[A mountain that Tim and I climbed overlooking Torremolinos]

We had a week to travel around Southern Spain and North Africa as well, so the next week Aaron, Anna, and I separated from the rest of the group, who took up their own travels, and headed to Morocco. I don’t know if I have been in a more beautiful nation. Morocco has so much from cold temperature to the searing hot deserts; Atlas mountains to Mediterranean and Atlantic Coastlines. We spent the week traveling all over the country and grew to know and appreciate each other more. We shared frustrating moments and as well as those of sheer beauty and delight. We met some amazing people while traveling and at our temporary destinations. Too much happened to record it all, so be sure to check out (and comment on) Anna’s Blog which contains a daily video diary from the trip. (Anna’s Blog) Hopefully the pictures and captions will give an idea about the trip as well, maybe even better than words can in this instance.

[A hillside in Tanger, Morocco]

[Marrakesh is a city known for its craziness. It has one of the biggest markets in North Africa and competes with Addis Ababa for Africa's largest. Even on the first day, I needed to get away from it, so Scott and I headed into the back alleys away from everything else and found a small group of boys playing soccer. We spent a few minutes with them before heading back to the hostel.]

[Morocco is known for a traditional dish called Tajin. You can find it everywhere along with the spices that are included. There is so much color in Morocco, more than I ever expected.]

[Anna and Aaron on the Atlas mountain pass. Our guide, Housine, asked us to count the number of turns on the way up. We didn't, but he kept asking. When we got to the top, he wouldn't tell us how many until we gave him good guesses, but after we did he revealed that there were only 2; right and left. Clever, Housine... very clever.]

[When we were told that we would be driving through the Atlas Mountains to get to the desert, I wasn't expecting red earth, snow covered peaks, and windblown wheat fields filling the valleys. Anna and Aaron both said that it reminded them of Nepal. It just reminded me of something beautiful since I had never seen anything like it (besides maybe the Alberta Canada coat of arms).]

[Housine says that the Berber people only live in the mountains. Its possible that they came from the Mountains, but they live all over Morocco. They make up about 60% of the population if you are interested in figures. They are a warm people, a point that I will explain in another caption.]

[After driving through some diverse and amazing landscapes and biomes, we arrived at the end of the road, literally. Housine lives in a small desert town called M'Hamed and it is where the pavement ends as far as roads go. We stayed on the edge of the Sahara in Bedouin type tents at a campsite. Unlike many other of the tourist programs, it was just Aaron, Anna and I at the camp with Housine and his friends and family.]

[Housine and his family come from the tribal Tauregs that once traversed the Sahara. They are also known as Nomads or the Blue Men because of their bright blue jalebahs (long shirts). Because of the Nation-States that have invaded the African continent in the lat 200 years, whole tribes have been cut off from each other, especially with countries with closed borders like Algeria, a mere 38 kilometers from the town of M'Hamed. The once itinerant Blue Men are mostly settled down now, but the freedom of wandering is evident in the infrastructure of their towns and the remains of vacated Kasbahs (old towns with refuges) that dot the desert countryside. Who knows how long Housine's family will stay in M'Hamed?]

[After visiting the old M'Hamed Kasbah, we headed via Landrover to the Chicaga Dunes. It is one of the largest dune systems in Morocco and boasts the highest dune of 300 meters (or 990 ft). The desert is one of my favorite ecosystems and for some odd reason, I find refreshment for my spirit there.]

[A few tourists taking a rest on one of the lower dunes. We were surprised that there weren't many tourists and the dunes were relatively untouched, which was amazing for pictures.]

[Anna making the long trek to the top of the highest sand-dune. There is this innate desire to see the highest point around and climb it. We gave in to this aspiration and reached the summit with a few minutes of sunrise left.]

[Aaron and Anna at the top. We hauled Anna's MacBook to the top in order to record one of our daily video journals which can be viewed HERE on Anna's Blog. We watched the sun drop beneath the horizon and praised our Maker for His amazing creation. Soon after, we headed back to the camp and fell asleep early (before the Blue Men were finished with their rhythmic songs) so we could get up for sunrise.]

[Our camp at the Chicaga dunes was surprisingly cozy despite the fine layer of dust that covered everything (including our camera equipment). The sun rewarded our early morning efforts with spectacular views of the dunes and the textures of the sand. After breakfast we piled back in the Landrover and started the long journey back to Marrakesh, 12 hours away.]

[Along the way, we stopped in a Berber village high in the Atlas mountains. We had yet to experience hospitality in the way they showed it to us. We were invited to a terrace overlooking wheat fields and mountain dwellings where we enjoyed mint tea and broken conversations. We were invited to spend a few nights up in the village, but wouldn't have had a way to get back to Marrakesh had we done so. We all want to visit Morocco again and spend much more time in the Atlas with the Berbers.]

[It is extremely difficult to get photos of women, especially in the Muslim world. Equally difficult is getting to know them and their stories. Outside of the craziness of the Marrakesh Medina, we wandered in a small community of craftsman and porters. There were no Westerners walking the streets so it was much easier to relate with the people on a personal level. Anna had been praying that she would be able to get connected with a local woman and possibly even get portraits of her. God presented the opportunity and we spent close to an hour and a half getting to know the Berber family who had come to Marrakesh. We were so blown away by their hospitality and warmth. We would all love to go back and visit them someday as well.]

[Morocco is quite famous for its leather. The largest tannery is located in Fez, but there are also quite a few large tanneries in Marrakesh as well. It is popular for tourists to go and thus popular to be led to specific tanneries by a myriad of different people, including children and inebriated men. We finally made our own way through an open door into a tannery deserted by tourists. We walked around and took some pictures before heading back to our hostel. The man on the bottom is Abdallah Azziz who showed me the whole process of tanning leathers, a process that has become his life-long profession.]

[Some of the Arab influenced architecture in Marrakesh]

[The closest coastal town to Marrakesh is Essaouira (I am still terrible at the pronunciation). Translated, the name means "windy city" and it is very windy. It is also dominated by the tourism industry. There is also a history and tradition of catching fish in the Atlantic, so a generous fishing industry also brings in revenue for the coastal community.]

[A man sits at the gate of the Essaouira medina in the traditional dress of many Moroccans, a hooded jalebah.

[One of the strays that Aaron and Anna (and I) fell in love with]

[Another of Essaouira's medina gates.]

[Aaron standing in front of a colorful backdrop composed of rugs and blankets]

[The medina walls of Essaouira]