After spending several days visiting Marrakech, we got in the car to travel to the Sahara desert in Morocco.
I have come to the Moroccan Sahara. First I am going to experience it as a tourist and pass the test I will try to do it as a real Berber. The Sahara desert has become a very popular tourist destination thanks to the many activities that can be done and that are not usual in the asphalt of a city. Like riding a camel, possibly the most demanded activity, because yes, it is definitely not easy to find camels in the city.
But I prefer the horses, specifically those of these quads, ideal for a route through the desert dunes. The popularity of the raids has made the Sahara the place of choice for many fans of these motor events, who come to Morocco to push the capabilities of their off-roaders to the limit.
All this stuff about quads, camels, and all-terrain vehicles is all very well, but what I have come to the Sahara is to discover what life in the desert is really like. Friends, get ready. We are going to become Berbers. I have already been a tourist, now I will be a Berber. The first thing is to change our attire and dress up with the corresponding gandola and turban. We are going to know two different realities of the same culture. On the one hand the life in the cities and on the other hand the life of the nomadic families of the desert.
In the city of Rissani on market day you will discover many things about this culture. One of them is the importance of goats whose grazing is one of the pillars of its economy. Here you will find a market for the sale and purchase of this livestock, but what will catch your attention is this huge esplanade that serves as a parking lot and buying and selling point for donkeys. Here they use donkeys instead of cars. The rest of the day to enjoy the market. Here you will find all the beauty and the essence of the Moroccan souks without the crowds that often suffer in other markets such as Marrakesh.
But I want to meet the real nomads of the Sahara. So I set off on a long walk through the Sahara accompanied by Jamed and two camels. The Berbers of the desert live in a very austere way. Some men have more than one wife and the social organization is quite simple. At dawn, the men go out to herd the goats that will later end up in markets like the one in Rissani. While the women take care of the domestic chores. Cleaning, childcare, and cooking. The Berbers of the desert are very reserved families, undoubtedly marked by the harshness of the terrain where they live.
There are many ways to say goodbye to a great trip. One of them is watching a sunset in the middle of the desert with a nomad family. Living this moment I have the feeling that I will soon return to Morocco.
AUTHOR’S NOTES.
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If you have questions about traveling to the Sahara Desert in Morocco that this article hasn’t answered, feel free to leave them for me in the comments. If you’ve recently been there and anything I’ve written has changed or you have any new recommendations, I’d be happy to incorporate your input into the article.
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