France, Part 1 and Spain, Part 2

France, part 1

Day 1 – 24/6/12

We had the most stunning day’s drive through the mountains and into France via the d’Aragouet-Bielsa Tunnel. We then drove via the d 929 and d 918 roads to Gavarnie. The scenery is totally awesome. And the good news is that you will be able to see some of it on this year’s Tour d’France. The drive over Coll d’Aspin and Coll du Tourmalet is one of the mountain stages this year. There were lots of riders doing this stage when we drove through.

We camped at the La Bergerie campground at the foot of Cirque de Gavarnie – an awe- inspiring multi peak massif. A totally incredible sight. For the RSAers, the Cirque de Gavarnie is like a smaller version of Mont Aux Sources.

We pulled up in the camp ground beside a couple from Melbourne. Ben (Jig) Jones & Nicole Pyne. Incredibly Nicole works with Nonie, sister of our good friends Mark Shanks & Carole (& Peter) Rushbrook. A very small world.
In the evening  we watched a very poor standard match between England & Italy. It was so boring that even Avril was happy to leave at about the ¾ mark.

Avril driving; 276 km; 5 hrs; N 42⁰ 43’ 42.0’’ W 000⁰ 00’ 27.2’’ The camp ground is nice and clean – € 15/night (cold showers included, hot showers € 2 for 8 min. a lot cheaper than Spain – long may it last.)

Day 2 – 25/6/12

It was a pretty cold night, but luckily our doona was readily available. Early on (08:00) Ray walked into the village to get freshly baked, traditional bread for breakfast & lunch whilst Avril slept. We went for a 3 hour walk to the hotel near the base of the main feature a water fall, the largest (highest?) in Europe – 423m. From memory, the Tugela fall from Mont Aux Sources is a lot higher than that. As a reward we had beer & diet coke with our rolls. The scenery continued to fill us with awe. We took a new picture every few steps.

After the walk, we strolled into the village where Avril managed to find a pair of walkers (at a very reasonable price) to replace her old ones, which are near the end of their useful life – bought in the UK in mid-2004!

Day 3 – 26/6/12

Another very cold night, at least for us. Still, we cannot complain about the weather, apart from the very occasional few spots of rain and a couple of very light showers, we have had no rain since Gabon. Again, Ray walked into town to buy bread. At 08:00 hrs the church bells toll and the town gets ready for the day. The shops begin to open and all the shop keepers call hello as Ray walks along. Ray managed to have a school boy French discussion with the baker: hello, how are you, it is cold, no the baker thinks it is great etc. Then, in sympathy the baker swaps to English. The barista on the way back to camp does not swap to English – maybe Ray is making progress or (probably) the café  folks think he is a bit of “try hard”.  

We did a couple of side trips to lookout points as we left the Haute Pyrenees National Park. Again, the scenery was spectacular. The only negative with the Park is the flies – they seem to be in plague numbers in the morning and evening. Much worse than Spain – which in turn is worse than Oz!

We drove to Lourdes with the thought we may spend a night there. But, as you would expect from the 2^nd most visited city in France, it was super busy with lots of buses in the narrow streets. So, we decided to drive to San Sebastian. Home office had instructed us to go there.

Spain, part 2

Day 12 – 26 /6/12

The GPS again took us a torturous, minor back road route to Camping Igueldo, high in the hills above and 5 km from San Sebastian.
With a thud we were back to Spain camping prices: € 34/night. The clouds came down early, 18:00 and blanketed the site. Brrr

Ray driving; 294 km; 6 hrs; N 43⁰ 18’ 17.1’’ W 002⁰ 02’ 45.3’’

Day 13 – 27/6/12

After midday we took a bus into the center of San Sebastian. It is a pretty lay-back place, even the hop on – hop off bus and the little tourist mini train (& shops) stop for siesta. We immediately made for the restaurant area: Parte Vieja. The eateries typically have an extensive selection of tapas, and it is all displayed for you to select. You are given a plate to pick what delights you, the waiters take the food that needs to be heated and you can either stand or sit with your drinks. All very yummy.

San Sebastian is known for its food. There is not a lot else. Apparently the beach is the best in Europe, mmmm, they really do need to come to Oz. We walked around for a bit and after seeing all the attractions, went back for some more eats and drink and watched a Wimbledon tennis match (no prizes for guessing who wanted to do that). Afternoon melded into evening and we went about eating and drinking through the restaurant area. Then, Spain was playing Portugal in the Euro Cup semi, so we settled down for a bit, with food & drinks and watched the 1^st half. At half time we took a bus back to the camp. There was a fierce electrical storm, but no rain. Ray stayed by the vehicle in case the rain did eventuate and Avril watched the rest of the soccer.

Day 14 – 28/6/12

The fog/mist settled in and remained quite close all day. We decided to take a side trip to Bilbao to have a look at the Guggenheim Museum. It was about a 100 km drive there and somehow we managed to take a toll road.

There was no parking in Bilbao. We should mention that the vehicle is ~ 2.2 m high (we now have a spare tyre on the roof rack) and hence underground car parks are not available to us. So we did a drive- by viewing of the Museum. Apparently the building is the most famous part and not being students of interesting, if slightly wacky architecture, we cannot really comment. We can say that the traffic management is very complex.

