Berber Hills and Markets

Our hosts at the Aman recommended we take a trip into the High Atlas Mountains and found us a place to stay, an eco-lodge in the Berber valley of Toubkal. It is near Richard Branson's place a little higher up the road and here they promote education for girls and well as responsible use of water so that was cool..and there was snow on the slopes to see from our window.
Considering that I was reading Into Thin Air in a place that had substituted for Tibet in Martin Scorsese's 'Kudun', and also used in 'Babel' it was strangely disquieting to look out of the windows at the familiar scenes of Tibet , return to read about the Everest ascent and then remember I was in fact in North Africa not Asia.
The concierge at Kasbah Toubkal had a comedy routine all of his own going on with a number of stock phrases that he repeated in varying tones of sarcasm and eagerness. "Lovely-jubbly..right as nine pins..awesome amazing ..This is not a five star hotel, more like your home" His name was Larson, his approach to the room tour was like a tape recording as he ran me through each style of room he rattled off the information like reading a brochure.

Tanja trekked, I read and then we were gone...the next day in fact, we went to the markets at Asni where you couldn't take photos so I had my camera in my hand and just clicked a bit here and there. We bargained with the last of our Dirhams - or MAD - and threw in the remains of our picnic foods from Marrakesh..Tea bags, some biscuits and some yoghurt to buy some pieces from a man on a carpet. Then we drove an incredibly winding mountain road to the plains and Marrakesh. Before we could really catch our breath about the immensity and wonder of our stay in Morocco we were on a Ryan Air flight to Porto...and another story.