Day 58 - Going home

Up early this morning so that we could check the dogs in to have the pet passports checked which Eurotunnel ask for an additional 30 minutes. We leave Wissant, our overnight stop, at 7:30am and arrive at the old pet passport checkin building and then find that they had moved the facility 100m down the road. At 8:00am we are checking ourselves and the van in at the border checks. We find that we can take the train that is one hour earlier at no additional charge. Departure is scheduled for 8:50am.

We are all loaded and start to move off only five minutes after the scheduled time but almost immediately come to a stop. There is a technical fault…. About 30 minutes later we start the journey again. We now make the short train journey to Blighty. With the clocks going back one hour we are driving off the train at 9:00am UK time.

The journey home is uneventful and I did remember to drive on the left. We arrive home at 11:15am. The total mileage over the last 9 weeks was 6309 miles.

Would we do it again? Maybe but we will have to think about whether we use the longer more expensive ferry crossing to north Spain as an alternative which would save a week of driving and about 1600 miles in the return journey. The experiences this year were precious and we met and made friends with some special people as well as continued our friendship with others.

Is it good to back in the UK? Except for the weather it was great to be back on familiar soil and be close to the family.

Until the next trip ….

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Day 57 - Wissant

Really cold last night even though we had the screen covers on. I woke at around 7am and put the heating on so that we could get up to a warm van and then went back to bed. Around 8am the kettle went on and we were soon up and around.

We left at around 9:45am to start the long drive to Wissant. Around 12:30pm we stopped for a little lunch. We continued the remaining 100 miles and arrived at around 3:30pm. Quiet relaxing afternoon but still very cold. Getting ourselves ready for the crossing tomorrow. Going to gave to get Tina up early which is not always easy especially when it is still dark outside which it will be. Wish me luck. We plan to leave at around 8am.

Home tomorrow to see our new bathroom....

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Day 56 - Châteaudun

It was cold last night as we evidenced with a significant frost on the windscreen. I didn't put the screen covers on but will do tonight if it's going to be similar in future nights on the way home.

Our first stop was to go and get some fuel from the close by Carrefour. At €1 a litre it's still pretty cheap. Filled the tank but we will need more before we exit France.

As we drove along the outside temperature warning light was consistently telling me how cold it was as the beware ice symbol was displayed. For most of the journey it didn't get above 3°C. We arrived at the overnight stop early afternoon. I had decided to make today a shorter journey and tomorrow a longer journey. The reasons: On a Sunday there are less trucks on the roads and also. Wanted to listen / watch the AFC Bournemouth match.

We raised the satellite dish and I watched some rugby internationals and also tried to use the Internet to get the football. The Internet was so poor I had to put up with a live blog instead but I did gave the consellation that Match of the Day would be on later and I will be able to watch it.

More rugby and then watched "The Voice" on BBC1. Later I was able to catch up on MOTD whilst Tina went to bed.

I did remember to put the windscreen cover on tonight as it's going to be yet another cold night.

Tomorrow we make our way to Wissant in readiness for the short drive to the tunnel crossing on Monday morning.

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Day 55 - Riom

Woke early because one of the dogs wanted to go out so I was up at 6am. Kettle on to wake Tina at 7am as we need to be on the road before 9am. We get to the Vet early at 9:10am and wait our turn. We are called in shortly after 9:30. We explained that Bobby didn't want to swallow the worming tablet last year so an injection would be better thus year. He didn't flinch. Woody however didn't want to swallow the pills this time but did so with a little persuasion and technique from the Vet.

We were on the road at 10am after paying €20.50 which so cheap compared to what others have paid for two dogs. We decided to take the toll road as this will reduce the time on the road. We only have 3 days to travel the 1100 km or around 700 miles. The roads were good and we arrived at out destination around 3pm and were later joined by one other van making two for the night.

We raised the satellite dish for the first time for many weeks in anticipation of receiving something. Voila....we had BBC1. We watched the news and later the rugby international.

Tomorrow will be another long drive and again we will use tolls to save some time. It won't be long before we will be back at the tunnel.

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Day 54 - Sales-Le-Château

Slightly more leisurely start to the day this morning. We woke slightly later so breakfast was at around 9:30am.

We decided that we would use a parking place close to the Vet tonight so we needed to service the van this morning. We paid our €3 at the bar and sat and waited for the chap to come and unlock the barrier. We waited and waited and eventually Tina went in and reminded him ans shortly after that he came out. Soon we were on the road. It was 10:30am

We had around 400km to travel to the outskirts of Leucate. Later in the afternoon we came up to the border with France & Spain. In the past this has been a formality to drive straight through...not today. All the traffic was being diverted past a Police presence very slowly. I assume that they must make the odd check of a suspicious vehicle. Fortunately it wasn't us today. We are now in France.

Not long and we are pulling into the parking area. It has some travellers already ensconced with mains water taken from some locked public toilets and mains electric stolen from the adjacent electric boxes. There is a washing machine available to all which has water and electric all plumbed in. No wonder they have new vehicles and caravans.

We changed the crossing date tonight to Monday and had to pay a supplement.... It's good to know we will be back home to everything that's familiar.

Tomorrow after the Vet visit we will turn north and head for Calais. We will have three days to make Calais.

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Day 53 - Delta de l'Ebre

On the road at 9:30am this morning. We had around 360km to drive to our destination which was close to the one we have been to before. Our first stop was for fuel. Filled with 85 litres of diesel and while I was doing this I was reflecting on the way we in the UK are ripped off. We have been paying around 56p a litre in Morocco and currently in Spain I was about to pay 99 euro cents or about 80p. I noticed that our cheapest diesel close to home is around £1 per litre. How can this be …. tax of course and that we are considered to be wealthy enough to pay for it. Are we not dumb…. don’t answer that!!