We managed to take the local roads out from Bilbao and quickly realised why folks take the toll roads. It is very hard to maintain any sort of speed on the non-toll roads.

Spain Summary

From the blog you can tell that Spain was not our most favourite country. Though there is disagreement in the camp as to where it lies in the seriatim of badness.

On the positive side, the roads are great, the scenery (once you leave the apartments of the south) is interesting and in places spectacular, the supermarkets are the best around and the pig delicious (we bought extra to take into France).

The big negative was the theft of Avril’s purse and the impact on our time here; always needing to be aware, watching out for theft, preparing for outings with security as the main thing etc. The campgrounds are expensive (but we have not been to the rest of Europe yet) and in the Spanish style, very noisy making sleep difficult. The fruit & veg is presented nicely, but we found it not so tasty. In general we were disappointed with our dining out experiences and thought they were poor value for money (compared to Oz). We had really looked forward to this and maybe our expectations were too high.

Avril: rates Spain as enjoyable, but not fantastic.

Ray: rates Spain as above the DRC. But, maybe he is a bit harsh?

Spain, part 1 Andorra

Day 1 – 13/6/12

The Spanish immigration (the immigration officer was impressed to get some Australians!) and customs were completed very quickly.

We drove directly to the port (which was fortuitous as there is a 1 hr time difference between Spain & Morocco) and pulled in at one of the ferry booking booths that a tout had directed us to. The office made bookings for all the different  companies  and we got the next ferry (45 min later). Euro 138 for the vehicle and 2 x passengers.

After ~ 10 months, 25 countries and > 45,000 km, we left Africa.

The ferry was well organised and clean  – so a positive start. It also had some duty free. Alcohol is not all that easy to get away from the big cities in Morocco, so Ray suffering from a mild case of the DTs, bought some Spanish brandy. Avril bought some chocolate.

As we went to drive off the ferry the tyre monitoring system gave that all too familiar beep. Yep, another continent, another flat tyre. We drove off the ferry and changed the tyre inside the port. That now meant we only had one, very poor, not to be used except in an emergency, spare tyre.

Fortunately, we had ordered 4 new BFGoodrich (yes, we said never again, but there is not a lot of choice around, in fact none) from Sahara 4x4 off the internet. We got to Marbella to have the tyres fitted just as siesta commenced. This was something we had not factored into our thinking. 2 – 3 hours shut down in the middle of the day. (We reckon we may have stumbled, quite by chance, on a way to improve productivity in Spain: don’t shut down in the middle of the day and provide some service to customers).
Marbella looked OK, but it is harder to get a park there than in Melbourne city centre on a Saturday night. So, our dreams of sitting and relaxing over a nice Spanish meal faded. We did use a lot of diesel driving around.

Eventually when the garage opened, it turned out the tyres were not there! We had confirmed with the provider that they would be available when we arrived, but seems that in Spain, commitments do not have the same meaning as in Australia. The bloke at the garage was nice and we chatted for a bit and had a cup of coffee with the staff and other customers. Then the garage manager  hopped on his motor bike and showed us the way to the local campground: La Bourganvilla. After so long in Africa, we now needed to get used to European prices – starting with the camp ground. Euro 18/night, everything except the ground and abolitions was an extra; big prices for washing, power etc. The campground is OK, but lacks good shade. A quaint custom here (and in Morocco) is that you need to take your own toilet paper to the dunny.

Hopefully the tyres will be there tomorrow.

Avril driving; 182 km; N 36⁰ 30’ 14.1’’ W 004⁰ 48’ 13.4’’

Day 2 – 14/6/12

We spent a lazy day waiting for the tyres. We had a stroll on the beach and did some shopping. We also tried to sort out SIM cards. We purchased a SIM card (after explaining we wanted to call Australia) but it turned out this SIM card could only be used domestically. So, being ever so patient retirees, we bought an international SIM.

Eventually we got the call to say the tyres had arrived, after siesta. The balancing and fitting took us to 20:00 hrs. But, at least we had 4 new tyres that will hopefully get us through the next part of our trip.

Day 3 – 15/6/12

We drove along the Costa del Sol and then to Granada. The coast seemed to be a massive housing and apartment precinct. Not very attractive.

In Granada we camped at the Sierra Nevada (Euro 26/night. Everything is extra e.g. power Euro 5/day to connect and then pay for usage! We used our generator. Also 1 euro to use the swimming pool). After setting up camp we took the bus into town and went for a stroll – no shopping as siesta was still in full force.

Avril driving; 207 km; 3 hrs; N 37⁰ 11’ 53.5’’ W 003⁰ 36’ 42.3’’

Day 4 – 16/6/12
We made an early start to the day so we could ensue we got tickets to the Alumbra palace complex. We were lucky enough to get the 1^st slot to visit the palace and spent ~ 4 hours looking around. The gardens were wonderful and the whole complex seemed to be well organised and managed.

We walked back into town and attempted to register the domestic SIM card – from Orange. We had been to a number of shops and it had maybe turned into a bit of a challenge to actually get to use the domestic SIM. The whole event was a complete fiasco, with our voice mail saying we needed to register with a passport but the shop saying you could not register with a passport. The challenge remains open. We are not yet beaten.

