Trading Blonds for Camels – A Moroccan Adventure

Because Morocco is literally a two hour drive and a 30 minute ferry ride from Sevilla, I really had no excuse not to hop on over to Africa for a weekend…no big deal! ;) We decided to spend a bit more money to go on a trip organized through a local travel agency due to the language barrier and major cultural differences so all we had to do was pay and show up. Before leaving for the bus, my señora pulled me aside to give me the ‘dos besos’ (two kisses) goodbye. As I was leaving the apartment, she then proceeded to shout from behind me “be careful because they trade blonds for camels!” With that setting the tone of the trip, I smiled and left the house to embark on my maiden voyage to AFRICA!!

In our three days in northern Morocco, we managed to visit the cities of Tangier, Chefchuan, and Tetuan with a small stop Algeciras to catch the ferry and another stop in the Spanish city of Ceuta located in Morocco after debarking from the ferry. The weekend was a surreal blur of wandering narrow streets, rain, bold Arabic men, over the top tourist attractions, and humbling panoramic views. The easiest way to describe my experience in Morocco is that it was a trip of severe contrasts. The moments that stick out the most in my memories are:

• Walking through the markets and medinas haggling for goods and seeing such crazy things like entire dead chickens hanging from windows and donkeys walking down the street
• Amy and I stuffing our faces on the bus with the Moroccan cookies we purchased from a random street vendor
• Our disgusting hotel room in Tangier with mold on the lamp shades and an unidentifiable funky odor

• Wandering through the blue medina of Chefchuan in the rain – sometimes crossing flooded areas on logs of wood – only to come upon a singing bridal party, a group of chanting students dancing with drums, and women doing their laundry in the river
• The horrible hokey Arabian culture presentation and meal with a ‘belly dancer,’ ‘acrobats,’ and a ‘fire eater magician’ that Amy had to leave halfway through because of the overwhelming smells
• Breathtaking views of the Rif Mountains and the Mediterranean Sea from the bus
• Amy getting sick from accidently drinking the water!

• Riding a camel!! (So touristy especially since camels are only actually used in normal life in the southern desert portion of Morocco)
• Seeing the Caves of Hercules where the Atlantic Ocean and Mediterranean Sea meet
• Talking for over an hour with the store owner from which I bought my postcards about everything from the American lifestyle to his brother’s family in the Canary Islands

I’m glad we went for the first time to Morocco with an organized group; however, the structure of the trip needed some improvement. We spent way too much time waiting and driving in the bus and not enough time truly immersing ourselves in Moroccan culture – we even were only able to eat one actual Moroccan meal! Instead of wasting hours of our days in tourist presentations about traditional Moroccan woven rugs/blankets and spices/perfumes, I much rather would have spent more than the mere 45 minutes we were given exploring the market places for myself or people watching while sipping on Arabic tea.

On the other hand, if we wouldn’t have driven between all of the cities, I never would have seen the gorgeous peaks of the Rif Mountains or gotten a firsthand view of rural Moroccan life such as men herding their livestock, children playing in the streets, and worshippers heading to the nearest mosque. In the end, northern Morocco is a beautiful rustic area filled with friendly people – I only wish I could have spent more time seeing the real Morocco as opposed to the superficial touristy side.