and we apologised and it was fine. Then we headed across town in taxis intending to go to a posh club, but of course they didnt let us in cos we only had sandals on. The only other thing to do was to go across the road to Maccas. Not what we expected but we had a good laugh. In the morning Phil the Kiwi and I walked to the King Hassan 11 mosque, the third biggest in the world and very impressive.
We had a guided tour around the medina in Fez yesterday. You need a guide as there are 9600 narrow streets in the medina and they all look the same. Some streets were packed and pretty crazy. Lots of interesting sights and smells. Inevitably the guide took us to a carpet shop after promising that he wouldnt, so some of us just waited outside.
Have run a couple of times, just a few kms. A couple of the other guys have been doing weights, with gerry cans of water and Gavin does his fancy yoga so i thought i should do something.
well thats all for now. this is a french keybo*ard so keys are in the wrong plqce....doing ,y head in.
tried to upload pics but its too slow. next few days in the mountains....
Our driver is Gavin, a proper Aussie bloke, with a good sense of humour and is a safe and confident driver and should be a good guy to have in charge in the coming months, even though he and Summer, the other guide, have not been this way before. Some of us are a bit unsure why we are spending so long in Morocco. We have had a few "rest days" when we could have moved on. Still, a chance to do washing and chilling.
The 23 of us are split into teams and each team of 3 has different duties each day, but our team seems to have got off quite lightly so far. We did cook kebabs and cous cous for everyone when it was our turn. it took ages but was good in the end. Dinner is normally finished by pm and there is not much to do after that so most are in bed by 9pm. There is nothing to do, partly because the campsites are so far from, the towns.
But we did go out in Casablanca. We went to some very local pubs which was fun. not ,any ladies in the pub, and they might have been ladies of the night. The locals got upset at being in the background of our photos because Berbers dont like being photographed which we did not really know. Anyway one of them got chucked out for shouting at us and we apologised and it was fine. Then we headed across town in taxis intending to go to a posh club, but of course they didnt let us in cos we only had sandals on. The only other thing to do was to go across the road to Maccas. Not what we expected but we had a good laugh. In the morning Phil the Kiwi and I walked to the King Hassan 11 mosque, the third biggest in the world and very impressive.
We had a guided tour around the medina in Fez yesterday. You need a guide as there are 9600 narrow streets in the medina and they all look the same. Some streets were packed and pretty crazy. Lots of interesting sights and smells. Inevitably the guide took us to a carpet shop after promising that he wouldnt, so some of us just waited outside.
Have run a couple of times, just a few kms. A couple of the other guys have been doing weights, with gerry cans of water and Gavin does his fancy yoga so i thought i should do something.
well thats all for now. this is a french keybo*ard so keys are in the wrong plqce....doing ,y head in.
tried to upload pics but its too slow. next few days in the mountains....
17.11.09
Morocco
sorry it took me a while to get in touch. all good. sitting in a small
dark room above a shop in a side street in casablanca. some of us took
a side trip here for the night from our camp site in rabat. not that
it qualifies as a campsite since the only facilities are four squat
toilets; only one with a door. have seen some nice mountains and
towns on the way and camped in the middle of nowhere for one night.
rustic and nice scenery. the locals seem really friendly and have
helped with directions. the train was better than a sydney train. the
other travellers are cool. still getting to know eachother a bit.
national holiday here tomorrow so out on the town/beach for a few
drinks. the atlantic coastline and huge waves are awesome.
there are many advantages and disadvantages of travelling in a group
like this. sometimes you wish for independance, sometimes its good to
be in a group.
dark room above a shop in a side street in casablanca. some of us took
a side trip here for the night from our camp site in rabat. not that
it qualifies as a campsite since the only facilities are four squat
toilets; only one with a door. have seen some nice mountains and
towns on the way and camped in the middle of nowhere for one night.
rustic and nice scenery. the locals seem really friendly and have
helped with directions. the train was better than a sydney train. the
other travellers are cool. still getting to know eachother a bit.
national holiday here tomorrow so out on the town/beach for a few
drinks. the atlantic coastline and huge waves are awesome.
there are many advantages and disadvantages of travelling in a group
like this. sometimes you wish for independance, sometimes its good to
be in a group.
