Er-Rachidia or Monkeys and Snow

Today we are headed south towards the desert and we decided to make 2 short days into one long one and go to Midelt and then to Errachidia (or Ar-rachida) in 337 KM.

Leaving thru the gates of Fes we had already decided to put the bad behind us because today was going to be a great day.

We started driving up and up and were soon in the snow near Azrou at Ifrane, which has a bit of a Swiss feel.

We continued higher and there was much more snow. Suddenly when we came around a corner there were monkeys everywhere. We had some bananas with us so we stopped to feed them.

Just a few km up the road we came across guys renting ski equipment and toboggans for a few dollars. The hike up was steep so it was one run for 1$ in the end.

Before you get to Midelt you come around the corner on the descent from the mountains to a panoramic view of the snow capped Atlas Mountains. If you can get a room here there is a Kasbah Asmaa with an unbelievable view. Part of our reason to keep going on from here is that they were fully booked, and there is no other real reason to stay here.

You continue farther south skirting the foothills to the town of Errachidia.

Here we had booked into a very nice Kasbah run by a nice German woman. The staff is super friendly and the rooms comfortable. It is 30 E for a room, dinner, and breakfast. In Morocco a Dar is a small hotel with or without a garden but no trees, a Riad is a hotel with a garden that has at least 1 tree, and a Kasbah is a hotel that is a collection of buildings around a treed garden.