Our first stop was Ifrane, an almost European-looking town high up in the Atlas mountains. In winter, Ifrane gets transformed into a ski-area. Before we got out of the bus, our guide warned us that the outside temperature was only 9 degrees celcius. Freezing! The locals were all dressed in warm jackets and where probably laughing at us tourists, with our shorts and sandals.
Like in all other cities and town, the king's photo was put up on a huge billboard at the entrance of town. King Mohammed VI seems to very popular.
After our coffee break in Ifrane, we drove on to Kenifra. There we had our lunch in a simple little roadside restaurant. Even though some of the windows were broken and the bathrooms were dark and not too clean, the food we had there was probably the most authentic dishes we've had on our trip so far.
From Kenifra to Afourer, we drove further into the Atlas mountains. We drove through small towns, past farm, fields, ceder forest and a big dam. Once again, the landscapes reminded me a lot of South Africa. The Atlas is a lot like the Drakensberg.
Late in the afternoon, we arrived at our hotel in Afourer. Afourer is a small town and the hotel lies at the edge of town. The hotel is much smarter and bigger than we expected as we neared Afourer. The hotel had a lovely garden with a stunning pool and tennis courts. The rooms were huge, but a little old. Like in many other cities and towns in Morocco, the local nightclub was situated on the hotel grounds. Later in the evening, loud music and talking and laughing could be heard. I also didn't get much sleep, because a group of people sat down beneath my window and talked the whole night through.
I could barely wait for the next day because Marrakesh was on the program again. Exciting!