We are now travelling on the toll road as this will save us about 2 hours in journey time. The road is quite empty for most of its way until the road becomes free once again and all the trucks are on the road.

We stop at a roadside service area and visit the cafe in the service station. I say cafe because that is what is on the window. It turns out to be no more that a small supermarket selling a few sandwiches, drinks and accessories but they do have free wifi albeit very slow. The break was refreshing though.

We arrive at our destination around 2pm. It is in a small village close to where we have stayed before. However, I soon change my mind and we make our way around to the familiar stopping place by a restaurant. The aire id free to use but there is a charge of €3 for the services. I think we will need to use these in the morning.

After visiting the cafe and obtaining the code for the provided free wifi I proceed to update all of the tablets with the latest photos and app updates. Very useful.

After our evening meal we watch another film. Some of the films I have on the hard drive don’t seem to have any sound so our choices are becoming limited. No problem as it will not be long before we are back in blighty.

We did speak to the bathroom contractor and he was a little shocked that we plan to be home on Monday. He was expecting more time to finish our bathroom but we did explain that we do have the van we can use for facilities.

Tomorrow we will make the final part of our journey to exit Spain in readiness for the visit to the Vet on Friday morning. The it will be 3 more days back to Calais for the train and then home. Until tomorrow ...

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Day 52 - El Campello

After making the decision last night that we would try and make the Vet earlier than we had planned it was going to be a long journey today. We set off around 10am after emptying the cassette. I followed a frenchman and found where the place was they had used. Tina came back and reported that there were two places. The first was a small round drain over in the corner. There was also a water upstand tap close by. The other was close to the hut and was a big manhole that someone had lifted.

The drive was all on dual carriageway and the initial few miles on a toll road. We kept up a good steady pace of around 90 kph stopping at around 12:30 for a bite to eat and giving the boys an opportunity to have a run.

We had thought we would get as far as Valencia but it was soon evident that this was ambitious so we scaled back the rest of the journey and finished at a hilltop Bar / Restaurant close to El Campello.

On arrival Tina needed to check if this was the place. The bar was full with people playing Bingo and the numbers being called out in English. The camping fee is €5 for the night with access to the Wifi.

I found the purse that we carry with loose change in Euros which we use for car parks & tolls. It had some notes we had left over from the last trip but was also full of small denomination coins (shrapnel). I counted out the €5 in 50, 20 and 10 cent coins. The owner was not at all pleased with us as his words were “This isn’t a supermarket” but he did accept them and we are now here for the night.

The stairway to the bar gave us an opportunity to see the state of our roof which is still covered in sand from our visit to the desert and the sand storm. Its a good job that we are not relying on the solar panels to charge the leisure batteries because we would have been in trouble judging by the state of them.

We thought about using the restaurant but we have got used to Morocco prices and we felt he was expensive so we cooked in the van …. something that Tina hasn’t done for a while!!

Watched a film in the evening and early to bed as we want to get on the road and cover another 400km tomorrow. ...

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Day 51 - Golf Noria

After breakfast we drove around to Lidl and did some essentials shopping. Its surprising what you think you need and then what you actually walk out of the shop with. As usual Tina was drawn to the “bargains”. She picked up a pink top that she assured me was good value at €10… I wasn’t convinced.

Next stop was Mercadonna, the supermarket chain, where we bought the bottles of Caramel vodka at the start of the trip. Unfortunately it seems popular around here as they only had 2 bottles. Have to gone some elsewhere in Spain we thought. We also drove around to Media Markt where I wanted to get a replacement cable for the laptop. After having excellent service in Morocco where everyone wants to help this was a culture shock. The sales assistants just didn’t want to know. Eventually I found out they didn’t have one anyway. It can wait until we get home.

We are now on the road making our way to our overnight stop. Ah … another Mercadonna. We stop and buy the 14 bottles that remain on their shelves. They must think that this is popular in these parts.

We make good time and arrive at Golf Noria where we have been many times before. The “boys” love it here as there is freedom to roam and run. We relax in the afternoon which is warm if a little overcast.

We decide that we would eat out tonight at the Chinese buffet we have frequented before crossing to Morocco. The food was good and it was quite noticeable how many of the people in the restaurant were english. It must be because there are many hotels here that cater for short holidays for the english.

After returning and watching a film we decide that we would crack on with our journey and maybe rearrange both the vet visit and our Eurotunnel crossing….. we will have to see. No matter we are going to leave tomorrow.

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Day 50 - Algeciras again

Usual start this morning but once again we were on our own again as the french van had gone early. We later saw him queuing at the port. The guardian was now on parade so I did offer him the overnight fee which seemed to have gone up to 40 MAD but he did let me empty the cassette for nothing which is normally 10 MAD.

Making our way out of town at 10:15am we stopped to refill with fuel at the last filling station. We wanted to try and keep the tank full even though we had 90km to the port. We used the toll road which was 71 MAD and it took us about an hour.

Arrived at the port and was told that there was only one boat going out today at 3pm. Fortunately we did get the ticket and changed our last bit of money back to euros. Now came the formalities of the Police, Customs and finally the X-ray machine before we eventually came to the dock around 1pm where we waited for the ferry to come in.

We finally got loaded at around 3pm and set sail. It was very windy and choppy and difficult to walk to the cafe bar for some coffees but we did manage it. The time seemed to fly be and we soon docked at around 4:45pm.

Next stop was to fill with LPG as see how low we were. To my amazement the bottles only needed just over 14 litres of gas…. not even one empty bottle. If only I had known we could have had the heating on when we were up in the mountains. I will know for next time,...

