Let me start off by saying that as of Saturday, I've ridden a camel twice in the last six months, which I consider to be a tremendous success in life in general.
This weekend I went to Morocco with some friends of mine on a school-organized optional trip, and let me tell you, it was a pretty good option. We cast off from the port of Algeciras in southern Spain, right next to Gibraltar, and it was a quick jaunt from there to the port of Ceuta, a Spanish territory in North Africa. We crossed the border into Morocco and spent the night in the town of M'Diq, where we took a little late-night stroll on the beach and caused a mild ruckus with our English-speaking and shorts-wearing. In the morning we got back on the bus and headed south to Chefchaouen, the Blue City. Each city in Morocco has its distinct color; Chefchaouen is blue because it is believed that the blue paint wards off mosquitoes. Located high up in the Rif Mountains, Chefchaouen's medinat (the old city) is painted entirely in bright shades of rich blue. I strongly suggest you check out my photos for an idea of just how blue the city is. We spent some time in a weaver's guild, where we all bought some overpriced fabric goods, although I am a mean haggler and got my scarves down to a good price. We also went to the market, where I practiced my Arabic while doing some more haggling and got a queen-sized blanket for half the price the vendor originally wanted. Along the way, we met a very friendly stray dog, whom we named Felipe. We didn't pet or feed him because he was most likely carrying all manner of exotic diseases, but he followed us all the way back through the old city and almost onto the bus.
We re-descended the Rif mountains and drove west to Tangier, a large city on the northwest coast where the Atlantic meets the Mediterranean. We stopped at the beach along the way to see the spot where the two bodies of water meet and also to ride camels. I never say no to a camel ride, and in keeping with tradition, I took a camel selfie. This time I got the camel in the selfie and did not scandalize a Bendouin tribesman with my exposed knee (although there aren't really any Bedouins in Morocco so it wasn't that hard). We were constantly followed by Berber tribespeople trying to sell us things. The Berber women dress in vibrant fabrics and wear the most bizarre woven hats covered in colorful feathers, which I found entirely delightful.
By the time we got settled in Tangier it was quite late, but we still squeezed in a tour of the old city before dinner at the hotel. Let me tell you, I could really get used to Moroccan food. Each meal started out with a delightful salad of mixed vegetables, usually including tomatoes, carrot, zucchini, beets, cucumbers, potato salad, tuna, and a hard-boiled egg. After that we got a big meat dish in the middle of the table to share, and often a little pastry for dessert. We ate so well this weekend.
After breakfast in Tangier the next morning, we drove out to Tetouan, just south of Ceuta. We saw the old city, as usual, where we went to a variety of markets as well as a traditional Berber pharmacy, where we were given the opportunity to buy some very interesting beauty products, like amber perfume and lipstick that changes color based on the pH of your skin. I wanted to get some Moroccan mint tea, but U.S. customs does not take well to unlabled paper bags full of strange leaves, so I passed on that one. We had lunch at a very nice restaurant, where I had the best couscous I've ever had in my life. There was a man performing a strange dance-type-thing which involved balancing a tray of lit candles on his head, as well as a woman doing henna tattoos. I got some lovely henna, although she tried to write my name and spelled it wrong. Now our Moroccan tour guide think I'm "Kathreen".
After a long and fascinating day in Tetouan, we boarded the bus for the final time and passed through the Spanish border into Ceuta, where we took a boat back to Algeciras and another bus to Sevilla, where we arrived late at night, very tired, very happy, very covered in henna and scarves, and very in need of patatas bravas.