4.11.09
Barcelona Tuesday 3rd November
The hostel is great. Friendly staff, very clean, free breakfast and free internet. A couple of the other guests are staying in a hostel for the first time and are maybe half my age. oh well! Wandered out to Las Ramblas, a bit quiet, maybe a bit early? Carried on to La Sagrada Familia which is the big church that Gaudi started and that has not been finished. Now, i knew it was a work in progres but i didnt expect it to be literally a building site inside. There is more work than church. Since when did people pay $26 to go onto a buidling site? The columns and the cieling bit that are finished are pretty good but other than that the inside is a mess! They do have sermons there apparently, i dont know which cement mixer the Priest stands on. The facades on the outside a quite impressive i guess. And they wouldnt let us go up to the top because it was ´too windy´. Really?
So i moved onto the Park Guell which was designed by Gaudi and is a bit like an hallucinatory theme park. Lots of curvy spires and walls. A lovely place to be in the sunshine and great views of the city. Walked back to Casa Mila, also by Gaudi. The roof has some funky curvy chimneys and it was fun walking around there. Walked back to Las Ramblas, still not very exciting, just a bit touristy. Had a good walk around the markets and got some food and back to the hostel. Passed out at 7pm!
So i moved onto the Park Guell which was designed by Gaudi and is a bit like an hallucinatory theme park. Lots of curvy spires and walls. A lovely place to be in the sunshine and great views of the city. Walked back to Casa Mila, also by Gaudi. The roof has some funky curvy chimneys and it was fun walking around there. Walked back to Las Ramblas, still not very exciting, just a bit touristy. Had a good walk around the markets and got some food and back to the hostel. Passed out at 7pm!
3.11.09
Sydney to Barcelona
Well the flights weren´t too bad. Lots of dozing, no booze and great food. Yes, great airline food...Kimchi with rice and stuff, ate the lot. Seoul was really cold. Transferred to hotel in Incheon, double bed and cable TV. Into Incheon city for a few beers with Ruth (pom) and Anne Maree (scottish) on the subway. The city is alot like being in Japan, bars on the fourth floor, convenience stores, polite people. Had a few beers, walked away from a few places cos underdressed. Beer was good and cheap. Whole night cost $10.
Got on the bus at 10am for transfer back to airport. I got an ironic round of applause from the the others on the bus, even though it was the agreed meeting time. Clearly they had been waiting for me. Hung out with the girls at the airport which made the time go quickly. Saw some some Korean music and art. all good.
Slept mostly to Frankfurt. Watched stupid RomCom- the Ugly Truth - what made me think this Rom Com would be any better than all other RomComs? You know, boy meets girl. They dislike each other for most of the movie before, with 2 minutes left, realising that they actually loved eachother the whole time. Yawn.
Frankfurt was also cold. But it was cool to be in Europe. Bought crappy english newspaper. Finally arrived in Barca around midnight. Got bus into the centre, then wandered around a bit confused for a few minutes before a taxi picked me - female driver, so all good from there.
Got on the bus at 10am for transfer back to airport. I got an ironic round of applause from the the others on the bus, even though it was the agreed meeting time. Clearly they had been waiting for me. Hung out with the girls at the airport which made the time go quickly. Saw some some Korean music and art. all good.
Slept mostly to Frankfurt. Watched stupid RomCom- the Ugly Truth - what made me think this Rom Com would be any better than all other RomComs? You know, boy meets girl. They dislike each other for most of the movie before, with 2 minutes left, realising that they actually loved eachother the whole time. Yawn.
Frankfurt was also cold. But it was cool to be in Europe. Bought crappy english newspaper. Finally arrived in Barca around midnight. Got bus into the centre, then wandered around a bit confused for a few minutes before a taxi picked me - female driver, so all good from there.
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