We then stopped to have a drink at one of the touristic cafes in a plaza – and of course got ripped off. Such is life for a western retiree in Spain.
We then jumped on the bus to get back to the camp ground. When we got off the bus we noticed that Rays backpack was open and on investigation, Avril’s purse had been stolen. We had been warned by overlanders in Africa that Spain was a hot bed of theft, but maybe we were a bit too comfortable. So the next couple of hours were spent calling all the card companies/banks in the UK and Australia. Of course you get put on hold, waiting for the next available operator - at 3am??!! This meant we ran out of funds on the (international SIM) phone and needed to get money to put credit on the phone and on it went. Eventually we cancelled all the cards and went back to the campground. The manager told us that theft and pickpockets are very regular occurrences. We went to the police station to make a report and it seemed that this was not an unusual event for them. Also taken were personal effects, Avril’s brand new driver’s licence and other cards and ~ Euro 400.

After going through all of west/central Africa, who would have thought that Europe (well Spain) was less safe.

Fortunately an Aussie lad and a good Yorkshire lass were camped next door and so, after a few cold ones we were feeling not so down. But still, a very sorry day.

Day 5 – 17/6/12
We drove to Valencia. The mountains and hills were quite scenic in places. We were surprised by the lack of vegetation (apart from irrigated agriculture) and the hills/mountains were very barren. On any other day we probably would have been very happy with the drive, but, we were still quite low after the theft.
We camped at the Coll Vert campground south of the city. Apparently this is low season for campers and the ground was full of retirees from northern Europe. The campground was the standard Spanish - clean but aged facilities, all taps on a spring timer (which makes for an interesting shower experience), developed trees/shade.
As Valencia is the home of paella, we decided to treat ourselves to a night out. We walked to the town ~ 1 km from the campground. Unfortunately the meal was disappointing, extremely poor service and the paella turned out to be a very, very salty risotto (no saffron in this dish).

Avril driving; 526 km; 6 hrs; N 39⁰ 23’ 50.7’’ W 000⁰ 20’ 00.0’’

Day 6 – 18/6/12

We girded our loins and like gladiators of old, made ready to enter another Spanish city. We took the bus (any match between the timetable and the actual bus time is absolutely purely coincidental. – even the locals were annoyed - the bus the hour before the one we caught did not turn up at all) to the main tourist attraction – an expansive aquarium. On the bus we guarded our space jealously and made sure no one could get near Avril’s handbag – we opted for a handbag rather than the more practical backpack. Having safely negotiated the bus we spent ~ 4.5 hrs at the aquarium; whilst not the best we have ever seen, it is not  bottom of the ladder either.

We then walked into the city center through a very nice park area. Again, we were conscious of the folks around us: is that person on a bike pretending to be such an idiot or is it a ploy to get near Avril’s bag?? The difference between the park land here and at home is interesting - we saw young girls practising formal dance moves, lads trying a tai chi/martial arts routine etc. Lots of stuff that would be done in a hall at home.

The city center was quiet when we got there. We elected to try some pre- dinner pork and cheese snacks with drinks at a local eatery. The pork was great and the beer/diet coke (guess who had which?) were cold. A really nice place. We went back there after dinner to watch Spain beat Croatia 1-0 in a Euro Cup match (guess who wanted to do that?). The cost was very reasonable.

On this day we tried again to get a good paella. Lunch was again salty and insipid. Dinner was the best so far, but well below what we had eaten in Morocco and way, way below Australia. And for what it is, poor value.

Day 7 – 19/6/12

We drove to just outside Barcelona. We usually try to avoid the tolls, not only for the money but also to get a potentially more interesting route. On this occasion we could not seem to identify a suitable route and so landed up on the tollway for ~ 180 km = Euro 18!. Eventually, we managed to get off the toll road and onto a more relaxing route. The GPS, fed up with our decision-making took us through some hills before getting us to our campground.  Whilst it was slow going we did get a good view over the Barcelona metropolis.

We camped at 3 Estrallas, the “only” campground convenient to Barcelona and 20km from the city, but close to the airport. Again we were shocked by the prices, but did manage to get a 20% discount  as one of us is > 60!

The 1^st thing the manager did was to warn us about the theft and pickpockets in Barcelona. Have nothing in your pockets, only carry essentials etc. This should make for a relaxing trip into Barcelona! In the evening we watched England score a dubious 1 – 0 victory over the Ukraine. Whilst chatting to the other folks watching the game we heard more stories of theft; in the campground a cabin cleaned out (from an English police officer!), a car robbed in a car park and on a more intense note, one chap was burned with a cigarette to distract him whilst another picked his pocket.