We then took the short drive back to the car park adjacent to Carlos office and Carrefour. As it was Sunday all the stores and restaurants were closed so dinner was a McDonalds. Not our favourite but needs must. We did take advantage of the free WIFI and call some of the family.

Tomorrow it will be shopping for the essentials that need replenishing followed by a short drive along the coast. A fairly easy day for our first full day in Spain …..

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Day 49 - Asilah

We woke as usual and breakfasted and it was soon time to say farewell to our travelling companions who were going to make their way to the coast. They have some time left in Morocco before they will depart the country. We said goodbye around 10am after making discussing some ideas on when and where we will meet again later in March in the UK.

Soon we were servicing the van and departing ourselves. It was around 10:15am when we were on the road. First stop was for some fuel and then travel north west towards Asilah. Nothing eventful happened and we kept a good speed so we arrived in Asilah around 1:30pm.

There was no guardian to greet us and we were the only van on the parking area until one other turned up late in the afternoon. We have not been asked for the fee but maybe it will happen tomorrow.

The internet speed here is excellent so I was able to update the blog and the photos were added to Dropbox. It also enabled me to watch the AFC Bournemouth match which was live on BBC 1. They were playing Everton in the FA Cup. Unfortunately the score line was not favourable 2-0 to Everton.

We still had around 8GB of data allowance so we decided to continue to watch “The Voice” which had been running for several weeks. It seemed strange to catch up with some news and also watch some UK TV.

Our plans have continued to change and we are now going to make for the port in the morning and cross if we can. The weather is similar both in Spain and here so seems little reason not to go. So iy will be farewell Morocco tomorrow ...

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Day 48 - Meknes (Last day)

Quite start to the day after a very pleasant night as it wasn’t too cold as we expected.

Mid morning five of us jumped into Roberts vehicle to drive the short distance to Volubulis. Brian had decided to stay with the vans and volunteered to look after our “boys”.

The entrance fee paid (10 MAD per person) we were asked if we wanted a guide. Tina and I decided that it would be a good idea as they would show us the main sights across the huge site. The others were going to make their own way around using Ann’s Lonely Planet as a guide.

Our guide was extremely knowledgeable and spoke in really good english. He had worked on the site for 25 years and was one of the 25 guides working at the site. We were guided to each of the important areas in turn and both Tina and I enjoyed the whole experience. Fortunately he restricted the tour to a much smaller area than normal. At the end we handed over 200 MAD (£14) which included a tip of 50 MAD.

We finished our visit with some coffee whilst we waited a short time for the others to return. Soon we were back at the campsite and relaxed in the warm sunshine. Our last Beer O’clock ensued where we talked about our respective plans. The others intend to stay in Morocco for another 2-3 weeks whereas we will probably exit on Monday. They intend to travel west to the coast whilst we will return to Asilah where it all started a few weeks ago.

It will be strange to stay bon voyage as we have all been travelling together for some time. It has been a pleasure and a privilege to enjoy their company and the many laughs we have had. We will miss them when we leave in the morning.

Farewell until we meet again good friends…..

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Day 47 - Meknes (Visit city)

Left the electric heating on all night so it took the chill from inside the van for when we woke in the morning. Our toilet cassette decided not to operate properly so Tina had to make a mad dash for the toilet block first thing this morning whilst Brian and I fixed the problem before breakfast.

When I eventually got around to prepare the breakfast the electric across the sight failed. This made it difficult to prepare my shakes. It was agreed that we would all take the local bus into the city and to the souk.

At around 11am we walked the short distance down the hill to the main road in readiness to catch the bus. The fare was 5MAD (35p) for the 14km ride into the city. We were packed in like sardines on this very old minibus with some seated and others standing. It took around 30 minutes for the journey to the bus station which was the end of our journey.

The next few hours we strolled around the market stalls selling all sorts of goods. We finished off in a square where we sat and had coffee. On the return to catch the bus we bought some fruit and nuts and also had some spiced sausage in a bun. The moroccan McDonalds perhaps !!

The journey back to the site was just as eventful with yet a different bus but just as packed as the morning. Once again the journey was around 30 minutes. The driver decided to stop at one point for some cigarettes. Only in Morocco could this happen I guess.

We strolled over to the restaurant at 7pm for the dinner we had all booked. The table was laid but there would only be the six of us there. The starter was Moroccan soup served with bread. Everyone emptied their dish except Tina who stated that she didn’t like it. We had ordered a Chicken Tagine. The main course arrived which was a platter with six portions of cooked chicken but without any evidence of any vegetables. Strange we thought … perhaps they will appear separately but they didn’t appear at all. The meal was finished with an array of small pastries which seemed to be different for each of the sexes. The restaurant had a small calor gas heater but it didn’t have any effect as the doors were open trellace. They tried you have to give them that.

Tomorrow we intend to visit Volubulis where there are the remains of Roman mosaics used in a number of their houses so very many years ago. Looking forward to it….

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Day 46 - Meknes

We woke early so that we could pack the van for the journey north but first to meet our breakfast time of 9:30am. We were warmly greeted by the family and were enthusiastically shown around Ziad's premises. I took the opportunity of taking a few photos for the app entry I will do later.

Upstairs on the terrace the table was laid out for us all including the french couple from last night. Crepes were provided for us all with various fillings together with coffee and orange juice. They were a welcome change from shakes (sorry Krish). More photos of the occasion ensued. Next it was discussing the wording for his entry on the app which I will complete later.

Zias then pulled us aside to discuss the price for the carpet Tina had taken a shine to the previous evening. Some negotiations and the carpet was rolled and wrapped ready to take to the van. At round 11:00am we said our goodbyes and promised that we would swing by next year on our return.

