Morocco surprises and delights

I WAS delighted to receive an
invitation from Cosmos Tours
to visit Morocco, which had
long been on my bucket list.
Needless to say, I accepted
with delight and anticipation.
When I received my itinerary
I recognised only three cities
on the itinerary – Casablanca,
Marrakesh and Rabat.
Everything else was new and
foreign. It also looked very
busy! Yippee! I had two goals
– to explore Morocco and to
experience Cosmos Tours.
My expectations of Morocco
were high. I looked forward
to trying new and spicy
food, and soaking up colour,
flavour and sounds. I hoped
to visit markets and wanted
to buy spices and a tagine. I
expected to find a poor country
without a great infrastructure.
I bought as much summer
clothing as I could find
expecting a hot desert climate.
As our departure date
drew closer I started getting
input from friends and family.
“Are you sure it’s safe?”
they asked. “Look at the
Internet – there are so many
warnings about women
travelling in Morocco,” they
warned. There was a lot of
‘do this’ and ‘don’t do that’.
I left my jewellery behind and
made sure I had a scarf to
cover up if I needed to. My
expectations of Cosmos were,
perhaps, lower. I anticipated
a budget tour with low-cost
accommodation and coach.
I was in for a surprise.
The colour, sounds and
atmosphere were all I hoped
for and more. I have never
taken so many pictures of
tiles, doors and facades in
my life. The markets were
abundant and vibrant beyond
my expectations. Markets were
flooded with olives, dates and
nuts. The road infrastructure
was fantastic, without a
single pothole. People were
amazing, friendly and warm.
I was reminded that, though
language differences create
barriers, a smile and a “thank
you” are understood and
appreciated in any language.
The country, though poor,
was far from squalid and very
clean.
I felt perfectly safe all the
time – even walking around at
night. In fact, I felt safer than I
do at home. At no time was I
threatened either as a woman
or as a tourist. Morocco is an
affordable destination. With
our volatile exchange rate,
being able to afford to do and
buy things is a huge bonus.
The food was less spicy than
I expected. It ‘purrs in the
mouth rather than bites or
growls’.
Our itinerary gave us
a delightful selection of
mountain, desert, city and
town experiences – taking
us from a bustling Fez with
its busy Medina to the quiet,
Ifrane – French mountain ski
resort. It covered a variety of
activities from shopping in the
medina to tours of a pottery
factory, a tannery and more.
We enjoyed an evening in the
desert with star gazing.
The biggest and best
surprise, though, was the
Cosmos Tour experience.
Wow! The accommodation was
excellent and well organised.
The coach was modern and
comfortable with a friendly and
capable driver and co-driver
helping us all the way. But
it was our tour director who
was the star of the show –
entertaining, informative and
helpful, he went beyond the
extra mile.
As for tips for travel to
Morocco, I would urge any
prospective traveller to do a
tour. Trying to do Morocco as
an independent traveller would
mean missing so many of
the hidden gems. It would be
impossible to negotiate the
9 000-odd alleyways in Fez
Medina on your own. Finding
authenticity in a country where
much is designed to fool the
tourist requires an expert
who knows the destination.
Cosmos provides just such
an expert. Yes, there is a lot
of time on the coach, but this
is the only way to get to see
and do so much. The travelling
is comfortable and the
sightseeing phenomenal.
Oh, and drink the orange
juice – it’s amazing!