Ray driving; 408 km; 6 hrs; N 41 16⁰ 25’ 20.1’’ E  002⁰ 02’ 34.8’’

Day 8 – 20/6/12

We caught a local bus into the Barcelona city center and embarked on the Lonely Planet walking trip, aka the Ray Betros walking trip (with a few variations –was assured that they were extras, but not sure whether the guide took the wrong turn!). We made the 1^st stop, the fresh produce market. That took longer than the full trip was supposed to take! It is sort of like the Central Markets in Adelaide, a bit bigger due to the large number of fish mongers and butchers. The fruit was delightfully presented with the colours making a great display. Not as many green grocers as the Central Market. It was a lot less hectic than Adelaide and did not have the same energy It was a bit easier to get a feed than Adelaide and we had a breakfast/morning tea of a gourmet hot dog and some tortilla (good, but obviously not as good as Olgas!). Overall, the 1.5 hr tour took us 5 hours! We went back to the market for afternoon tea - very nice tapas of paella (the best so far), croquettes (not nearly as good as Olgas!) and spinach, washed down with a beer & diet coke.

On the way back to the market we saw an Orange phone store; and guess what, we got a nice chap who sorted out the issue with the Orange SIM card – winner. Better than tattslotto!

In the evening, we went to a flamenco show. Tapas and drinks. The show was great and the drinks kept coming. We sat next to some folks from home - well nearly home, NSW central coast. (Their 8 year old son had been tripped over in an attempt to pick the dad’s pocket; nice). 

Day 9 – 21/6/12

We went into Barcelona again and “did” the hop on hop off bus. We spent time in the cathedral of the Holy Family (Gaudi's cathedral) which is awesome. Well worth the time & effort. On the advice of home office we also hopped of at the Parc Guell, which was OK. There was a bit of disagreement about the time value of this method (hop on – hop off) of seeing the city. Avril loved it: sit and cruise by the sites and get some touristic information. Ray (who renamed Barcelona the city of traffic lights) was not happy with only travelling 20 – 100 m between each light/stop. He reckoned there are better ways to die of boredom.

Again, on the advice of home office we went to a special tapas bar (unfortunately this meant we had to leave the hop on hop off bus early and take the metro – bit of a bugger really!) only to find it closed for “family reasons”. We had a wine and tapas nearby (not too good according to Avril) and caught the bus back to the camp ground.

Avril watched Portugal beat Czech Republic 1 – 0, Ray read and slept.

Day 10 – 22/6/12

After a bit of shopping we drove to Andorra. We debated whether or not this constituted a new country and decided as there was a border with guards, it did. So, country no. 27!

The drive was great; initially past Montserrat, then some wonderful, very long vistas over grain fields to the Pyrenees mountains and after all that, a spectacular drive in the mountains to Andorra. The mountain scenery in places can match that anywhere in Europe. The Spaniards know how to design and build spectacular mountain roads.

The really good news is that booze and perfume and chocolate are duty free in Andorra – so we will be stocking up for the long drive to London.

Avril driving; 223 km; 3 hrs; N 40⁰ 30’ 07.8’’ E 001⁰ 30’ 59.0’’. Camping Valira. Which was clean and very nice.

Day 11 – 23/6/12

After breaking camp we made full use of the duty free status of Andorra. The we drove, mainly via the N – 260 to a Boltana and the imaginatively named Camping Boltana. The drive was absolutely stunning, amazing mountain scenery – and it just keeps coming. The weather remains perfect – high 20s and so we had a magic day. Lots of stops to take photos or just stand in awe of the view.

Ray driving; 259 km; 5.5 hrs; N 42⁰ 25’ 48.8’’ E 000⁰ 04’ 43.8’’

Day 11 – 24/6/12

Apparently June 24 is San Juan in Spain. When we checked into the campground they mentioned that there would be a small celebration, but it would end at midnight. Naively, we believed this. The formalities ended at 01:00 and the non formal celebrations ended when Avril put her head out of the camper and yelled for quiet at 03:00. So, we needed a sleep in.

After the raucous night, we decided to head to France.

Morocco, Part 3

Day 14 – 3/6/12

Prudence or a guardian angel. The drive from Ouarzazate to Zagora was pleasing. The initial part being mountainous (to ~ Agdz) and after that along the Draa river valley. The mountains are really devoid of vegetation and present a barren beauty. The valley was filled with palms and other gardens. The Moroccans are keen/diligent farmers – and very good civil design engineers. The mountain roads are great.

We passed through Zagora with the intention of getting to M’Hamid. We stopped for lunch under the only bit of shade for many kilometres and as we were eating, a Landrover pulled up and the driver got out. He was a mechanic and stopped to give us his card. He looked at our vehicle and noticed a lean to the right (we have had this for some time – really ever since the Opposite Lock air bags failed!). The mechanic shook his head, this was not good. Then he felt underneath and there was some oil. We had noticed this when we came back from the UK and pointed it out to the Toyota garage in Agadir and the MRK folks in Marrakech. But, they did not think it was a big deal. Ray did and the casual mechanic played to this fear. So, we followed the mechanic back to Zagora. Before you could have a cold drink, they had remover the rear springs and the rear end assembly. Avril had gone (been sent?) away to watch the French Open at a café and Ray was thinking... Oh shit, how do I get out of this?? The car is in pieces, I am really going to be taken here. The mechanic did a pressure test and it showed there was a crack in the right hand side of the casing that holds the rear end (differential and axles). It was where the Opposite Lock air bag had failed, distorted and allowed the vehicle to keep banging against the casing (now you can imagine Ray’s ire at this point; not just bloody Opposite Lock but Toyota Agadir and the Marrakech folks).