We were making our way for a site by a lake just north of Midelt. However as we drove north the snow covering the ground was getting deeper. We eventually came across the turn off from the main round and it became immediately apparent that we would not be stopping there. No choice but to push on and find somewhere else for the night. It was very cold and down to zero degrees and the snow was getting deeper. We needed to get clear of the snow as we didn’t want to get stuck in the following morning if it snowed again. We passed a tourist spot where monkeys were in the forest and could be seen by the passing traffic.

Eventually we got to Meknes and tried to find an advertised campsite only to be told that it was closed. We carried on north for 10km and pulled into a site just as it became dark. Not much fun trying to back up the van into the parking bay when it is pitch black.

We watched a film after dinner and then early to bed …. it was an exhausting 8 hour drive.

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Day 45 - Meski (Last day)

As predicted it was a cold night but this morning it soon brightened up.

Later in the morning the others walked up to the village to explore and see what was there. They came across a restaurant where they were created by Ziad as we later learned. They had coffee on his terrace and they provided some excellent views over the adjacent countryside. On their return they were enthused about going back later for dinner and we agreed to join them.

Whilst they were gone Tina and I wandered around the site and we were set upon by a guy who said he worked for Ray. He is the owner or a tour organiser company named Desert Detours who we nearly went with in January 2014. He spoke good english and invited us into his shop where Tina picked out yet another piece of carpet for our loo in the van. On getting it back to the van it turned out to be too small.

Hey Presto …. The guy from yesterday turned up and offered us a carpet just right and wanted to trade. Tina offered him 3 pairs of ladies jeans and eventually a full bottle of Malibu. I have to say I was not pleased but it was her drink she was trading away. It transpires that Ray’s friend was not happy when he learned that he was out done on the carpet deal.

At the appointed hour we wandered up to the restaurant. We were using a room that had already been laid out for us and also one french couple who who camping in his compound. The food was excellent. We had a salad followed by Cabda which was vegetables with minced chicken and topped with beaten egg. Each Cabda was cooked in a Tagine and everyone had a hand made wooden scoop to use to obtain their share. For dessert he produced a bowl of fruit.  Coffee followed the meal.

After we ate he and his friends / relatives entertained us with some drum music and some laughter. It was a really enjoyable evening. I promised that we would attempt to get him an entry on the Dutch Camping Club app. It was arranged that we would return in the morning for breakfast to get the required information.

During the meal Tina took a liking to a carpet hanging on the wall. Of course this was going to go on our lounge floor alongside the previous ones we have purchased no doubt. Ziad will discuss with us the price in the morning.

It was cold walking back to the van but we were soon under the duvet and looking forward to the morning when we will return for breakfast and the trip further north...

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Day 44 - Meski

The sand storm from the afternoon yesterday continued throughout the evening and during the night. The sand seems to have penetrated through the doors and windows so we set to to clean up what we could first thing this morning. Apparently there was a little rain last night but we didn’t hear it but it did leave its mark, with the combination of the sand, on the van.

With brush in hand I cleared most of the sand from the windscreen and front of the van. I did the rest when we got to the site later in the afternoon. We left soon after 10am trying to take the road that will be less of a problem. Almost immediately we got stuck in some soft sand but fortunately we were able to reverse out. Phew!!  Back on to the stony exit road and we gazed upon a local tour bus that took a different route. We decided to follow even though we could not keep up with his pace. This proved to be a much better decision as this certainly was better than the stoney road. Once on to the main road we stopped in the next large town for some provisions…. some we needed and some I wasn’t aware we needed !!

The site we were making for was not very far away (relatively) so we arrived there at around 1:15pm. We were greeted by we believed to be the site owner but it turned out to be a very resourceful shop owner who spoke great english. He soon had us circled up and offered to bring over some mats for each of us. It wasn’t long before Tina was encouraging me to buy the one offered to me….. something she has wanted me to buy since day one in Morocco.

He then insisted he give us a guided tour of the site and show us the amenities. There was a pool that had fish swimming in it which he said we could swim in if we desired and the water was warm to the touch. It was being fed by two natural hot springs and then the water was being channelled away to be used by others to irrigate their fields. The final part of the tour was to visit his shop for some tea … moroccon style (Yuck!!). Of course he had things to sell. Tina eventually bought another ladies lightweight Jellaba which he would have altered for her by his wife. So he had now liberated 360MAD (£26) from me already for the mat and the Kaftan. Later he brought round some bread at 10MAD each. They know how to extract money here.

The afternoon saw us all cleaning inside and outside our vans. I took everything out of the garage and had a spring clean before putting it all back. I also had a chance to test the washing machine. The spin motor, albeit worked, didn’t produce the same spin speed as the burnt out one it replaced. No matter we at least have one that will spin for very little money. Tina worked on the inside with vacuum and duster in hand. I have told her that we will get it professionally valeted when we get back home…. it will need it I am sure.

Egg & Bacon sandwiches for our late lunch tasted superb…. yes… we still have some bacon left. Our evening meal was more of a snack … I had a shake and Tina a cheese sandwich.

The evening saw us put on a film and also we needed to put on the heating … the first time since France / Spain. I think it is going to be cold tonight….

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Day 43 - Merzouga (Last day)

Wow … what an afternoon. We have had a real fierce sand storm for several hours. Had to shut up everything and it got really hot in the van. I accidentally left the garage door open and it has filled with sand even though the wind was not coming from that direction.

