filipa.figueira21Morocco is a gateway to Africa and its Arabic, Berber and Jewish influences make the country so unique! Here you will find mountains, deserts, ancient cities and very friendly people! Is a country to feel, to discover and definitely to come back to!
I was really curious to discover this country and really excited to go to the Sahara desert too!
Are you ready to discover Morocco? Let’s talk a bit about Marrakesh.
Marrakesh, the red city
Marrakesh, also known as the red city due to the colour of its buildings, it’s a vibrant and unique city!
Strolling around Jemaa el-Fnaa square and the souks is one of those travel experiences that you must have! I also recommend going to a rooftop and seeing the sunset in the square from there.
Note: If you want to calmly buy your souvenirs without having a lot of people approaching you, go to the square early morning. People will be assembling their products and won’t bother you that much. That’s what I did and I interacted with the locals and spoke a little bit of Arabic so that I wouldn’t forget the things I had learned on this trip.
Let’s continue our trip! First stop Ouarzazate! Located in the High Atlas mountains, this city is a gateway to the Sahara desert.
Ouarzazate
Located in the Ouarzazate province, the Ksar of Ait-Ben-Haddou is an example of the architecture of the South of Morocco and World Heritage by Unesco.
Its unique look it’s derivated from the materials in which is built such as adobe, rammed earth, mud bricks and wood.
Curiosity: The ksar Ait-Ben-Haddou was a filming location for a lot of movies, such as The Mummy (1999), the Gladiator (2000), Lawrence of Arabia (1962) and more recently the series Game of Thrones.
Here we learned that in ancient times the Berber people communicated with a secret message by writing with blue indigo (plant), sugar, water and saffron and then burning the paper a little bit in the fire to reveal the message.
On our way to the Sahara desert, we stop in Todra Valley, in which there is a big plantation of Palm trees. This was one of my favourite places in Morocco, I think it’s really magical!
The next stop was the Merzouga Desert. Here we had the opportunity to do a dromedary ride, quad bike ride and sandboarding. The night was super fun too singing and dancing with our Berber guides!
On this trip, I had the opportunity to meet people from other countries and practice my Arabic. I did a small Arabic course with Speak Social last year and my teacher was from Syria. I learned classic Arabic, also known as Levantine Arabic, which can be understood by all the people that speak Arabic. However in Morocco they speak a little bit different, having different expressions to say “how are you?”, “good night”, etc.
Note: I did this trip with Marrakesh tours trips and Rafa Marrocos. I signed up and had the chance to discover Morocco with local guides, while also meeting people from Brazil, Peru and Portugal.
Practical information:
- Morocco is a cash country so make sure to bring some money with you and exchange it.
- Drink water from bottles
- Buy a SIM car at the airport
- Morocco is a safe and friendly country
- Bargain on the things you want to buy
- Be open-minded
Have you been to Morocco already? What did you like the most? Tell me in the comments!
Did you like my travel story about Morocco? Share it with your friends!
See you soon!
