... And a Festastic New Year

Marrakesh and Fes were so different to anything we have experienced in our lives before. It's so colourful and vibrant with sights and smells and sounds overloading your senses every minute of the day.

When we weren't being harassed for money or to buy their wares the locals were so friendly and accommodating. And the children were just gorgeous. The Riads we stayed in were so opulent and intricate in their design. The food we ate was rich in flavour, colour and spices. The souks we visited were full of amazing handicrafts and local fare.

Being on the edge of the Sahara desert it was surprisingly green with imposing snowcapped mountains snaking their way across the entire country.

The tannery in Fes with it's hand-dyed leather bags, jackets, shoes and wallets just screamed for you to buy something. I picked up some shoes and a gorgeous red leather jacket at a bargain price.

We spent Christmas day in the Atlas mountains and New Years Eve day in Middle Atlas and exploring the many villages around Fes.

We saw mosques, carcasses being dried out on rooftops, leather being tanned by hand, children learning nursery rhymes in their kindergarten, wood being intricately carved, argan nuts being ground into oil, a Berber family in their home, monkeys in the Cedar Forest, boys playing football with a ball of string, women carrying water on their heads to their homes for washing, a 70 year old Berber woman serving tea to an endless lines of guests in her traditional cave house, donkeys and camels and a lot of henna hand tattooing.

It was quite amazing. Click here for more pictures.