Mmm, now what. The (wonderful – as we hope it turns out!) mechanics suggested we cut into the crack and weld it. They also suggested we modify the springs to lift the body away from the rear end. Really, we did not have much of an option, but Ray made a quick call back to the Technical Authority (aka, Peter, he of the fridge) in Oz, who confirmed – we really did not have a choice. So the modifications went ahead.

The mechanic transferred Avril to a 4 star riad to spend the afternoon by the pool, under palm trees and bougainvillaea’s, drinking OJs (so she said) and doing some emailing. Ray spent the time in important management tasks – sweltering in the + 46^oC heat. After the initial, impressive flurry of activity, the crew settled down to eat a tagine and then went to sleep. Siesta time. Ray sweltered, wondering what was happening. At ~ 18:00, he decided, enough sleep, time to work. Then, more activity. The welder was woken from this sleep (this was an outsourced task, so the mechanics needed to go some distance to wake him). The welder cut into the crack with an angle grinder and then removed some of a sleave that encased the main casing and revealed not just the original circumferential crack but a number of cracks along the casing. So, now what could be done? No, they were sure they could weld the cracks. Ray, who once upon a time did some NDT stuff on pressure vessels and still thinks he has the knowhow, watched critically. The weld prep looked OK and the weld also looked good (clearly without the dye penetration and the nucleonic test kit it was hard to confirm this!). Then the welder added some strengthening bar to the casing – welding it along the casing. This all looked very solid.

In the mean time the junior mechanic and the very junior mechanic were reshaping the leaves from the springs. This involved belting the springs with a sledge hammer on to an old engine block (which was the anvil). They also procured some (new) landcruiser leaves, cut the end of them and added them to the original spring. We now have 10 leaves not the 8 from Old Man Emu. This latter modification added ~ 3” – 4” (for the young ones; 90 mm to 100 mm) to the height at the rear of the vehicle. The idea being to ensure we have no chance of bashing the rear housing again. Mind you, the ride may be a fair bit more bouncy.

When all the mods were done and we (OK, “they”) were about to reassemble, there was a hiccup. The original U bolds holding the springs were badly worn down and the threads badly burred. So, we needed to wait for new bolts – tomorrow; God Willing.

The mechanic drove Ray to the hotel for a shower and a few wonderful cold beers and a nice dinner.

We stayed at the Kasbah Sirocco, Zagora and would you believe it for the 1^st time in nearly 10 months, Ray failed to log the coordinates.  

Avril driving – not sure of the distance either. It was hot and the beer to inviting to remember all the statistics.

Day 15 – 4/6/12

We had a great nights sleep in the a/c. After a leisurely breakfast and some Skype, Ray caught a moped taxi to the garage and Avril remained at the hotel to do some more emailing (or relaxing?) at the poolside garden. When Ray got to the garage the vehicle was basically finished; but the closing out takes a little time, even in Morocco. After a “test drive”, Ray asked for the hand brake to be adjusted – being a perfectionist the mechanic removed the whole assemble, cleaned it thoroughly and reassembled. Ray then asked for the bill. Ah, they did not yet have time to work it out, could he go and pick up Avril & come back. No worries. Ray was bracing himself for the “payment negotiation”. When we got back to the garage the bill was still not prepared, but a quick calculation was done and the amount presented. There was no need for a negotiation. The amount was well within the authorised upper limit. Wonderful, so different to some other parts of Africa. Many, many thanks to Ali and his team. Turned out they are very well known, supporting a lot of motor rallies, TV crews, travel writers etc. How lucky – we could have been in the middle of nowhere and the casing failed leaving us with a big problem. Many thanks. www.ali-racing.com +212 (0) 661 775 480.

We then drove to M’Hamid, and the drive was a little disappointing compared to the superb scenery of the previous days. Maybe we are getting a bit spoiled.

We then started to drive the M6 route in C. Scotts Sahara guide book and camped in the “middle of nowhere”.

Avril driving; 212 km; 6 hrs; N 30⁰ 24’ 50.0’’ W 004⁰ 59’ 39.2’’

Day 16 – 5/6/12

We were treated to a magnificent  moon rise last night; a huge orange/red moon rising behind some distant hills. Then in the morning a great, crimson, sunrise.

We continued on with the M6 route and finished at Taouz, where the tar started. The route is interesting, without being spectacular. The initial ~ 60 km is very rocky and we had to drive very slowly to preserve our tyres. There was one difficult sand section; C. Scott said not to deflate, but we needed to deflate and Avril (Avril drives when the sand gets a bit sticky, so Ray can dig and put the sand plates in place – ever the gentleman!) had to take a run up on a few occasions to crest some small dunes with + 2’ (that is ~ 600mm for the young uns) vertical step at the top. Otherwise it was slow going all the way. At one point (before the sand!!) we got bogged in a small sandy section of the track. There was an auberg nearby (Auberg Dinosaur) and the owner came out to lend a hand. He pointed out that the front wheels had not been locked for 4WD (OK, that is Rays responsibility, his bad).

