Tata

It's very warm, very dry and we are overlooking the palmerie at Tata, which is south of the Anti atlas on the edge of the desert. We've been travelling since Saturday after having spent two nights at Imesouane with Adam and Riek as our lovely companions. There is little time to write as so much happens in one day and now we are in Tata, the internet is dubious, so whether this blog can be posted, we shall see. 

At Imesouane, we walked, talked and ate beautiful fish grill. All in 24 hours. The young ones were tired after their plane flight and slept their first night deeply, getting up late on day one of their nine day holiday. We walked into the port and were greeted by old friends as we bought 4 fresh fish for £2.50 !!! Horse mackerel I would call them, san shar in french. Whatever they're called, they were a real feast when cooked up that evening. We had walked to fossil mountain to work up an appetite and as the sea mist had descended on Imsouane, obscuring the sun, we found an ocean of cloud as we climbed above the cool mist, turning our usual sea views into mountain vistas. 

We drove to Taroudant on Saturday as wind and cloud took over the coast. A fine town it is. We know it fairly well now but it's a 'sleep in the van place' so a room for the young ones was needed. This was found in the hotel Taroudant on the main square for 150 dirhams for the night. Bargain. Riek was drafted into a sufi dance, much to everyones delight and fun was had by all. We left them to their own devices and returned to our van for the night, only to be told we had to move to another place for whatever reason, so Adam and Riek would not be able to find us in the morning!! Typical. While this was happening, so we found out the next day, the young ones were getting hopelessly lost, wandering the streets of Taroudant as you do as a tourist! Not a problem as the people here are, as always lovely and they were escorted back to their hotel sans problem, safely. 

In the morning, amongst the Taroudant 10k marathon run! We all found ourselves by accident and took a horsey ride to the local Souk, which happens to be on today. Targine, oranges, olives etc were purchased for future delights. Back to the van and off to the desert we drove. No time to waste, Up'n Atom. South through the Anti Atlas we drove, Up, up we went and cooler it became until at Igherm and a coffee, wrapped up due to the chill wind, we decided to move on down to lower levels and more warmth. Dark descending, we took a small road from Issafen and parked up in the mountain wonder of this region. Absolutely amazing. Adam and Riek cooked us a targine under the stars as we marvelled at our campsite for the night.

Today, we drove on down to the desert through a history of time as exposed by the most incredible rock formations one could imagine. Utterly awe inspiring, a feast for the senses and a drive to remember for life. Tata, out of the desert comes Tata. A flourishing frontier town of many palms and lovely people. We park in town and walk to a chicken seller, where we buy a live chicken for supper. The business is carried out on the spot. The freshest chicken one can buy. Something i've wanted to do for a long time. Pick the bird, weigh it and have it handed over 5 minutes later. Fresh chicken and still strangely warm!!

Which brings us to the campsite, where we sit now, overlooking the palmerie, soon to start up the fire for our tajine of chicken delight, tonight.

Phew, a quick blog entry and I'll try to upload.

Lots of love

Ted, Krysia, Adam and Riek