ERFOUD

We had a looooong drive today up and thru the Middle Atlas and HighAtlas Mts to the desert town of Erfoud. Along the way we dozed, we ate, we stopped and saw some sights, and Mohamed spent many hours discussing so many subjects and teaching us the way of life in the Moroccan Sahara. Our driver was NOT a slow poke, and some of the  Mt roads led to excitement on their own. It happens to be date season in the desert, so everywhere are dates, and sellers, and haulers, and anything to make money from this crop. We saw an old Shepard tending to his sheep herd ( 160) by the side of the road, and we stopped to talk. He only spoke Berber, but Mohamed, who is of a different tribe was able to interpret. He was so delightful and friendly and when he found out Steve was the same age...he broke into a huge grin. Whenever we saw something interesting, we stopped...which was much fun, but made an even longer day.   After 10 hours...we finally arrived in Erfoud, which is on the edge of the Sahara. There was a large pool and AC...did I say it is hot? Steve and I jumped in the pool Before dinner just to cool off.   Then we separated out clothes, etc....because we would NOT need much for the tented accommodations.