Sahara the beautiful

Sahara, the magical. This was truly an experince of a lifetime, as I am not sure whether and when I would return to the African continent. We had booked an overnight tour to the entrance into the Sahara desert. Even tnhough it was just the beginning of the desert trail, it still took over 8 hours of driving on mountain roads to get there. And believe me, it was well worth it. At first I was disappointed about arriving so late that we didnt get to watch the sunset in the desert camp, as we were on the camels, walking away from it, into the dark. Only then did I realize that its even more magical: absolute silence of the desert, monotone rocking of the camel and the dark blue sky above, shining with big, bright stars...

And now, having been to the desert, having bartered like “true berber women” at the Jemma Al Fina central marketplace in Marrakech, it is time to depart into a much more civilized and easy going Espana (I am talking aboiut the dress code, of course). I have had enough markets, enough busy, loud, honking streets, guys whistling and yelling everywhere you go and corners, smelling of urine. Its been nice, but 6 days is clearly enough for an introductions into Morroccan culture, considering we spent 3 of those in the mountains and desert.

High Atlas Mountains in the background

view of the camp in the morning

view on the drive into the desert

The Epic Europe trip!

The idea of an extensive trip through Europe didn't come all at once. Truthfully, I don't even remember how it happened anymore. All I know is, it somehow all fell into place, perfectly: my mom and I and at least 3 new countries! It started out with us booking the resort in Spain for a week since we own timeshares around the world. We knew that Italy had to be included, and seeing at least most of the northern-central part was a must. From there on, suddenly it was a choice between Egypt and South Africa, and I said: "If we're going to Africa, we're going to Morocco!". I had been fascinated with Arabic culture, from costumes, to traditions, to music, for a very long time now and the opportunity to experience it personally would just be over the top amazing! And, many weekends spent on trip planning and research later, which successfully kept the stress of homework and exam preparation away, here we were: embarking on our 3-week, 3-country majestic trip, knowing that only the best lies ahead.

Here's the itinerary:

Stuttgart-Milan (2 days) flight-->Bologna (train) 1 day--->Florence 3 days (train)-->Pisa 1day (train)--->

Marrakech, 6 days--->Valencia (2 nights)--->Tarragona (7 days)-->home (but I'm not thinking about that part yet!)

Whoo-hoo!!!