This morning started as usual with a warm bright and hot start. Our broken washing machine was picked up and taken into town to try and get repaired. Tina decided to clean up the gas bottle burner and made a great job of ours and then proceeded to work on Brian’s only to then break it. The next hour or so Brian tried fixing the broken burner part but whilst he did this we also ordered a spare each to be brought from the market. The original burner was fixed so we each have two now.

Late afternoon the washing machine was returned all fixed. It was the spinner motor that needed replacing. The cost of the repair was 200MAD (£14). The motor in the UK would have cost far more than this let alone the 80km return trip to the city and the labour to fix it. Bargain. The two burners cost 50MAD each (£3.50) … yet another bargain.

I had left out the washing machine to test it once we had electric for the evening but the sand storm decided to fill it with sand. However, it did work so we will be all set for the next time we need to wash our clothes.

As we were stuck in the van this afternoon we decided to watch a couple of the films we had brought with us. Not great but it passed the time. During a period of the wind relenting I did go out and start to clear up and put things away however it wasn’t long before the sand was whipping around and my hair was full of the stuff. Shower tonight for sure.

Moving on tomorrow at the start of our journey home. We will be exiting Morocco in around 10 days so we need to start the journey north.

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Day 42 - Merzouga (Penultimate day)

This morning started off slightly overcast… still warm but not excessively hot. During the day the clouds burnt off and the temperatures rose.

During the morning we did very little but sit and chat. Three of our party went and sat around the pool and swam yet again…. very brave as the pool is only heated from the suns warmth.

I attempted to use the sites Wifi to download a few photos but the signal was internittment and our own signal was no better so will have to update the blog when we move on Monday. I also tried again in the afternoon to pickup the commentary of the AFC Bournemouth match but once again it didn’t produce a consistent signal so I gave up.

Tina cooked a chicken we had bought in Tinehir a few days ago. She used the gas burner we had purchased earlier in the trip that uses a 907 bottle. She also cooked some chips which were really good as the heat from this burner is far superior to the hob we have inside on the cooker. Looks like I might be carrying this a little more often.

Drinks this evening whilst we discussed everything you could think off including Politics, the economy, Europe, Immigration etc. Thankfully no blood was spilt nor any bad feelings.

Our washing machine was not taken to the city as the provisions run was done last night. We are promised that it would be taken to the market in the morning, hopefully fixed and bright back late afternoon tomorrow. We will be leaving on Monday so tomorrow is the only time they can have it. Fingers crossed it is fixable …..

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Day 41 - Merzouga (second day)

So much sand but no water …thats what Woody, our youngest yorkie was thinking today. Tina commented on him looking around as if to say the last time he was on sand (at Assilah) there were waves and he got wet… what happened to the water!!

After breakfast it was a lazy day. Some of the group spent a few hours around the pool and a few of these brave soles decided to go for a swim. I stayed back at the van with the “boys” where it was cooler for them. Tina did try and tidy up their long coats. They are in desperate need of a trim. It is booked soon after we get home.

We did have sometime in the late afternoon sitting and having our drinks looking out over the dunes and watching all the people walking in the distance. There were a few that also went on the camels.

Lovely hot and relaxing day … just the reason why we have come here…. More of the same tomorrow.

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Day 40 - Merzouga

Our day started as usual and we soon set off at around 10:00am. We made the 10km journey down to the large town of Tinehir. We had all agreed that we needed to stock up with provisions…. meat, vegetables, bread, drinks etc We parked on the roadside where the vans were guarded for us and we had to pay the fee on our return.

First stop was a bank and then the markets. It wasn’t long before all had purchased everything on the remembered shopping list…. Tina had done her usual trick of writing out a list and forgetting it. We loaded a local lads porter trolley with all the bags and we soon returned to the vans. The girls would have loved to stay longer to explore but we had no time as we needed to get on the road to Merzouga.

The road was tarmac all the way and we made good time. We were making our way to a recommended Auberge some 10km north of the town right next to the sand dunes. We turned off the main road on to yet another stoney but level road and our speed dropped to around 10mph which made it slow progress.

Eventually we arrived at our chosen destination and we were not disappointed. We are parked up and all have electric hookup. We took a look around the hotel and it is stunning. The area around the swimming pool is superb. When we first arrived there were many camels and 4x4 vehicles ready to take there occupants out into the desert. The sand dunes are so close that you feel you could touch them.

This evening we chose to have dinner in the restaurant. We had a soup starter followed by Chicken, Beef, Rice and vegetables which you helped yourself to. There was more if you needed it. This was followed by the fruit bowl and coffee. Some drummers who were also hotel staff entertained us. A superb evening costing 300 MAD (£21) per couple. Truly good value and great company.

Our next few days will be in the sunshine and more relaxing …..

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Day 39 - Toudgha El Oulia (Last day)

Last night was warm compared to previous nights. Tina had a very good nights sleep as she said she was not cold...

No panic to get up this morning as we were staying another night. Washing to do today so I dragged the washing machine out of the garage and proceeded to fill it with hot water well maybe warm water as we needed a lot. Tina sorted out the loads of washing and we soon got started…. me looking after the machine while she did the hanging on the line.

With the warm weather it didn’t take long to dry most of the clothes. However, towards the end it seems I was to blame for the spinner to pack up working. I had allowed it to become unbalanced … whatever that means. We will have to try and get it fixed when we stop in Merzouga.

The rest of the day was spent relaxing, enjoying the warmth and of course our Beer O’clock. Tina had a glass of the drink we have discovered … Vodka with Caramel. We both enjoy drinking it so I will need to get replenishments when we get back into Spain. It seems that this is not available in the UK.

We watched a recording of a TV series in the evening that we really enjoyed .. Jesse Stone:Lost in Paradise. Will need to try and get further episodes when we get back.