We had some tea with the owner of the Auberg and chatted for a bit. At the end, in true desert fashion, he refused any payment. So nice.

The C. Scott book is probably a bit aged; the distances did not match our odometer and a lot of the markers were missing. There are a lot of cafes and Auberges along the way, so it must be a very popular route when it is not in the mid 40^oC. The route may appeal to folks who like a bit of a 4WD challenge or overlanders giving their vehicle a shake down before proceeding south. Maybe we have been spoilt with our time in Egypt, but we did not find the scenery all that stunning.

We saw the edge of the Erg Chebbi near Merzouga and were impressed with the dunes; wonderful colour, high and with good shape. We then drove back to Ouarzazate. The drive after the piste was not all that interesting. There was a green bit on the Michelin map around Dades, but we found nothing all that interesting – just + 45 km of built up area that required a very slow speed.

We camped back at the Municipal Campground. We looked around, but did not find anything else.

Ray driving; 505 km; 11hrs

Day 17 – 6/6/12

After a very sleepless night, due to the wedding celebrations over the campsite boundary, we drove back to Marrakech. The return was as stunning as the outward journey. We booked into the Ourika campground again. Avril stayed at the site pool whilst Ray went back to MRK to collect a tyre rim that was being repaired and fit a couple of new tyres. Again, the logistics failed and the tyres were not there. The rim had not been repaired, but a dash to the repair shop and 4 hours later we had a (fingers crossed) good as new rim.

Avril driving; 264 km; 4 hrs’

Day 18 – 7/6/12

We drove to just north of Casablanca to a city called Mohammadia and checked into the Said Camping site. The camp site is family run & clean, but very basic. A good 4 lane highway made sure it was a swift journey, however the campground was a bit hard to find so we only arrived in the mid afternoon. This meant we could not visit the mosque in Cassa in the afternoon.

Instead, we elected to try and watch Sam Stosur’s semi-final from Roland Garros. We decided to pitch camp and take a taxi into town. The farce that followed made Fawlty Towers look like a serious documentary. Farce does not explain fully the efforts to find somewhere to watch the match. Initially we were taken to the railway station. This did not immediately come to mind as a place to have a bite & watch sport. We tried explaining that we wanted to watch tennis on the television in a café.  Now, silly us, the French for Television is Television, and we thought we could just use the English, Television.  So, a number of people were asked and various directions obtained and we drove further and further from the more modern areas of the city. Some folks assured us they could speak English and explain what was needed. Eventually we drove through the industrial area to a golf club, where apparently they have some tennis courts. No, we were not even dressed for tennis. At this point we gave up. Ray’s view of tennis was not enhanced by this wanton waste of his time.

We then asked to go to the office of the telephone provider as the iPad had stopped carrying data. This involved a drive through some of the seedier areas of town and then driving through a very narrow fresh produce market, in fact so narrow that we could not get through and had to reverse (this involved shifting some of the produce carts) and drive out again. AND, we could not get the telecommunications  issue resolved. Seems that paying for a telephone service in Africa does not necessarily indicate that you will have any coverage.

So we decided that we would not be able to see the tennis nor have internet. What we did have of course was the almost certain debate on money when we got back to the camp ground.

We need to mention a difficulty that has come up. With the rear end of the car being 3’ – 4’ higher, Ray is now vertically challenged in erecting the tent. He needs to stand on tip toes to complete the task. Still, brave and a gentleman to the end, he has not accepted Avrils offer to assist!

To compensate we went to a local restaurant on the beachfront and had paella. Not nearly as good as Olga’s but pretty good after missing out for 10 months.

Ray driving; 271 km; 4 hrs; N 33⁰ 43’ 54.1’’ W 007⁰ 20’ 21.6’’

Day 19 – 8/6/12

We took a train into Casablanca. In the ticket queue we met a very nice chap who had been a journalist in the UK for 20 years, so had excellent English. He assisted us in buying the tickets and gettingus off at the correct stop. He also negotiated to get us a taxi to the old part of Cassa. Then, when he had left, the taxi driver offered to take us on a city tour – which  was great.

We found Cassablanca to be a pleasant city, at least the areas we visited. We initially went to the old and new Sultans palaces. Nearby at Quartier Habous we bought some delicious pastries and had breakfast at a café.

We went to the usual places, the corniche, catholic cathedral, the Mausoleum of Mohammed V etc.  .

The main objective of our visit was the Sultan HassanII Mosque. Set into the ocean on a man- made island and with the tallest minaret in the world, it is a fantastic building. Unfortunately there was a mix up with the tour times (they were one hour later than the brochure) so Avril went on the tour and Ray waited to tell the taxi to come back an hour later.

Day 20 – 9/6/12

We had a very short drive to Rabat. There did not seem to be any camping so we booked into Riad de la belle etole in Sale. The accommodation was good, but dinner at the riad was expensive and average.

We took the tram into Rabat and toured the typical sights; Tower of Hassan, Mausoleum of the father (Hassan 2?) and grandfather of the current king, the Medina (we had a tagine lunch), a walk along the beach and the Kasbah.

The guide books generally run down Casablanca and say Rabat is better. We thought the reverse, Casablanca seemed to be cleaner and have more character. But, we would probably suggest that neither is really worth the diversion unless you happen to be driving past & “aimless” i.e. have spare time.

