Hi, we just got back from 10 days in Morocco. We booked a private tour called "Deserts and Empires" through www.saharatrek.com. We had a wonderful time in Morocco- it is hard to believe that such an exotic country is only a 7 hour flight away!
We started in the 1200 year old town of Fez which is one of the oldest living medieval cities in the world - we stayed in the old city which is characterized by a labyrinth of narrow, winding alleys with ten foot walls and no windows. The Muslims do not have windows on their houses since they don't want their women viewed by other men- the only day light is from an interior courtyard. The women walk around with veils and long berber robes (we did not quite fit in) and they are absent from the streets at night (we were in minority when we went out at night- it is all men (good for us!!!!) and the men pack the outdoor cafes but no women) Also, since it is Muslim, there is no alcohol- we missed our good wines and beer- got tired of all the mint tea. A few tourist hotels did offer warm beer and wine- but there were WAY too few of them....

One evening we spent several hours trying to find our way out of the Fez medina (Old city)-there are very few gates out of the walled old city-along the way we met many locals offering to be our unofficial "guide" to get us out of this maze of almost 10,000 alleys and blind turns. There were very few tourists and since the walkways are about 10 feet wide, the only transportation in the medina is donkey and cart (no cars or taxis in the walled city) . A highlight of the old city is the tanneries where the animal skins are carried by donkey to the tannery and then treated,dyed and dried out in massive mud brick vats- we were proved with mint sprigs to sniff since the odor is overwhelming (they use pigeon droppings, cow urine and fish oils to remove the fur from the skins).

We had a brief tour in Casablanca- two of us were refused entry into the King Hassan Mosque which holds up to 125,000 worshipers since we were wearing sleeveless tops- we had asked our guide if we needed to cover up and he said we were okay since we were with him- well, he was wrong. We were humiliated as the guide at the Mosque yelled and pointed to us in Arabic and pulled us out of line because of our tank tops! Our guide quickly went to find some dirty used scarves for us to properly cover up! We stopped at Rick's cafe from the movie Casablanca but it was closed for renovations (we had been looking forward to a cold drink there!)

Next we went to Marrakech which is known for its main square in the medina with its jugglers, snake charmers, dancers, hundreds of smoky open air food stalls and fresh orange juice stands - we got henna tattos in the square and unfortunately they have not yet faded... We also went to a hamman which is a Moroccan spa- it starts with a steam bath, followed by a body scrub with black sea salt, clay and olive oil soap- it was very enjoyable until we had buckets of warm water dumped unexpectedly over our heads. All this "cleansing" was followed by a wonderful one hour massage- the Moroccans really know how to pamper themselves! (we went to a tourist hamman since our guide said we would not be able to handle the local's hamman which involves sitting in an extremely hot steamy room on a dirty concrete floor with naked Moroccans)


We had the privilege of being invited to our guides' family homes for two lunches- we had all read about etiquette if we get invited into a family home but we forgot all the rules- first we had stopped at a local grocery store and found cold beer- we wanted to bring it into the home since we knew it was a "safe" drink- but the guides said we absolutely could not- their families did not even know that they drank! Faux paux number two was when we walked into the house and forgot to take off our shoes (we had to be asked to remove them), next we used the forbidden left hand to eat (the left hand is never supposed to go near food since it is the hand used in the bathroom-there is no toilet paper -you just use water to splash off with the left hand) , the final faux paux was when we walked outside and the women waved good bye in the doorway and I went to take their photo and they screamed and slammed the door- women do not want their photo taken because they are afraid it will affect their beauty. We did imitate the family and "slurpped" our mint tea. We all sat on carpets around a knee high table- the food is eaten with the hands- scooped up with bread- there are no napkins,plates or silverware - we made a total mess dripping food everywhere...

