Morocco is so close, but it is so remote at the same time
... In fact I have always considered it among my favorite destinations because
it gives me the closest way to travel very far. And dream, dream high. Because,
although it may not seem so, on the other side of the strait there is still
everything to do.
Travel to Morocco, the exaltation of the senses
I have traveled countless times to Morocco. In fact it was
there, just over a decade ago, where I carried out my first and improvised solo
trip. I remember perfectly. They were Christmas. A small van was waiting for me
in Ouarzazate, on the other side of an Atlas completely covered with snow. And
from there I played adding new amounts to the odometer stopping at everything
that caught my attention, which was not little. Like the Kasbahs, the adobe
villages in the middle of nowhere or that large amount of palm trees that
suffocated an arid and rocky vessel with their green leaves. The dust of the
road was my companion, who every time was indicating to me with precision the
nearness of the desert. First of stones (what in the Maghreb is known as
hammada) to, in the end, as a prize, walk through an inexhaustible succession
of dunes that changed their tone with each step they took.
From then on there were many more occasions when this
country came to knock on my door. And little by little I discovered how much to
see in Morocco. That if the imperial cities, the white towns beaten by the fury
of the Atlantic, the Almohad minarets twinned with the Giralda of Seville (Koutoubia
of Marrakech and Unfinished Tower of Hassan in Rabat), authentic stone gorges
and gorges supported by the whims of the erosion.
A country with multiple air connections
It is really easy to make a jump to Morocco, a few days to
savor a particular city or to travel for a longer period and make, for example,
the route of the Kasbahs and leave your tracks in an extensive desert of sand.
From Spain, for example, there are frequent connections with the neighboring
country. Just look at the example of the flights scheduled by Vueling, which
starting from Barcelona reaches cities such as Marrakech (7 weekly frequencies,
from Malaga 2), Casablanca (2 weekly frequencies), Fez (1 weekly frequency),
Nador (1 weekly frequency) o Tangier (8 weekly frequencies). A trip of just
over an hour that slows down, and much, the long journey by car and the need to
cross the Strait by boat. Although everything has its point, of course.
Cities reminiscent of the stories of a thousand and one
nights
A good starting point to get to know Morocco is what those
known as imperial cities offer. Authentic labyrinthine remnants representing
the greatness of a kingdom with a long accumulated history. This amalgam of
unique cities is composed of exquisite quartet that coincides with the
possibility of getting lost in the frenzy of walled medinas that look like ant
hills, in their busy souks, their palatial buildings and their lighthouses of
religion resonating very high. But in reality, they are four different cities,
full of nuances that differentiate them and make them unique. Marrakech, Fez,
Meknés and Rabat. Protagonists of an even better movie than you would ride in
your head under the most demanding direction.
The most adorable peculiarity of Marrakech would be its
great square, Jma el-Fna, where what happens there was already declared
Intangible Heritage of Humanity. Because there are things that do not depend
only on architectural or historical concepts but on what is known as human
landscape, on the tradition that becomes routine (and also a bit of
improvisation) in a square that changes its physiognomy as well as The hands of
the clock do it. Who knows this place, the heart of a very interesting city where
things do not stop happening, knows it.
But Marrakech goes beyond its square. The imperial palaces
and gardens, the vericuetos of his souk, that aroma that the kitchens give off.
And also it does not stop presenting novelties, since very soon it will open in
the middle of the medina an area of more than 5000 square meters to house the
Great Museum of Moroccan culinary art. It will take place in an old palace a
few steps from Bahia where he will explain in an innovative way the best of
Moroccan cuisine as well as the influences contributed by towns such as Berber,
Arab-Andalusian and even the Jew.
Fez would stand out as the owner of a maze impossible to
imagine. An endless number of alleys that merge with a certain anarchy to
ensure that, if the traveler is lost through them, it is the best thing that
can happen to him. Because there are places where it doesn't matter to ignore
the way back. Especially when the best of the trip is simply and simply the
crossing between two points.
Meknés would be something like Fez's little sister. And for
many the humblest. Although the yellow walls of the mausoleum of Mulay IsmaÃl
or the detail found in the great door called Bab el-Mansour indicate quite the
opposite.
Finally Rabat, the discreet capital because everything
really seems to move in Casablanca, a total unknown full of historical vestiges
such as the Hassan Tower or the Romanized Chellah whose abandoned towers are
now occupied by hundreds of storks.
Many mistakenly place Casablanca as one of the imperial cities,
but it never was. His little medina or the memories that Rick’s Café provides
to those who have seen a thousand times the scenes of the black and white tape
starring Humphrey Bogart and Ingrid Bergman, does not go unnoticed. But if you
have to choose a place in this city, it is undoubtedly the Hassan II Mosque,
one of the best architectural jewels that the 20th century brought up on
Moroccan soil as a compendium of the arts at the service of Islam in the
Alawite country . This building, by itself, could be branded as imperial.
Nor would they be within the route of imperial cities, but
on any thorough route that boasts Moroccan lands, both Essaouira and Asilah or
Chaouen. Virtuosity dyed white in the first two, scented with the waves of the
Atlantic and the riot of fishermen in the port. And the kingdom of blue in the
last, Chaouen, a delicious bend in the Rif mountain range in which even the
worst photographer is able to portray the purest sky in each of its streets.
The long road to the desert
But traveling to Morocco is not just about visiting cities.
Morocco, in fact, is a toast to the great adventures in which to navigate
diverse landscapes. Although in my case I must acknowledge that I am a devoted
confessor of those whose principle is the Atlas and the end of the desert. From
Ouarzazate to Merzouga. Or, to admire the Jebel Toubkal and its 4167 meters in
the North African Pyrenees, to make a leap among kasbahs, mythical alcazabas
that represent the historical depth of a country, to arrive at the most idyllic
version of the desert in Merzouga.
There are so many Kasbahs that there is even a route through
these fortified citadels. Ait Ben Haddou is surely the best known and most
spectacular. But there are many more worthwhile. Taourit in Ouarzazate itself,
Tamnougalt near Agdz, Telouet or those that can be admired in the immense palm
grove of Skoura are just some of a collection worthy, but impossible, to
complete.
To reach Kasbahs and Ksour (fortified villages) it is
necessary to enter rocky cliffs and stony valleys molded by erosion and, above
all, long geological periods. Although, fortunately, many of them well
accessible to both or four wheels. And, of course, when walking slowly, which
is easy to interrupt with a cup of tea and a spontaneous conversation.
All to get to the place where you can put your feet on the
sand and allow them to sink. Because in the dunes there is only the firm ground
sitting on it, contemplating the horizon, feeling an insignificance so certain
and unrepeatable that it is possible to assimilate, even in part, the grandeur
of our planet. Merzouga is one of those places where it makes sense to the sum
of the five letters that make up the word TRAVEL.
Source : Elrincondesele
