I have heard so much about the Atlas Mountains, but I did not know what to expect. We could see them in the distance from our hotel room, but going there was pretty amazing.
On our way there we first stopped at an outdoor market in a town of 15,000 people. Perhaps the name is Ait Ourier, perhaps it is something else. I will check the name (and spelling) with our guide Rasheed today.
Like in Myanmar, I think the rural markets are more interesting than the urban markets. We buzzed through the market, passing fresh vegetables, including the largest carrots I've ever seen, dry goods, spices, and then finally into the meat section. They were not just carving up huge pieces of lamb and goat, but they also sold goat heads. Eyes, hair, and all. That was a bit surprising!
At busy points, Rasheed would turn and tell us to guard our pockets. The dirt paths through were muddy, although I do not know when it last rained. I did my usual market run and shoot with the camera -- we moved quickly, so I really did not have time to frame my photos.
The drive between Marrakech and the market village was uneventful yet interesting. Just outside Marrakesh (yes, I am deliberately flipping between the spellings!) there is a suburban development of Moroccan McMansions -- huge homes on small tracts of land. There were also olive groves as far as the eye could see.
The views of the 13,000+ feet high, snow capped mountains became more and more impressive as we got closer.
After we left the market, we stopped at the edge of the town at a woman's cooperative, where we tasted some of the oil products from nuts that the women were making. Carol also bought some skin care products that they had made.
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