The highlight of our trip was our two days in the Sahara desert (despite the 122 degree heat). We had a really fun guide and driver and a music man- they made the trip!!! We drove through a sand storm to get to the desert- slept in a tent the first night and woke up covered in sand! Had to wear closed toe shoes to avoid stepping on scorpions. In the morning, I got up and walked out of the "camp" and saw three camels waiting patiently for us- it was like out of Hollywood movie- these were our camels! There was no guide in sight - the camels just sat on the ground waiting... I had the ornery camel- when I first got on , he did a nose plant in the sand with his butt in the air and I was hanging on at a 45 degree angle. He remained grumpy for the five hour trek. The turbans we wore were not fashion statements but necessary accessories to keep the sand out of our faces. Five hours on a camel is enough (could hardly walk the next day!) so next we took a 4 wheel drive truck deeper into the desert and passed many wild camels and nomads with their tented houses. We set up camp as the sun set in front of 350 foot high sand dunes. Our guides put out Moroccan carpets on top of the dunes, served drinks and hors d'oeuvres on silver trays and sang and played Moroccan music on handmade instruments. We slept on mats on the dunes knowing that there were nomads and wild camels all around us- it was an incredible sight seeing the huge sand dunes glowing from the stars and moon. It was a bit boring driving back from DC on route 50 Monday night knowing that the night before we had been in the amazing Sahara desert!!!!

Morocco is a wonderful country- I bought some spices and whenever I smell them, it reminds me of exotic Morocco.

Glad you enjoyed your trip. I visited Morocco some years ago and loved it.

Do you have photos to share?

We're going to Morocco in Sept. and I can hardly wait. You don't say your age, but did you wear capri pants, long pants, skirts or dresses? Actually, what did you wear,( aside from the tank tops at the mosque)? Did you wear sandals in the cities? Good tip about closed toe shoes in the desert. Was it cold at night in the desert? I'd love to hear more about your experiences.

My trip is in October and I'd like to echo to above poster's question on clothes. And do you recall the name and location of the tourist hamman you went to? thanks!

Here is an answer to most questions. We were three girls in our late 30's-early 40's. We wore sandals everywhere except one night on the edge of the desert where we were told to wear closed toe shoes (sneakers) so we would not stop on scorpions (we saw two of them near the lodge- they need water to survive so we did not see any in the heart of the desert the second night. ) We wore long skirts, capris and tank tops. As we were getting on our Royal Air Maroc flight (excellent flight-the friendliest crew that I have encountered!!!) we were told by a Moroccan that we can wear any clothes that we want (except at the mosque). We were more comfortable in sleeveless tops than covering up from the sun. When we went to the guide's family houses we asked if we should cover up and they said no,we were fine. I also found loose long skirts were the most comfortable and kept us cool. We even wore short shorts in the desert (but capris on the camels- your legs rub the saddle) No one seemed offended when we wore shorts -our music man even had on shorts and the guides worth them under their robes. My luggage was missing for 5 days so I bought some fun skirts at the Moroccan souks.

The spa in Marrakesh is Les Baines De Marrakech- www.lesbainsdemarrakech.com . It was around $60 for a sea salt scrub, clay body mask and one hour massage- all in a beautiful spa- highly recommend it.

Send me an e-mail to [email protected] and I will give you a link to photos that I posted on www.kodakgallery.com

Let me know if there are any other questions.If you go to Morocco, try not to miss the desert experience!!! It was so incredible and such a break after the hustling in the cities. They gave us mats, pillows and sheets in the desert- it was not cold and not too hot either- perfect for sleeping out. We did wear long cotton pajama bottoms- we were bit by flies the night before.
~Sharon

Hi,
Your trip sounds AMAZING. I'm very envious of your trip into the desert.

I have one day in Casablanca in November on a cruise. Based on your experience, would you do the cruise's excursions or do you fee like we'd do better on our own (two of us)? I know it's a different situation than you had, but if you had an opinion, I'd appreciate hearing it.

Thanks,
Kristi

Dear Chaea..based on our cruise experience in other countries, you're better off with a private guide and driver. Otherwise you have to wait for everyone else to get on and off a bus etc. You might check this Fodor site for recommendations for guides.... I'm sure the ship could set you up too, but that would be more expensive. Good luck.....kls

I agree, do a private tour. Look for a recommendation on this board or find an english speaking taxi driver in Casablanca. Try to get out of the city- tour the King Hassan mosque and then go to the countryside and see the local people. Casablanca is very much a typical European city which is not indicative of Morocco.
We set up a private tour in Marrakech with one of our previous drivers- we were able to tell him what we wanted to do (go to a Berber open air market, tour a berber house, etc..) and we gave him the hours we could do it -had to be back in Marrakech late afternoon for another tour) He charged $44 per person for 6 hour tour and was very flexible.

ttt