It was March, the start of the holy month of Ramadan when Muslims fasted between dawn and sunset. Over 40% of the population of Morocco were Berbers who had their own traditional beliefs and practices. When the conquering Arabs arrived in north Africa they introduced Islamism to the indigenous tribes. From our touristy point of view, nothing changed greatly for us during Ramadan. Meals were available prior to sunset and, where appropriate, alcohol was also served.
We stopped for a few days at a camp site beside the River Tata. The access road went steeply down from the town to the river bed and crossed the (almost dry) river via a concrete causeway. Towards the middle, the carriageway narrowed alarmingly where one edge of the bridge had been washed away by torrential flood water, leaving only just enough width for our truck get past. However, local vehicles wider than than ours made the crossing with alacrity and without mishap!
The owner of the site, Hyatt, produced a home cooked dish of beef and vegetables served on a huge mountain of couscous. She brought the tagine to our truck and we managed to eat the meat and vegetables but not all the couscous. Hyatt was sad because we hadn’t eaten it all, assuming we didn’t like it. The meal for us both was less than £10.
One evening the wind suddenly got up, the air became hazy with red sand, uncomfortable to eyes and throat. Within minutes there was a layer of dust covering the truck, inside and out. We realised why the local people protected their heads and faces with scarves. We quickly closed up the truck and put on the air conditioning.