Today we stopped out malaria tablets – after 10 months!.

Avril driving; 69 km; 2.5 hrs; N 34⁰ 02’ 10.6’’ W 006⁰ 49’ 32.2’’

Day 21 – 10/6/12

We had a leisurely breakfast and then drove to Chefchaouen, a “tourist” town in the Riff Mountains. The initial part of the drive is through agricultural country and it is harvest time. So we passed quite a number of combine harvesters, tractors and other machinery. There is a mixture of old and new. We also saw people gathering bales of hay with a horse and cart.

The mountain drive is very scenic and reminded us of the European side of the Mediterranean.  It is not as spectacular as the Atlas mountains but a few times the road went along a valley and there is a dramatic mountain at the head of the valley, making a “postcard” picture. And, the weather was not too hot, so conditions were OK for photography.

After we got to Chefchaouen  we took some time to find the Azilan Campground, which is far up a mountain side and gives great views across a valley to the opposite side. After making camp, we took a long and slow walk into town – by this time the temperature was up to 39^oC. We managed to find a patisserie with the French Open showing on a TV, but much to Avri’ls chagrin, rain stopped play after we had watched for ~ 20 min.

Ray driving; 249 km; 4 hrs; N 35⁰ 10’ 32.7’’ W 005⁰ 16’ 00.8’’

Day 22 – 11/6/12

After a sleep in and a long chat with some folks in the campground, we went for a drive around the Riff Mountains. The scenery is fantastic and the road provided some wonderful vistas.

It was market day in one of the towns we passed through. Being mountainous, the market was spread along the road, effectively blocking the road. Like most markets in Africa it is a mix of cheap Chinese imported sandals and thongs (flip/flops for the non Aussies), sort of trash & treasure and some fruit and veg. But the occasion seems to bring out the joy in people, so there is lots of noise and activity etc.

Another aspect of the drive is the offers of hashish. Apparently this area is one of the world centres for the weed. We did not see any fields, however along the road, in the shadows there were often men standing, looking a bit out of place. When they saw a tourist they would wave and whistle. We did not stop to investigate!

When we got back from the drive we went into town to watch England and France draw in a European Cup soccer match.

Avril driving; 178 km; 5 hrs; Back at Chefchaouen,  Azilan Campground. The camping facilities are clean and work, if a little aged.

Day 23 – 12/6/12

In the evening a young couple, Leigh and Rebecca from Eltham, Melbourne, Australia (!!!!) came over to say hello.  They are travelling around Europe in a van and decided to hop over to Morocco. So, we spent ages (for us oldies anyway – went to bed at midnight) chatting to them. It was great to chat to folks with whom we have a shared background. Importantly, Leigh is a Bombers supporter – so there was no tribal feud. After the late night we made a late start to the day and chatted to Leigh and Rebecca again.

We had a leisurely drive to Martil on the beach near Tetoaun. The drive was interesting but not as spectacular as the previous days. We then went for a drive along the Mediterranean coast of Morocco and marvelled at how blue the water was. The road has been cut into steep hillsides along the sea shore and gives wonderful views of the mountains in the background, sea promontories etc.

In the evening we went for a walk along the corniche (promenaded!).

We stayed at the Alboustane campground, which is a bit dismal and badly in need of a good clean and some maintenance.  

Ray driving; 156km; 8 hrs; N 35⁰ 37’ 44.2’’ W 005⁰ 16’ 37.04’’

Day 24 – 13/6/12

We rose early, had breakfast on the corniche and then drove directly to the Spanish enclave of Ceuta. Immigration and customs formalities were completed quickly and with little fuss.

Of course, no hint of a bribe.

Morocco Summary

Morocco is a no hassle country. There are no security issues, though the police stops can get a bit monotonous. For tourists there is good infrastructure, hotels, campgrounds etc.

The roads are of a high standard and well maintained. The scenery is stunning, the food is delicious and the people are very friendly. From a European perspective, it is a very low cost destination. For us it was a good transition to Europe.

We rated it the easiest country so far. RSA may have more consumer and western “stuff”, but Morocco has the advantage of having no security issues.

Michelin Map: distances are sometimes wrong. 6/10. Lonely Planet Morocco: very hard to use on a Kindle. 6/10. Travel guide Morocco: designed for a Kindle and brief and to the point: 8/10.

UK and Morocco, Part 2

UK

22/5/2012 – 29/5/2012.

We arrived in the UK to ideal weather and the maximums remained in the mid to high 20s for the week. Unfortunately, we had brought non-summer clothes with us. But, it did not really matter.

The week was spent with friends, enjoying their company, eating and drinking (Ray) too much. Ray says he has put on more than a few Kgs in the week.

Elena & Dan’s wedding was great; a really enjoyable day/evening. The reception was at the Reform club (where Elena is a member). We all took the Underground from the registry office to the reception and the look on the commuters’ faces when the whole bridal party and all the guests hopped on board, was a sight to behold! It was very strange dancing the night away with portraits of former  prime ministers, lords ,gentry etc keeping an eye on us!

