After waking up in Rincon, we drove up into the mountains to a small town by the name of Chefchauen. It was a very long drive but a beautiful one. The entire time we were driving on tiny curvy roads in the mountains. I was so mesmerized by the view that I managed to stay from getting sick. Finally, we arrived at the town. We approached the town from the side, and initially it seemed very small. It seemed like a random place to bring a tour group. After waiting for everyone to use the facilities, we began our tour with our small native tour guide. I never caught his name but he was very nice and very small - as appeared common of the folks in this mountain town. We began our tour be ascending into the small town. Everything ended up being small about this town. The streets were small. The sidewalks were small. The people were small. The houses were small. The front doors were even smaller. All of the houses were connected, as is popular in Spain. They were also all blue. The residents over the bottom of their houses in a blue colored chalk type substance to keep away the mosquitos. It washes away with water and rubs off onto your clothes if you make the mistake of leaning up against a house. I imagine they have to apply this blue stuff often. The small village ended up being very pretty. We stopped along the tour to visit a shop where they make blankets, shirts, traditional scarves and other things made of fabric. The particular kind of material they used and the designs were very typical of the Moroccan mountains. Once the tour ended, we were given free time to roam the center. We were advised that we could shop and that it was a good idea to buy handmade clothing here, as it is very inexpensive since it is made so close by. We were also told to try to bargain with the people. Nothing at any of the shops had price tags. You had to ask the prices. They told you a price and then you were expected to give a counter offer. It was a very uncomfortable process and I didn't like it much.Walking through the small streets and buildings on our tour, you couldn't see much except the buildings on either side of you. From the center, where the shops were, you could see that the village was surrounded by the mountains. It made for a beautiful background. After hanging out in the center, we hopped back on the bus to Tetuoan.
In Tetuoan we went on a small tour of the oldest part of the town. Driving into the town you see regular sized roads and tall buildings. We parked the bus and the group walked under what seemed like a bridge. It was actually a brick wall surrounding the old part of Tetuoan. It gave way to teeeeny tiny streets and old buildings. I'm talking barber shops the size of dorm rooms. It was very crowded. This old part of the town is home to the Jewish community and the Arab community. Before our tour, we stopped for lunch. It was delicious. It was held in a very ornate building which doubles as a restaurant and a wedding hall. The lunch was delicious. We started with vegetable soup. This was followed by skewers and then a small empanada type thing stuffed with curried chicken and almond paste. Very good. Lunch was interrupted by a few traditional Moroccan dances and songs from the people that I assume work at the restaurant and at the weddings as entertainers. After lunch we continued the tour of the old part of town. During the tour we stopped into a spice shop and were given a presentation on many Moroccan spices. They use spices for everything it seems like. After the spices it was back outside of the brick wall and back on the bus. We then drove for a few hours to Tangier. By the time we reached the hotel it was time to get ready for dinner. The hotel was huge. It was more like a resort. Just being in the hotel I could tell that Tangier was much bigger than the other cities we had visited. Dinner was served family style. Is that what you call it when they put big dishes in the center and everyone shares? We were given a salad and chicken. Then we had cous cous, a very popular dish in Morocco. I'm sad to report I didn't really like the cous cous. It was kind of like rice but had such a strange flavor. During dinner, as lunch, we had performances. Many performances. A boy and girl that did acrobatics, a guy with a strange "candles defying gravity" show, a belly dancer, and some guys playing instruments. Dinner lasted until about 11:30pm. We were all very tired after such a long day but after dinner was over, we were informed to meet back in the lobby at 1 to go to the hotel discoteca. (Wake up call was at 7:45 the next morning). We went back to our room, drank a little bit, and reconvened back in the lobby at 1am as told.
The next morning came VERY early. We had a breakfast of croissants and then got back on the bus. We were becoming very friendly with this bus. The first stop was the camels. We stopped at an extremely random spot next to the ocean. The camel "ride" was much like a pony ride you might see at a fair. There were 5 camels attached together by ropes. We used a small handmade wooden step to get up on the strange animals. They were very smelly and very agitated - not making me excited to mount them. It ended up going ok. The man yelled at me to jump up and I got on the animal. He then hit his front knees, apparently the signal for him to stand up. I then leaned very far forward....very far backwards....and finally ended up centered. I had made it. The rest of the ride is a blur as I think I was terrified and also too concerned with keeping a pleasant smile for the cameras. After camels we stopped by the meeting point between the Mediterranean and the Atlantic. Shortly after taking pictures we went to visit another cave. Then, it was back on the bus to head to the town of Ceuta where we would catch the ferry back to Spain. We had a short bus tour of Ceuta where we were able to take some panoramic photos of the area. We could see all along the coast of Africa. It was beautiful. The city of Ceuta is very pretty and interesting. Supposedly it is home to many soldiers. After the ferry ride back, we got back on the bus to drive to Seville. From Seville I took the bus alone back to Huelva.
It was a long trip. I learned many things on the trip. I don't like group travel. Traveling with 50 people is too much. We had to stop for people to use the bathroom far too often. The included organization of our trip was nice. It was great paying a flat fee and not having to plan anything else. But this leaves you so restricted. We never ever got to visit around Tangier, the 3rd largest city in northern Africa. I also learned not to drive when you can fly. I spent way too many hours in a bus while traveling through Morocco. So much of that time could have been spent traveling if I had flown. Although, I did enjoy taking a ferry for the first time. I don't think I would have liked to be on my own traveling around Africa but in places where it will be safe to travel alone, that will be my plan from now on. In the end, I'm glad I got to go. It was a very interesting experience and in the short period of time, I do feel like I got to soak up a lot of the Moroccan culture.
Apologies for the extensive details. Also, I didn't proofread.