Tomorrow we are off to the dessert but first we will need to get some provisions.

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Day 38 - Toudgha El Oulia

We were all so pleased that we stopped the night with Mohan and his wife and child on his tiny piece of land. I think that after the dinner last night and the discussion about how a donkey would help him we had all come to the same conclusion. Lets put 500MAD (£35) for each couple together so that he can buy himself a donkey. We gave him an envelope with a few words to show our gratitude for the experience. Both Brian & Robert needed a gas refill for their 907 bottles… the cost 90p each. Amazing price when compared to the UK.

We were soon on the road at around 10:30am. After 12km the tarmac ran out and we were on rough track stony road which was to take us 50km to the next big town. Along the route we were passed by a group of bikers who soon came back down the mountain saying that the road was impassable. We carried on… up the winding road that climbed up the mountain and along the rim before we were to eventually come down. We saw very few vehicles and people and I am sure they thought that we were completely mad. It was unfortunate that we did encounter a very severe hump in the route where we and Brian grounded. Fortunately we did not sustain any damage but Brian had bent his step and tank support which he will fix in the morning. We arrived at the large town at the end of the piste road at around 2:00pm. What a relief !!

It was now tarmac all the way to the Todra Gorge. When we entered the gorge we were amazed at the views. The final part had a few stalls and was obviously a tourist attraction. The campsite was only a few kilometres further. Along the way a chap stopped and suggested we pull into his campsite. He kept us in view all the way but we finally drove past preferring the site we had previously picked out that had good reviews.

The next big challenge was were to park in the empty campsite. After much discussion we all picked our place and hooked up. But it wasn’t where we ended up because somehow we managed to keep tripping the electric. Eventually everyone was settled.

In the early evening we strolled up the road to try and find a restaurant, most of which were closed. We found one and had a lovely meal of chicken brochettes with frites. The starter was a large bowl of salad and finished off with orange slices with nutmeg sprinkled on them. Delicious !! Then home to bed.

Tomorrow is washing day and relax in the warm sunshine.

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Day 37 - Somewhere near M'semrir

I was looking forward to today but it didn’t work out quite how I expected but it was even better!!

We left the site at Skoura at around 10am and took the drive up to where the first Gorge road started. The scenery on the way up to the gorge was stunning. We stopped at a little roadside cafe at around midday and Tina did her usual thing of looking at the trinket shops. It wasn’t long before I was being pestered by the owner to buy the item that she had taken a fancy to….it was a berber vacuum flask which was to become an ornament when we get home. A keepsake I am told!!

We carry on up the road and the views get even more spectacular and then we actually start to enter the gorge part of the road. Fantastic….. so glad we made the effort to come this way. We are now on the part of the road which at this time of the year is usually under snow and therefore impassable. Further up the road we stop to have a bite to eat for lunch. Looking back at the road we had just come up was amazing.

The plan was to try and push on as far as we could and turn back to a campsite we had passed if we encounter snow. We continued up the pass making slow progress but continued to be wowed by what we saw. At around 3:00pm we were crossing what would have been a ford if there had been water when a local guy stopped us. He explained in perfect english that there was only 12km of tarmac road left and beyond this about 50km of piste road which would have taken in excess of 4 hours to drive. He suggested that we needed to find somewhere for the night as darkness would beset us before we got off the piste road (simply a stone surface track). He asked if he could travel with us to his home about 3km up the road. We agreed.

Soon we were passing through his village and he suggested that we stay on his land overnight. This was a small area next to his house. After some discussion with our fellow campers it was agreed that this would be the sensible option so we soon parked up for the night.

We soon became the attraction of everyone in the village and in particular all the children wanted to come and have a look. Our friend the invited us to have a meal with him and his wife and child …. couscous. At the appointed hour of 8:00pm we took our torches (it was pitch black) and walked up 20m to his house. We sat on the floor and later his wife brought a large bowl of couscous for us all to share. With spoon in hand we tucked in. Our desert was apples which he had grown himself. He spoke excellent english although his wife only spoke Berber. I am amazed at how hospitable he was to us all. We all asked many questions and he was able to provide an explanation for everything. Truly a memorable event. He even showed us the cow and calf he had stabled in a separate room.

Tomorrow we will continue with our journey and then turn south through the Todra gorge to our chosen campsite. It has been an extraordinary day and trust one that will live long in the memory. Lets hope tomorrow will not be a disappointment.

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Day 36 - Skoura (Last day)

Today was a day for relaxation. We woke at around the same time as usual and had breakfast. The others in our little group decided to take a walk into town to explore and get a few things. They left at around 11:30am

Tina and I decided that the 2-3km walk was too far for us so we stayed behind. I had already stated that I wanted to listen / watch the AFC Bournemouth match being televised as the early afternoon game on Sky. Whilst I was able to use the sites’s WIFI and watched the whole game Tina decided to take the time to do some reorganisation in the van.

I walked back to the van at around 3:30pm and the others had just return from town. I was not happy as we had lost 2-0 which was sort of expected against Arsenal. Tina had indeed been sorting out drawers, cupboards and all sorts of nooks and crannies around the van.

We then sat out having our Beer O’clock in the warm afternoon sun until it finally dropped and the heat of the day was gone. The evening saw both of us watching a film which we enjoyed.

Tomorrow we plan to try and drive through the Gorge of Dades and then come back down through the Gorge of Todra before stopping at a campsite. Looking forward to some spectacular scenery tomorrow.

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Day 35 - Skoura

Well Tina was much better this morning so we had breakfast and readied the van for the days journey to Skoura. We left shortly after 10am. We travelled through some magnificent scenery. There was extensive work being undertaken to widen the existing road using some heavy machinery. These road improvements were taking place over many kilometres and so the progress was slow.

