Adventure in Morocco

After staying with is for a week, Nadia’s mum went back to Bulgaria and her sister stayed for an extra week so we planned to cross the strait and go to Morocco. Nadia’s sister had never been to Morocco so this was going to be an experience of a lifetime for her.

We took the midday ferry and it takes about 30 minutes to get to Tangiers. Luckily, Morocco is 2 hours behind Gibraltar so we gained an hour. Unfortunately for us there was a small storm and the sea was quite rough so the crossing was not the best one.  I spent most of the time outside on one of the covered decks making sure that my breakfast did not come up.

We arrived in our Hotel in Tangiers which was close to the old town and beach so we could really explore Tangier on foot rather than having to haggle with taxi drivers. If you have never been to Morocco, you should definitely go - it is an experience which everyone should have, even if it is just once, because the sights, smell and colours of the country are just magical.

After we freshened up, we set off to explore the souk (the market) and the Medina and before we knew it we were being hassled to buy some handicrafts or leather goods. But having gone to Morocco before, I had some experience in dealing with the traders in the souk. You do not have to be rude or cross, just be polite and firm and most importantly stick to your guns when it comes down to haggling.

The next day we were picked up from our hotel to spend the day up in the mountains in the town of Chefchaouen, or otherwise known as the Blue City. The ride up to this mountain village was hair raising most of the way - I was sitting on the front seat of our minivan watching the driver speed on small country roads and overtake all sorts of car and trucks, and lets not forget the odd donkey or two.

Thankfully, we got to the town in one piece where we were introduced to our guide for the day, Ahmed, who welcomed us to Chefchaouen before we set off into the Medina. The Medina is the old part of any town in Morocco and in this town it is also the main attraction due to its old world charm and its blue walls (which are only found in this town).

We walked into the Medina through one of its gates and it was like stepping into history since there nothing has changed for the last few hundred years and everything is painted blue - it is really stunning. We walked through the narrow streets trying to take in as much as possible from our guide, as well as look at all the small spice shops and carpet shops.

Lunch was in a beautiful old building which used to be one big house but now has been converted into a restaurant. The menu was a typical Moroccan lunch – we had Harira (chick-pea soup), tagine and couscous and for dessert some lovely mint tea. After lunch we had some free time to do a bit of shopping before heading back down to Tangiers.

On the last day we headed to the souk to do some last minute shopping, such as souvenirs, slippers, spices and olives, as well as the all-important saffron which is quite expensive in Gibraltar but in Morroco we got a few grams for only about 30p.

We boarded the ferry back to Spain in the late afternoon and as the Moroccan coast line grew smaller and smaller, we looked back at it thinking what an interesting and beautiful country Morocco is.  

The Alhambra

On the last day of our visit to Granada we had tickets for the Alhambra which was going to be the highlight of our time in Granada. If you love history, art and if you want some of the most spectacular views over Granada then the Alhambra is the place to go and visit.

I had pre -booked the tickets as getting in was not going to be easy during this time of the year as they only sell a certain number of tickets each day, but when I had booked them Nadia’s dad was coming over and due to unforeseen circumstances he could not come over to Gibraltar, so we had an extra ticket.

Nadia being so kind thought to give the ticket away to one lucky person in the queue, which I think would have made their day as the queue was huge that day for the ticket office. Nadia went round the queue offering the ticket but it was surprising how few people jumped at the idea, maybe they thought it was a fake or something. 10 minutes passed and she comes back saying she gave the ticket to a Japanese tourist who happily took it and went in free of charge.

The Alhambra complex is quite big and covers the whole of a hill top and part of the hill next to it and the visit is split over various areas. There is the Generalife (the summer palace), the Alcazaba (the Castle) and the Nasrid palace. We first headed to the Generalife as it is the closest to the entrance of the complex. We walked through the gardens that lead up to it and admired the rest of the Alhambra on the opposite hill. We entered the palace to be greeted by one of the few gardens which are inside, each one as impressive as the last with it’s beautiful flower beds and it’s ancient fountains.

We moved towards the castle and as we made over we all stopped to take pictures of the snow-capped mountains of Sierra Nevada. Inside the castle again the views were fantastic with the whole of Granada laid out in front of us at our feet. At this point my dad called me over to view a small procession going through on of the narrow streets just below the Alhambra. At the end of the castle stands the largest tower of the Alhambra (La Torre de La Vela), my parents and Nadia’s mum were a bit tired and decided not to go up the tower to view the valley below us. So Nadia, her sister and I slowly made our way up the tower, once at the top we were just a little out of breath and we were greeted by the most awe inspiring sight there is on offer which is a 360 degree view of Granada and it’s country side.

After having some photos taken at the top of the tower we went back down to join our parents and move towards the 3^rd and final bit of the tour, the Nasrid Palace. The palace consists of rooms and courtyards where the Moorish rulers of Granada used to live and also this was their seat of power. The first thing we all noticed was that there were a lot less tourists walking about which made the whole tour of this area more pleasant. Out of all the courts and halls the most famous and Nadia’s favourite is the Court of Lions. Nadia like this court because of the lions which hold up the fountain, because they all seem to be smiling at anyone who looks at them.

After the visit as we drove away from Granada after an intensive weekend of walking culture exchanges and the more important part - family bonding.