June 13, 2017 Photography

Marrakesh to the Sahara - Trek across Morocco Photo Diary

Morocco is difficult to describe - dusty, overwhelming, vibrant, buzzing, hot, foreign, and just full of color and life. The markets in Marrakesh are an extravagant maze, Jemaa el-Fnaa Square is a dizzying swirl of lights, music, yelling, smoke, a thousand different languages, snakes, monkeys, and the sweetest oranges. From the ornate Kasbahs in the ancient villages, to the kids playing in the streets, the winding mountain passes, the cool breeze over the river in the gorge, and the truly endless orange sand of the Sahara. I know I need to return here again and again to begin to fully understand its beauty. 


The Souks of Marrakesh


Jemaa el-Fnaa Square, Marrakesh - The largest marketplace in Africa


Jardin Majorelle - Yves St Laurent's private gardens


Kasbah du Pacha el Glaoui, Telout


Ait Ben Haddou Kasbah


Mountain Goats!


Date Palm Oasis


Road to Dades Gorges


Into the river bed of the Dades Gorge


African Market at the gates of the Sahara, Rissani 


Homemade Madfouna, known as 'Berber Pizza' in Rissani before entering the Sahara

The black desert at the edge of the Sahara


Heading into the Sahara

It took two flights covering three continents, a ten hour drive from Marrakech through the mountains and the black desert, and an hour and a half by camel caravan to reach the middle of these Sahara dunes - and every moment of the journey was full of color, heat, and a truly foreign world. 


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