Around midday we stopped for coffee in a large town called Agdz. Some had coffee, others fresh orange juice and Tina stuck to water. Brian and I fancied a cheese omelette but with some trepidation. My last omelette in Tafroute was mixed and cooked on a plate and we had to scape it off. Soon the offering arrived and low and behold it looked like an omelette but the cheese consisted of a “Laughing Cow” segment placed on top of a plain omelette. Strange we thought but it did seem to work and it tasted good.

Further up the road after climbing through the mountains we stopped and admired the views. It didn’t take long before the kettle was on and we were preparing sandwiches with the bread we purchased earlier in the journey.

We arrived at 15:45pm and we did enjoy the drive. We did remark that there was no way Tina could have endured the journey yesterday whilst she was so ill. When we arrived we were the only vans on the site. Soon 2 further french vans we saw in Zagora pulled in… how strange.

We will have a day of relaxation and I think that some of us may make the 2km walk into the village…. probably not me as I want to make use of the free Wifi to watch the AFC Bournemouth v Arsenal match on Sky in the early afternoon.

As predicted the Laptop HDMI adapter did give up the ghost so I experimented with plugging the hard drive into the USB port of the TV. Voila… it worked. We sat and watched American Ultra which Tina enjoyed much to my amazement. At least this method saves having both the TV and Laptop connected to the 12v electrics when we are not on mains hookup. Success.

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Day 34 - Zagora (Very last day)

What a night we had. Tina was ill all night long and was making extensive use of the washing up bowl which is why I have featured an image of this receptacle. Its amazing what you can use it for. She was suffering from what we believe to be food poisoning which started out with trapped wind causing her pain and later moved on to being violently sick and diarrhoea. The bowl was thrown away in the morning.

In the morning I told our companions that Tina will be staying in bed and we will not be moving on. They had no hesitation to say that they would stay with us even after us saying we would understand if they wanted to continue. We are grateful for their support and even a little humbled by it.

It was overcast and cool so it was not weather for spending extensive time sitting out. The others took walks up to the town whilst I stayed in and read magazines on my iPad and looked after Tina. She spent time trying to sleep it off. Our boys would not leave her side and rarely asked to go out. They knew she was not well. The day was long but late afternoon Tina did get up and came forward and sat in the lounge. She was feeling slightly better….the sickness had passed but she had a thumping headache.

Tina went back to bed early and I spent the evening watching a couple of films. My HDMI connection to my laptop is stating to fail. I can see me having to get another. That will be 3 in less than 2 years. There must be a better way of connecting the hard drive to the TV. I will have to investigate.

We will be moving off tomorrow all be well with Tina. The destination is Skoura and then the famous gorges in Morocco will follow…. until tomorrow

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Day 33 - Zagora (Last day)

A little cold first thing this morning but it soon warmed up.

When we opened up the van this morning it was some time later before Terry & Brenda appeared. He started to pack things away and it soon became obvious that they had decided to leave us all.

Brenda was homesick and wanted to return to the UK so they were going to make their way back to Tangier to exit Morocco. It is with great sadness we said goodbye and we will miss them both. Hope that we will catch up on our return to the UK in early March.

At lunchtime we took a walk up into town to find an ATM and try and get a recharge for the internet. Whilst walking along the main road we were enticed into a shop by the owner who spoke very good english. Tina was after a simple pin or broach for her shawl. Coffee was ordered for us both and he proceeded to empty various containers and clothes out onto a table. Included were bracelets, earrings, necklaces and the odd pin. Well after some time and a lot of looking Tina picked out a few things. How much I asked. 1020 MAD (£73). Well it wasn’t worth half that. The price I offered was 300 MAD and eventually settled on 450 MAD still far too expensive but we wanted to get out of the shop.

I remembered from yesterday that there was a Maroc Telecom shop further down the road. When we got there at 1:30pm we found it was shut until 2:30pm. OK lets have lunch while we wait. We crossed the road and went into a roadside cafe / restaurant and had Chicken & Chips. Halfway through the meal an old man was begging for money so Tina offered the remains of her lunch which was half eaten and the bread in the basket. He was shown a table by the waiter and stuffed the bread in his bag and ate the remains.

The time had arrived for us to recross the road to the Maroc shop. The girl inside spoke perfect english. We don’t have what you want… you need to try the shop over the road …. the one next to the restaurant. They also didn’t have nor any of the other 3 places we were shown to so we gave up and walked back to the supermarket just outside the campsite.

This shop was also closed but the Berber shop next door wasn’t and again we were asked to enter but this time we extracted ourselves pretty quickly and walked back to the van.

Our afternoon was spent with the others lazing in the warm sunshine and chatting and passing the time.

Tomorrow we move on and we hope to see some great sites and views….more to follow.

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Day 32 - Zagora

Its been hot today… sitting in a cafe this afternoon it was 33ºC

Packed up and left the campsite at around 10:45am to take the improved road to Zagora. First we filled with fuel at the ridiculous price of around 56p per litre. (We did hear of another FUNster who is very much further south filling for just 30p per litre). Just before the turning for the road we came across a police checkpoint. Normally it is a formality and we are waived through but not today. He stopped us. This is the first time we have been stopped since visiting the country. The policeman wanted to check where we were going so as to make sure we are on the right road. Very helpful indeed. Everyone is so friendly.

Starting out on this road our Sat Nav indicated that we would take over 10 hours for the journey. As we drove so this number came tumbling down. It was obvious when you saw the track alongside which would have been the previous road to use but now we are cruising along at a steady 45mph.

