The medina of Fes is certainly a highlight of any trip to Morocco. If you are lucky enough to get Foued as your guide, you can look forward to a very special tour. Foued also accompanies groups around the country, so he is not always in Fes. In that case, we recommend Karima. Both speak excellent German. © b. g.
Karima: +212 (0) 665617958; Foued: +212 (0) 661986412
Tinghir is not exactly a gem waiting to be discovered. It must have been love for his charming Moroccan wife that persuaded the Frenchman Guillaume Peigue to settle here. What is worth discovering in this dusty town is his little patisserie right on the main road, and his passion for the delicate, high-calorie temptations that wait in the spotless display like a mirage. Patisserie Peigue, 432 Boulevard Mohamed V, 45800 Tinghir. © n. g.
We first met Sabine and Burghard with their “Pistenkuh” at Willy’s meeting, and then ran into them several times here in Morocco. Whether planned or by chance, these encounters were always communicative and informative highlights.
Speaking of communication: the two have been travelling more or less non-stop for ten years, by now in several different Pistenkuh vehicles. They are well known in the overland community and have published travel books about Africa and Australia as well as informative DVDs. Highly recommended!
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How on earth does a hotel with an observatory end up in the Moroccan desert? The German Fritz Gerd Koring fulfilled his lifelong dream of owning a private observatory. When American friends came to stargaze and wanted a guest room next door, they inspired him to turn it into a small guesthouse.
The hotel, with its telescopes on the roof, now has 20 rooms, a sauna and a whirlpool. I had the privilege of attaching my camera to the brand-new Meade telescope and voilà: my photograph of the Orion Nebula M42.
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On our way to Erg Chigaga, Morocco’s largest dune field, we arrived at the Iquidi campsite run by M’Hamid, who knows a great deal about the stars. The low-range gearing on our truck had stopped working, so dune driving was out of the question.
Hamid was watering his little plants when we arrived; otherwise the campsite lay peacefully on the edge of picturesque dunes. No barking dogs at night, no muezzin early in the morning, and countless stars overhead. Wonderful.
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Thanks to globalisation and environmental awareness, this phenomenon can be admired in many countries at any time of year – including Morocco. Myriads of plastic bags shine in colourful shapes across the landscape and from bushes with thorny little arms ready to catch them. Who would have thought that an African country called Rwanda would refuse to take part in this colourful spectacle? Plastic bags are banned there. © n. g.
In Zagora you will inevitably be lured into the souvenir shops on the main street with the promise “just looking, no buying”. Their stock is more or less identical. We went to Salem voluntarily: he has been friends with Michael Dennig ever since Michael once pulled Salem’s car out of the mud.
You should still bargain with him, of course. After all, he has to finance the triple wedding of his two sons and his daughter this summer. Five hundred guests are expected and the celebrations will last seven days, he told us when he invited us to dinner.
Boutique La Palmeraie, Chez Abou Salma Salem, Zagora. Send greetings from Michael Dennig; it may make bargaining easier.
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