Dear Diary.....Ouarzazate (Morocco)

Dear Diary,

Day 3 of our tour took us towards the direction of Ouarzazate, the gateway to the Sahara Desert. It was a long drive from Marrakesh through the Atlas Mountains, where we made a few pit stops along the way and got the chance to admire the beautiful landscape all around. The highlight of the whole journey was catching a glimpse of the famous Tizi n’Tichka pass, a high mountain road pass located in the High Atlas Mountain at an elevation of 2260 meters above the sea level. This road, which is usually open all year round, can sometimes be closed when avalanches and heavy snowfall blocks up the path during winter. “Tichka” means “it’s difficult” and I can easily see how it got its name because even on a bright and sunny day in spring, it was still a slow and nerve-wrecking drive up the Tizi n’Tichka pass. We were glad to have a skillful driver who managed to manoeuvre the twists and turns of the windy and rather narrow road with little or no room for errors. The view of the vast barren hilly land surrounding the snake-like Tizi n’Tichka pass is absolutely stunning and we were in awe as we stood at the top to admire the view!

Small villages along the slope of Atlas on the left and the eroded colored rocks of Tiz Imguer on the right...

Barren ridges along the mountain roads..

The snow-capped mountains...

The famous Tiz n’Tichka pass

Lots of cactus on the slopes..

It was another short drive through the mountain roads before we arrived at a small restaurant for lunch. By this day, some of our tour mates have had enough of the Moroccan dishes and secretly sneaked out of the restaurant in search of other cuisines nearby. Our guide nearly had a heart attack when she realized half of our tour mates were not at their allocated tables and only managed to calm down after getting a message from them that they were having lunch at another restaurant located nearby. For the rest of us who stayed behind, it was a good time of interaction where we got to know more about each other and exchanged opinions on how the tour had been so far. I guess this is one perks of joining a guided tour - interaction with people from different parts of the world being brought together because of our common interest in travelling!

Getting a glimpse at how Argan oil is being extracted at one of our pit stop...

Souks on the other side of the road...

With high spirits and tummies filled, we headed off to the Ksar of Ait Ben haddou, a beautiful UNESCO site. This Ksar or traditional Mud Brick city, lies on the edge of the High Atlas Mountains and is made famous by its many appearance in films such as Lawrence of Arabia and Gladiator. As our van was unable to enter the narrow alleys, we were made to alight at the main road and had to walk a short distance to reach the river bank of the Wadi Mellah, located opposite to the Ksar. This location allowed us to come face to face with the impressive towering Ksar, which also spurred everyone to make frantic attempts to take as many photos as they can of the magnificent view! There were two paths to reach the Ksar - one was a short walk across a rather modern bridge and the other one was via some makeshift stepping stones placed in the river water. Thankfully, our guide chose to lead us across via the bridge. 

Can you spot the bridge that connects the river bank of the Wadi Mellah to the entrance of the Ksar of Ait Ben haddou?

The Ksar of Ait Ben haddou..

When we reached the entrance of the Ksar, we had to climb upwards on a rather steep path through the narrow streets and low arches before finally reaching the Treasury at the very top. We had been told that we would be rewarded with a stunning view at the top, however, it was so windy there that I could hardly keep my balance. One of our tour mates almost lost her cap to the winds in a futile attempt to pose for a photo at the top! Seeing no point in staying there and not wanting to be the subject of constant torture by the relentless wind, we decided to descend almost immediately after we reached the top. Overall, the Ksar of Ait Ben haddou looked quite impressive from afar, however we were quite disappointed by the lack of information about this wonderful place as well as how commercialized it had been with the presence of the many souks selling touristic souvenirs along the way. Nevertheless, the whole hike was quite an enjoyable one for me mainly due to the rather photogenic characteristics of the Ksar.

The low arches that we had to go through

The locals tending their souks along the walkway inside the Ksar of Ait Ben haddou

View from the top..

View of the opposite bank from the top...notice the makeshift stepping stones at the bottom of the photo..

It was rather late in the afternoon by the time we arrived back at our van. The cool air-conditioning in the van provided much relief to us from the scorching afternoon sun and the comfortable seats were much needed to rest our aching joints from the treacherous hike at the Ksar. With many of us drifting off into a sweet afternoon nap, we drove off to the last destination of the day at Ouarzazate (also fondly known as Morocco’s movie mecca for its movie studio facilities and the beauty of its locations).

The landmark that signals entrance to Ouarzazate..

Upon arrival, there was some miscommunication regarding this final destination for the day. Our itinerary showed that we were supposed to visit the cinema museum (a former movie studio), whereas our guide had been told to bring us to Kasbah of Taourirt (a fortress set against the backdrop of the Atlas mountains). After much negotiation and since the two sites were literally just located on opposite sides of the main road, our guide decided to split our group into two, with one group heading to the cinema museum while another group headed to the Kasbah. Being a huge movie fan, my husband and I opted to follow the group to the cinema museum. It was certainly an eye-opener to see the various props and makeshift sites that appeared on the various films and we certainly had lots of fun role-playing alongside these props. It certainly did help to have a guide with us to correlate the props and sites with the movies that they had appeared in. We were even brought to this room where there is a showcase of the filming equipment and even a mini theater featuring a short commentary about the filming situations that used to take place in this studio. All in all, it was a rather enjoyable time exploring the different areas of this museum although it would have been better if there were more information about it being made available to us.

Cinema Museum

Kasbah of Taourirt

Inside the cinema museum...

Old filming equipments..

By the time we are done exploring the cinema museum and the Kasbah, it was close to dinner time and time to check into the hotel for a good rest to prep ourselves for all the adventures the next day! This day had been an exciting one - from the adrenaline rush at the Tizi n’Tichka pass, to the many breath-taking moments at the Ksar of Ait Ben haddou and finally, the excitement at the cinema museum, this tour is starting to get more and more interesting! We are already looking forward to all the adventures lined up for us in the next few days to come! But for now, it is time to hit the bed...Zzzz....

Yours Truly,

Claire

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