The next day was spent celebrating Steve, father of the bride and Avril’s 60ths with an English BBQ – the weather was superb and Ray did all the cooking as he said that he did not trust the Poms to do a BBQ! Thanks to the bride and groom for hosting the event in their back garden! As if this was not enough celebrating, we had a birthday lunch on the Monday with all the trimmings – champagne, chocolate birthday cake ( we could not fit all the candles on the cake!), presents etc.

After 9 months on the wrong side of the road, the driving was successfully negotiated with only 1 incident of “being on the wrong side of the road”.

Morocco, Part 2

Day 9 – 29/5/12

After an indecent start to the day, 03:30, to get the easyjet  flight, we returned to Morocco to recommence our trip. The break in the IK was fantastic and we did manage to survive in the “rat race” and rather enjoyed it.

Collecting our vehicle from customs was easy and we were soon on our way. We had noticed a bit of a squeak coming from the rear of the vehicle so on the way back from the airport we stopped at Toyota and had it looked at. As suspected, we needed a new set of brakes. They do not seem to last that long.

We then went to the souk to do some food shopping. A lot of the stores were closed, seemed that there was a bit of a boycott underway due to high costs/taxes (know the feeling?). Still we managed to get all our fruit & veg. The range of produce was great. The pricing was very interesting. All the different vegetables; carrots, tomatoes, potatoes, egg plants etc etc are weighed together. There is no difference in pricing between the different vegetables. The biggest surprise was the price. When we had completed our shopping and had a large quantity of fresh produce, we asked the price. A kind gentleman also shopping at the same stall translated; 17 Dirum. We queried the amount, thinking this was wrong. They thought we were saying it was too much. Did we mention the exchange rate; 10 Dirum ~ $ 1. The whole lot cost $ 1.70. We thought we had mis heard and it should have been at least 70 Dirum.

We camped at the excellent Paradise Nomad about 15 km from Agadir, in the hills. The  hills remind us a bit of Greece and the mid east, quite large, some reasonable tree cover but very little grass. So the appearance is of a grey/brown backdrop and green blobs coming out of it.

As soon as the sun went down we can felt the cold and the night was a bit chilly.

N 30⁰ 25’ 28 509’’ W 009⁰ 27’ 961’’

Day 10 – 30/5/12

After the very early start the previous night, we had a bit of a sleep in. The hills were covered in mist and it took until early afternoon for it to burn off and for the sun to make an appearance. Ray took the vehicle back to Toyota to get a routine service. Avril remained at the camp and did some washing etc.

Day 11 – 31/5/12

A brilliant days drive. A had a lazy start to the day and then drove into Agadir to do some more food shopping and chores. We then drove to Marrakech via the mountains route. The road is tar all the way. The mountain sections are single lane and a bit rough where the water can erode the surface.

We were fortunate with the weather. It was cloudy/closed in in the morning, but cleared to a wonderful clear blue sky as we approached the mountains. It made for ideal viewing conditions.

The drive is absolutely spectacular. Dramatic mountain faces and picturesque valleys with lots of green/agriculture and villages. The route must be well known in the biker community as we were passed by a number of (large!) foreign motor bikes. For the cyclists, this would be a great place to practice the massive up hill climbs. The high Atlas mountains are as great as everyone says.

We are camped at the superb Ourika Camp just outside Marrakech. We think this is probably the best camp we have stayed at so far in our trip. So good, we may stay an another day.

Ray driving; 335 km; 7 hrs; N 31⁰ 31’ 36.7’’ W 007⁰ 57’ 32.9’’

Day 12 – 1/6/12

As predicted, we stayed an extra day. Ray took the opportunity to visit MRK (formerly Outback) a specialist 4x4 garage run by Stephan. They made a new locking arrangement for the under tray draw. The draw broke its 4^th and 5^th catches/locks and we did not have any more spares. Clearly the original locks were not suited to the task. MRK also removed one of the broken Opposite Lock suspension air bags. It was so distorted that it was impacting other parts. Amazingly the Old Man Emu shock absorber beside it, whilst dinted and bruised, was still and OK and in good working order. Money well spent there. The MRK folks had to modify a bump block and weld it to the chassis.  Ray thought he had kept the original bump blocks, but they seem to have been “lost or stolen or strayed. Rays bump blocks seem to have been mislayed!”

Avril spent the day reading by the pool (the adaptors for the computer being in the car).

Day 13 – 2/6/12

Not enough superlatives. Ray went back to MUK to get a couple of new rear tyres. Unfortunately the logistics let MUK down and the tyres were not delivered. Still they serviced a compressor and also replaced the bolts holding the tray to the chassis. The original bolts were ~ 75% of their original diameter and the nuts were loose. So, it was time well spent.

Avril managed to get some emailing done.

We then drove from Marrakech to Ouarzazate. The drive was absolutely stunning, probably one of the best mountain drives we have ever done. There are not enough superlatives to describe the trip – you will have to come and see.

We camped in the Ouarzazate municipal camping ground. Whilst it is not fantastic, it is not as bad as some blogs describe.

Avril driving; ~ 250 km; 4 hrs; N 30⁰ 55’ 23.1’’ W 006⁰ 55’13.1’’