The Great Oasis Valleys
Today's drive takes us through the valleys of oases from Erfoud to Ouarzazate (wear-zuh-ZATT). We are stopping to see the towering limestone stacks of the Todra Gorge, known as the Grand Canyon of Morocco, and are having an afternoon spot of Moroccan traditional mint tea at a Berber home.
But first:
In the desert surrounding Erfoud, a cottage industry of the local people, mostly Berbers, is recovering thousands of fossils. The entire area was, at one time, covered by gigantic oceans. The living organisms of that ocean, when they died, drifted to the ocean floor and were entombed on the sandy bottom. Over millions of years, they hardened into what we now call fossils. In this area, many fossils can be found in just one slab of limestone.
Our first stop of the day was at a local cooperative that creates modern furniture and decorations utilizing fossils.
Views in and around the large oasis
town of Tinghir, including the famous Todra Gorge.
Traditional Moroccan Mint Tea
Traditionally, a Kasbah is a castle or a fortress, but today the word is used commonly for a guest house, or even some hotels have Kasbah in their name. Our bus stop this afternoon was at the home of a traditional Berber family, where the matriarch gathered us around to show us the traditional Moroccan way of making green mint tea.
So “Come wiz me to zuh Kasbah.”
The Great Room
Our refuge in Ouarzazate is at the Berber Palace Hotel.
This town is the film capital of northern Africa. And we are being told that the cast of a major motion picture is staying nearby. Stars who are in town include Matt Damon, Anne Hathaway, Zendaya, and Tom Holland.
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