Casablanca

Casablanca is not quite what was expected. Not as romantic or exotic as I had hoped. This a large cosmopolitan but run down city. It still has some old buildings which had to be amazing in their day but have been let go. I have seen so many old motocycles. Some could date back to WWII.

Earlier today we had a long wait outside the Mauritanian embassy with quite a number of others. One girl who we saw yesterday at the Chella was there and Donna talked to her. She and her partner started riding a tandem bicycle in Paris and are now in Africa basically doing what we are except by bike!

Tomorrow we are off by train to Marakech (express). The trains are quite good to travel on and since it will take about four hours that will be a bonus.

Rabat

Rabat is the modern, cosmopolitan capital of Morocco. Once ensconced in our shockingly pink hotel we walked through the medina, through a huge cemetery which overlooks the Atlantic Ocean and down to the beach area. There is another huge cemetery across the river in Sale. It must have some significance. There is a surfing school and some young men were catching waves. The breakwaters are spectacular with huge rocks and chunks of concrete defending the beach and river against the ocean. Across the river is the twin city of Sale which is historically famous for pirates and such. Looking back from the beach a large walled casbah overlooks the ocean from the high ground. We have done a lot of exploring seeing the magnificent Tour Hassan and the extraordinary mausoleum of Mohammed V. The Chellah was also a treat. It was begun by the Romans and even though it is a ruin the fortified walls still stand. A treat inside was that there were storks with their giant nests scattered among the trees and ruins. I still have not been able to post pictures. Sorry, but we have been taking lots. By the way the calls to prayer start at about 5:30 am from a loud speaker right near our room. No alarm needed! Tomorrow we pick our visas for Mauritania and then we are off to exotic Casablanca.

Fes

We really enjoyed Chefchaoun but had to leave. A little excitement on the way to the bus with a guy waving a plastic pistol, not at us. The bus ride was interesting passing very lush fields which were still being farmed by hand or with donkeys pulling plows. Upon reaching Fes we hiked toward the medina in beautiful sunshine. Once there we began the task of finding lodgings. It is difficult because you constantly have "friends" who want to help you find something, for a fee of course. The medina is a labrynth of 9400 winding, narrow, twisting, you get the idea, streets. The entire medina is surrounded by a high battlemented wall. We explored for hours and did not get lost. On the second day we looked for the tannery but had no luck. We stayed in a pension in the only roof top room that overlooked the kings palace. It was a fabulous view of the palace and the medina perched on the hillside, but we could not take pictures or the soldiers would turn up. It was a lovely spot to have breakfast with the view.

Chefchouan

Chefchouan is spectacular sitting in the heart of the Rif Mountains. We are staying a cute pension. The town is a labarinth of narrow winding streets washed with white and blue walls. Shops and homes line the streets. We have wandered for hours drinking in the amazing sights and sounds of the city. Very little traffic noise. Today we hiked into the mountains visiting the ruins of an old mineret. Donkeys are still the beast of burden. We heard a braying ass (me) which was amusing. The views from the mountain trails were spectacular and we took lots of pictures but still will not be able to post them from here. The air is so clean and clear. A waterfall comes down the mountain and there is a station where the women wash clothes by hand like on old washing boards with water from the river washing and rinsing everything. The food is good an we have eaten most meals in the plasa next to the Casbar. This is a very exotic setting so we decided to spend an extra day. We are having a wonderful time. Donnas skills with languages is an amazing thing to watch:

Morocco

We are in Tetouan, Morocco, right now and clumbsily typing on an Arabic Keyboard. We had good flights to get to Tanger (Tangier) and loved the nice sunny warm sun. We were able to get a good room in the old quarter and explored from one end of town to the other. It is rich in chararcter. Today we took a one hour bus ride to here. Its a wonderful city in the spectacular Riff Mountains. We have done a lot of walking exploring the many colourful markets. A very well kept city. There does not look like a recession here as there is new construction everywhere. We are going deeper into the mountains tomorrow. The adventure has started well. I will try to add more when I get on an English keyboard.

Wetzlar

Wetzlar

On Saturday, we spent the day with Cathy and her family. We toured around Giessen looking at the old buildings and we also did some shopping. On Sunday, February 15th. we caught a bus and travelled to the historic and picturesque city of Wetzlar. It was cold so we were bundled up. As it was Sunday and not the tourist season we had the place to ourselves.　The buildings are so old, many dating back to the 1200's. Once I commmented that Donna must have painted one of the ancient houses as it was so colourful and intricate, just like her place on Hyatt. We did a lot of walking touring the town. One steep climb took us to the ruins of a castle overlooking the environs of Wetzlar. A wonderful view!

Germany

Donna and I have arrived safely in Germany on Thursday, Feb. 12 th. after an uneventful flight. Don't let Air Canada employees help you. We were not able to select our seats. The plane was "booked solid and we were lucky to be seated together". We were lucky as it wasn't fully booked and Donna was able to stretch out and sleep on the unused seat next to us. There were numerous empty seats. In Frankfurt we caught a train to Giessen then bused the rest of the way to Heuchelheim and then Kinzenbach where Cathy lives with her family. It was great fun seeing the grandchildren again although both are fighting colds. We got oriented as we walked with Cathy to pick Lukas and Anna up from school. It was fun to get reunited again.

On Friday the 13th. Donna and I headed out to the historical city of Marburg by train. It was chilly with snowflakes in the air as we toured around the streets of the city enjoying the amazing architecture. Many of the buildings had been erected in the 12oo's. Some had lost lost their shape over the centuries and were leaning significantly. The Schloss (castle) was very interesting with exhibits of children's toys, furniture, armour and such. The local bake shops had typically tantilizing pastries which were impossible to resist. We actually ate a meal at a Lebanese restaurant and it was delicious. Late in the afternoon we returned to Kinzenbach for a delicious supper. We'll post pictures at the first opportunity.