The Van Plan

Momentous day. Staying with friends in La Marsa north of Tunis so not in the van in a car park! I decided to go into town after two days in the house and last nights speech from the President about the future direction of the country and hearing the peoples voice…..Very peaceful morning in the centre of town walked down to Place du 7th Novembre reputedly 250,000 people on the streets a figure I can quite believe. Amazing optimistic atmosphere until about 3pm when things started to feel a bit ugly and so decided to head back. Rioting broke out on the way home and police used tear gas to disperse the crowds…not a comfortable situation made worse by the burning and looting of a house owned by one of the Presidents extended family close to where we were staying and the thick black smoke enveloping the area. Guess we are stuck for the moment but at least we are with friends!

oops blockage!

We had thought Tunisia would be the least exciting part of our trip…completely safe stable government etc etc…Not a bit of it… rioting on the streets!
Keeping a very low profile after a couple of days in and around Tunis visiting the Bardo museum and seeing the stunning mosaics, Carthage and Sidi Bou Said and a little run in with a mob of students in Hammam Lif, a suburb of Tunis.



Lots of press coverage but this gives a flavour Tunis unrest

Lucy and Daria making friends just in case…

We had a change over on Tuesday after Christmas and George, Fergus and Pippa went home and some great friends Rollo and Ros, Mark and Fiona and Caroline came out to join us (with their suitcases) for the New Year.

From left: Lucy, Ros, Rory,Caroline,Rollo,Fiona,Mark

We had a ball the weather was kind and we ate and drank too much. Rollo wins the prize for best fancy dress with a splendid “Berber…. cheap price” outfit! Mark wins the “I am getting a bit twitchy lets go to the beach” award and the girls collectively win the Berber cheap price bargaining cup.


Rollo and Rory the Berber Boys
Tomorrow we set off for Tunis in a ferry via Spain ( The Moroccan / Algerian border being closed)
Happy New Year to everyone

You couldn’t make it up…… Christmas in Tangier. Characters out of a novel,conversations in French, Arabic, and English. A group of wonderfully eccentric English gentlemen, a gorgeous gay American (think Village People), beautiful women, a Moroccan film star (Bourne Identity, Conception) a maths professor, a dwarf ‘titty bandit’ serving at the table, a parrot and a colored cock!



Think it was a rooster…..
Never have we been made so welcome and had so much fun with people we had only just met. Thank you all.

What a perfect day

Perfect height

Boxing Day had a lot to live up to and did, a gorgeous start to the day swimming in the pool terrific lunch in the Medina and a party in the evening with wonderful new friends, fabulous food and wine in an amazing house.

Perfect temperature…Ok it was cold I admit it!

Mohamed and the team at La Malletiere with Pip,Fergus and George

Despite snow and Heathrow chaos all the family now gathered at a gorgeous villa in Tangier,
La Malletiere


….Touch and go with an estimated 75% of flights cancelled. George, Fergus and Pippa arrived at about 2am but their luggage went on to Casablanca along with all the cheese.

Luckily wine was in the hand baggage one bottle each as it says in the regulations.

One bottle of wine per passenger
We went to Cap Spartel and to the famous Grottes d’Hercule

and walked on the beach.

Fergus did what Fergus does….
We also did a wonderful trip up into the Rif Mountains and Chefchaouen a beautiful white washed mountain village.

Our trip to Tan Tan was shorter than we expected….huge security because of a Unesco bash and lots of VIP’s so the blue van was a bit of a nuisance…Sand storm was brewing so we just moved on. Their loss.

Coast line was spectacular and we had a wonderful couple of days on the beach at Sidi Ifini

Spent a wonderful day in K’nob and made friends with a lovely young girl who invited us into her family home above the Palm Grove to see the “view panoramic”.



From there on to Ouarzazate past all the film sets. Lucy was not impressed by the remnants of trucks in the bottom of the Valley we were only a short time after one particularly horrid one that left the truck about 200 feet down the mountain and the cargo strewn everywhere…we didnt stop, as there were masses of people at the scene “helping” to collect the freight from the ravine.
We didnt stop to take photos as it was all a bit gruesome but I think we can all see how these lorrys fall over the edge.

The drive along the river once we were out of the mountains was fabulous and on arrival at the camp site we were met by Alan from Bolton with the words “welcome to Morocco” seemed a bit odd after nearly a month and several thousand kilometers but hey ho …he joined us for a G&T! Alan had been at the camp site for several weeks and seemed to be endlessly preparing his landrover for the next bit of his trip ( we met lots like that) but the difference was each project needed a new set of clothing and a new head dress!

Good lesson in map reading we were following a Red National route in Southern Morocco. Good Dirt road and then it stopped…quite literally …apparently the very small black dots on the red line on the map mean its not yet a road! Full tank of fuel and water so ok for an agonizing 5 hours of severe cross country! Don’t envy the two normal camper vans we passed on the route. No chance would be the short summary! Evidence of severe flooding with the “road” washed away in several places


Little black dots on the major road on the map mean ‘maybe a road later inshallah’

come on ..its a main road!

Managed to get the van off road and into some serious sand, a camped outside Merzouga on the edge of Hassi Labied.

Great fun but Lucy was horrified at the environmental damage made by 4×4’s on the dunes. I feel suitably embarrassed and wont do it again…Lucy turning into a dune hugger.



We saw wonderful camel trains …..bringing in supplies no 4×4 access here!

and tourists



Lucy on top of Erg Chebi

We left Fez in filthy weather but the van was intact! Our route south was blocked because of flooding so we took the scenic route! Arrived in Merzouga in blazing sunshine and arranged a three day camel trek we saw the most extraordinary mirage but sadly didn’t get a photo.
Our trek route ( just the two of us and a guide) took us along a well worn path littered with plastic bottles before we cut off into the dunes themselves spectacular silence except for the swish of the camels feet and not a plastic bag or bottle in sight after about 3 hours we came to a gap in the dunes and crossed an ancient river bed heading towards a mud hut and a traditional Berber tent on the plain….our stop for the night!




one night in a mud hut with nomad goat herders and one in a tent at an Oasis} Sore bums at the end of it and badly in need of a shower but a great experience….even if Rory was not quite as nimble at the end of the adventure as Lucy who definitely qualified in camel management !
We even saw some crazy Germans skiing on Erg Chebbi

where we saw the most spectacular sunset after an epic climb up the dunes.



At the end of our trek we stopped at a spectacular wasis (oasis) at the foot of Erg Chebbi modern ingenuity an upturned plastic bucket over the well shaft protected the water source.


We sat round a spectacular fire and had a lovely meal under the stars (well goat stew..but it was terrific)