After 2 hours we arrived in Zagora and the campsite we will be staying in for 2 nights. It is larger than normal and quite busy. We find a corner where we can all fit in with ease and our van is parked in the shade so that it is not too uncomfortable for the “boys” in the van.

After lunch we took a walk up into town to find the Souk. After getting mixed messages from the locals it seems that it had closed at 2pm so we were too late. It didn’t stop us from being invited to look into everyones shop. Tina took the opportunity to look for a carpet which she insists we need outside the door to the van. The carpet is made 5x2 feet. The price starts at 1000MAD (£71) but soon starts to tumble and halves pretty quickly. I step in and off 200MAD but this is rejected. He is now asking 350MAD but do we really need a carpet I ask. Yes is the response from Tina. I offer 300MAd but it is rejected so I am telling Tina to walk away and we start down the street. The trader is then chasing us and saying OK to our 300MAD (£21.50) so I now have no choice but to hand over the cash.

We continue along the street and find a cafe for orange juice or coffee. This was a welcome relief from the hot sunshine to sit in the shade with our friends. Soon we are making our way back to the campsite.

Chairs out, kettle on and tea is soon made when we all sit round and have our afternoon gathering. Where is the carpet I ask? its in the shower. Why? Its too good to put outside. Conned again. I vow that this will be the last carpet we buy but I am sure I will be wrong.

We use some of the steak we purchased in Tata for your version of a Tagine. Its full of vegetables and a few spices and we get an opportunity to talk to the grandchildren. It was lovely to see them…the internet is much faster and therefore we could make the connection.

Tina was not feeling well and so took herself of to bed early.  I do hope she will feel better in the morning.

Tomorrow we may well explore this large town some more…..

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Day 31 - Foum Zguid (Last Day)

Quieter day was on the cards as we had no real plans other than to relax in the warm sunshine.

Tina and I did nothing special in the morning however we did wander back up to the restaurant we had frequented last night. Our intention was to have a look at the shops and have a coffee which we were promised would be free.

After sitting for a few minutes Brian & Ann appeared and sat with us. Tina and I ordered a meal which was similar to last night but this time I had chicken. It was very tasty and very sinful….. far too many chips but hey we are on holiday. After lunch we bought a few things we needed like bread and an internet recharge which we were unsuccessful with.

The afternoon was spent sitting and chatting but definitely in the shade …. far to hot to sit in the sun. Tina continued to read her book which is most unusual for her. She doesn’t get that absorbed so I decided to get the first in the series loaded into the Kindle app ready for when she finishes which won’t be very long.

Early evening I was sat out and didn’t realise the time as AFCB were playing at Crystal Palace. I was able to hear the first half commentary with some added interludes of silence but the second half I got nothing so had to follow on the AFCB blog. Great result though at 2-1 to the cherries. Maybe we can dream that we might stay up as we already have 28 points.

We leave tomorrow for Zagora which is 128km east of where we are… continuing our journey towards the sand dunes.

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Day 30 - Foum Zguid (Washing day)

We always planned to do our washing at this site today much like we did last year so I dragged out the washing machine from the garage and began to set it up. We needed copious amounts of hot water so along side the machine we brought out the household electric kettle. All of this was connected directly to an Electric Hookup point on the site. No RCD protection but luckily nothing untoward happened.

Load after load went into the machine and was then hung on the line. Its surprising how many clothes you get through in such a short space of time. Included in our offerings to the machine was the bedding which of course had signs of sand like everything else in the van. I did say to Tina that when we get home we will have the van professionally valeted both inside and out. Keeping the sand and now the flies out is a never ending job.

After several hours we finally finished and gave over the machine to Brenda to use for her washing.

The afternoon was sat in the cool shade chatting and drinking tea. The sun was hot today. One of our number departed the site to return to Tata. They struggled to get on to the site with the length of their van and also were apprehensive to go off the tarmac as they also struggled with grip.

Tina collected her garments from the little workshop where she was having some alterations made. She was very pleased with the results.

Later we decided to stroll up to town to have an early evening meal. Six of us sat and had chips with either a beef or chicken bouchette (meat on a stick) which was BBQ near us. Fresh orange juice, coffee water and bread accompanied the meal. Delicious and all for 80 MAD each (just under £6)

Tomorrow I really must have a go at washing the van. It really is in a state covered in grime and sand. Last year I was able to pay someone to do this but there doesn’t seem to be anyone offering this service this year. Oh well I will have to do it myself.

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Day 29 - Foum Zguid

As we had visited the market yesterday there was no need for a late departure today so we set off at around 10:30am as usual. Terry and Derek were going to follow as they were night quite ready.

The road is boring…. very flat and uninteresting. The only real thing to say is that our speed was constant and we arrived here around 12:30pm. We did see some brave cyclists who were obviously light weight camping but cycling in this heat was truly stupid in my opinion.

On arrival the big decision was how we were to park. The ladies got together and soon had a plan. However there was no consideration of where we were going to plug in the electric cables as there were already two french vans using the power points for the pitches they wanted to use. No matter we did eventually get over this hurdle. The voltage across the site and I understand the town is low so some of our modern fridges would not stay on electric but would switch back to gas. Not good.

The afternoon was spent catching up with things. Tina visited the title lockup just outside of the campsite and organised having some alterations made to the clothes she has bought since being her. The charge is 70p per garment…. extraordinary. She also purchased a black shawl which has an amazing amount of detail… you must ask her to show it to you next time we meet. We visited Terry & Brenda for the evening as we used to do last year. We had missed doing this.

Tomorrow is going to be a busy day. First we may relocate if a french van moves as he has stated followed by a day of washing. Great joy …  Perhaps we will wander up to the town and have a meal.

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