Morocco: Sightseeing En Route to Erfoud, part 1

Day 6 of the tour landed on Easter Sunday, April 16th. The blurb on the itinerary about this day was it was going to be a "long and rewarding touring day". Long it was. Roughly 10 hours drive from the magnificence of Fez to the mysterious Erfoud which sits at the edge of the Sahara Desert. And very rewarding as you are going to see in this post and in the next posts.

I am going to chop this day up in bite size pieces just so I can focus on the natural beauty and variety of terrain in the Moroccan countryside. In the 10 hours we passed by different types of topography.

We left the hotel before 8 am if I remember correctly and made out way out of Fez into the destination for the day, Erfoud. Our journey to Erfoud is by way of the Middle Atlas Mountains.

And as we made our way to the mountains, the terrain actually looked more like Northern California with trees and shrubs and rolling hills.

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For those who have been to the Eastern Sierra Region (via Highway 395), the scenes above must have reminded you of it, right? Because the Californians in that tour said so to a man.

A brief pit slash coffee stop was made in Ifrane, which to my mind looked out of place in Morocco. To me it fits more in a country like Switzerland. Ifrane is a ski resort town in the mountains. Skiing in Morocco? Yes, this town sits above 5,000 feet in elevation and is a popular vacation spot for locals and foreigners.

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Being cooped up for a couple of hours on the bus, we needed to blow some restless energy.

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Nearby is Al Akhawayn University where the instruction is in English.

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Comments

  1. Wow you are brave to go to Morocco, great captures though and thanks for sharing :)

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  2. Yes, I can see some resemblance to the 395 drive. Looks like very pretty country. I like the "blowing off energy" shot!!

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  3. Fun photos at the end ~ and lovely photos of your adventure too ~ ^_^

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  4. Morocco is definitely part of my list since I can go there without a visa as a Philippine passport holder. Lovely pics as always!

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  5. I can imagine why you loved this area, Maria, since you're from California. But a ski resort in Morocco??? Who would have guessed!

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  6. Lovely countryside. I like the shot of the three people jumping!

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  7. Hello, looks like a great tour of Morocco. The countryside is beautiful. Happy Friday, enjoy your weekend!

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  8. Wow, unexpected landscapes. Part of the reason I love blogging. I learn something new every day. You guys really caught some air in your jumps. I can't hardly jump on a newspaper any more.

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  9. The countryside photos are absolutely beautiful. The blowing off steam shot is fantastic.
    Have a wonderful weekend!

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  10. We love the jumpingpictures!

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  11. I think you made nearly the same trip as me ! The mountain pictures must be the Atlas, I found that very beautiful !

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  12. So beautiful - I'd love to try skiing there. That's a bit lower in elevation than my house!

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  13. Wow! Wonderful photos as always! Sounds you have been a great trip!
    Just funny the picture:"blow some restless energy"

    Thanks for your nice comment on my "Family's Antiques post".
    Wishing you and yours a lovely weekend.
    Big hugs.

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  14. Fantastic landscapes and other scenes. You take such great trips.

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  15. great shots from the countryside :)

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