We board a minibus, with about a dozen others, of various nationalities. On this tour there are more Spanish speakers than English, however perhaps this is not surprising given the company has websites in Spanish and French, however not yet English.
As we head south east the landscape changes, any semblance of green grass quickly disappears, and the distant mountains slowly creep up upon us. The famous Atlas mountains. The windy Mountain pass must have taken some pick and shovel work over many decades, and in the hot sun at altitude it would have been back breaking work no doubt. The minibus climbs up S shaped roads, with occassionally a four or five level view of the road. Hard work for the trucks, who must use the lowest of low gears to ascend.
The bus plays traditional Moroccan music similar to the music in Babel, and whilst I recall the movie and Cate Blanchett getting shot by Moroccan kids I consider this unlikely to occur to us.
Our first major stop is Ait Ben Haddou, famous for being a Movie Set for many Hollywood blockbusters, including Jewel of the Nile, Gladiator, Lawrence of Arabia, The Mummy and many more. We walk through in searing heat, the hottest day thus far in Morocco, and seek respite in the shade when on offer. I'm not sure we recognised much of the sets, however perhaps we'll watch the movies again. the dusty field nearby they actually set up as the collesium in Gladiator, where brave Russell slayed his bigger, more numerous and weapon wielding opponents.
Shortly after was a Museum that displayed many props from the movies, including numerous Arabic region thrones, and also a dungeon.
Our stop for the night is Dades Gorge, in a basic hotel. In this gorge area there are many houses built on the inside edges of the gorge.... I'm not sure I would trust the foundation.
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