The Road Back..Morocco Part 5

Leaving the Sahara,

Simo picked us up and

it was back in the van for two

more days of driving.

This was our hotel 

on the way back to Marrakech.

We were all tired and 

grateful for a good meal

and sleep!

Simo made plenty of stops

on our last day in the car.

We visited a Berber village 

and even got to tour a house.

Our stop for lunch!

Simo says this man is

at least 105 years old! 

And after four LONG days 

in the van with Simo..

we said goodbye.

I am so glad we did this!

I was very apprehensive about

all of us in the car for that long..

but the kids did great and it was 

a wonderful experience! 

Next...

we treat ourselves for the 

last few days in Marrakech!

La Maison Arab!!!

Our Night in the Sahara...Morocco Part 4

Simo dropped us off

and we were met by our camel guide,

Ahmed.

We all mounted our camels,

named them :)

and rode about an hour and a half

out to our tents.

It was right before sun set and

the lighting was beautiful.

We hopped off the camels to watch 

the sun go down.

As the kids ran through the red dunes

we talked with Ahmed and learned 

a little bit about his life.

He lives about 15 miles from

where we were staying.

He said he walks the camels back to

his home every night.

In the dark.

I asked him why he didn't get lost!

He said he knew every dune and 

that he'd get lost living in a city

like Paris!

He spoke many different languages..

just by being around people

like us that were wanting to spend

a night in the Sahara.

Time to get back on the camels

and head to our tents!

When we arrived, our host

for the night,

Mustafa told us that we were

the only family out there! 

We had the place to ourselves.

We had two tents..

and the middle tent shown above

with the flap open is the dining room.

We sat down to an amazing dinner 

and then sat outside to stargaze.

The next morning 

only a few of us woke for 

the magnificent sunrise.

After a delicious breakfast

Steve took the kids for rides

on the quad...

...and I took some pictures of 

the inside of our tents.

This is the bathroom.

Plenty of hot water!

A very comfortable night sleep!

It was so quiet!

Time to say goodbye to the Sahara.

And to our new friends...

Our night in the Sahara

was an unforgettable

experience!

We missed Stephen and 

hope to bring him someday.

C'est la rentree'!

oh what a summer!

is it really over?

and wow do i have

some catching up to do here.

my last post we were still

traveling Morocco!

so much has happened since

then..

and now that everyone

seems to be settled into school

i'm anxious to get back here

to document it all.

one of my goals this 

winter is to FINALLY

print out the 

THOUSANDS of pictures that

are clogging up my computer.

and..

to FINALLY print out each year

of my blog to a hardbound book.

i did it one year and love how

it came out but it was 

very time consuming.

but..

this being our last year

in paris

(NOOOOOO!!!!!)

i will also be busy 

exploring this city

as much as i can.

(my sweet petite cottage..

miss you!!! :)

bonne rentree'!

xx

pam

Morocco Part 3...The Road to the Sahara

Saying goodbye to our new

friends..

we were on the road again.

Yannick, Malfoud and Collette..

hope to see you again someday!

It was another long day in

the car

but Simo made many 

stops

along the way.

We passed through the 

Valley of the Roses..

and lucky for us we were there

during high season.

 We saw women 

and children picking roses

in the fields..

and

we stopped and bought a 

few of these wreaths made

by the children.

Little pink shops lined

the road selling bottles

of rose water.

I can still smell the roses!

Men and women 

carrying food to feed

the sheep.

Simo told us that children

walk for MILES to 

school and back.

We saw so many children..

younger than Griffin,

walking to/from school.

Alone!

These boys were selling

little birds made out of

palm leaves.

Our last stop before reaching 

the desert.

Steve ran into a market

to grab some snacks

and these little boys were

just too cute.

Steve gave them a handful

of change..

...and they ran off so excited!

Almost there!

We said goodnight to Simo and

headed off into the Sahara with 

our guide.

Next..

our night in the Sahara!