Rabat, Angle de Rue Pakistan et Avenue d'Egypte (Morocco 10040)

TextYesterday had been a long day. John spent many hours at the wheel, which here can be very stressful as the quality of the Moroccans driving is appalling, and dangerous. Although we liked staying at Camping L'Ocesn Blue, we were mindful that if we drove all the way to Meknes from here it would mean another long drive for John, so we decided to just move an hour down the road to Rabat, a city we liked when we visited just over two weeks ago. Starting our journey from here tomorrow made more sense. As in all cities the traffic was manic, honestly you'd need to witness it for yourself to believe it. As we approached the parking area by the walls of the Medina, Marge was surrounded by taxis driven by impatient drivers, sounding their horns and dodging  in and out around us. In the mayhem it seemed John drove Marge a little over a double white line. We have lost count of the number of police checkpoints we've passed through here without incident. Today was our unlucky day, a policeman was stood close by. His command of the English language was nil! Our command of his French was little better. We understood that John would be fined 400MD, about £32.00, which he contested stating the taxi drivers caused the manoeuvre. The policeman just kept repeating himself, and we kept shrugging our shoulders. In the end, he realized we'd got the jist of what he was saying, and reduced the fine to 150MD, warning us to be careful of staying in our lane. He was happy, pocketing our money, we were a little disgruntled about the fine, but decided it was part of our journey. Honestly, if you could see the condition of a majority of the cars on the road here, you'd be shocked. They are literally held together with tape and tie wraps.

This evening, after a couple of lazy hours resting in Marge we walked the cities streets. We love how a Medina comes to life in the evenings. Unlike Marrekech, Rabat is more laid back, and has a pretty waterfront.

We weren't pestered to buy from stall holders or eat in any particular restaurant. Since last night's blog, John is on the look out for a Berber hat for Angela. Just one problem, her head is child size. But we will keep looking. Angela knows the style she wants, John however thinks the more ridiculous the better! Our restaurant of choice this evening was selected by Angela. who read on the Internet the food was both good and cheap. As always local people were eating in it, always a good sign. So one Moroccan soup, and two chicken and vegetable couscous dishes, with drinks set us back around £12.00. It so cheap to eat out here, we're wondering why we're bothering to cook. Tomorrow, Marge we travel inland to Meknss. Tonight, a treat for her.

Another overland vehicle is parked here with us, albeit a lot larger! We are all on a journey, however we are travelling. Tomorrow we will. 'hit the iron's', as they say here, or 'Carp Diem', seize the day as we say in England.

Rabat, Angle de Rue Pakistan et Avenue d'Egypte (Morocco 10040)

The normal roads here away from the larger towns and cities are a nightmare. A real assault course to drive. The loose road surface and dust keeps becoming trapped in Marge's brakes, and she doesn't like it! Because of the road conditions our journey today was slow.

As we passed through small communities we were apalled at the amount of rubbish that lined the side of the road, the lack of grazing for the sheep, and the treatment of the horses and donkeys who pull the carts carrying bricks, cement, fruit, in fact just about anything. The seaside resort of Kintra was our planned overnight stop. It looked a nice town and the beach looked amazing. But the main campsite with four hundred pitches was empty. The reviews on the Internet weren't good, but we didn't expect this. So we drove on, a little disappointed at not being able to stay the night here. A secure overnight stop at a service area was our lunch stop. It was one of the nicest service areas we'd ever seen, with a beautiful outside space where peacocks roamed.

Now you don't see that in the U.K.! As it is our wedding anniversary today we felt we should be staying somewhere a little more exciting, so pushed onto Morocco's capital city Rabat. On the approach, stopping at the police checkpoint the officer saluted us, and Marge, and welcomed us to Morocco.

So tonight we are staying right near the Souk. As with all souks it was bustling.

We walked through it to the cities viewpoint, visited the beautiful gardens of the Kasbah Udayas, stopped for refreshments at the cafe opposite.

Walked some more in the Souk before stopping to eat mixed meat sandwiches and chips along with the locals, all for under a fiver!

 For the faint hearted mixed meat here contains a lot of offal. We didn't mind, it was very nice, and we were impressed by the staff who washed their hands regularly. Tomorrow before leaving Rabat we will walk out a little more. We especially want to climb the Hassan Tower. Darkness now falling, our secure parking area is emptying of cars. There is a French van here with us. On site there is a security man and his dog, they will remain with us all night. In all the time we've been in Morocco we have felt safe, so far we've hardly been hassled and received more waves and thumbs up than we ever imagined. Oh, and quite a number of salutes from passing motorists for Marge. As always she is the star of the show.