2025 Morocco

Didn’t have the heating last night and we were not cold unlike other nights before. We greeting Lee & Michelle and agreed that we would walk into town and have a coffee. Their friends were going to join us at the campsite this morning and so the invitation was extended to Margo & Neil, a couple from Northern Ireland. I tried our electric kettle again only to trip our electrics so its time we replaced it.

Around 11am all six of us set off for the cafe / restaurant they had visited previously. Tucker came along with us and loved the interaction with everyone. We sat and chatted whilst we drank our coffee.

We then bought some bread and made our way back to the van after agreeing to come back this evening for a meal together.

At around 6pm we took a different route to the restaurant going through the old part of town where all the shops were open. Margo spotted an electric kettle which I purchased for 100 MAD (approx £8). That will do.

When we arrived at the restaurant we went upstairs and made our choices from the menu. Burgers, Tagine and Brochettes were ordered together with water and soft drinks. It was very tasty. We got back to the van around 8:30pm where Tucker gave us a tremendous greeting.

It was very cold last night and I had to get up at 6am to put the gas heating on which also means running the fan. The consequence is the battery runs down further. I did turn off the StarLink internet to save more battery capacity.

We decided that as we had seen the town many times over the years we would move on today and try and hook up with Lee & Michelle. They were on a newly reopened campsite in the centre of Tiznit…. a place we had passed before but there was always a queue to get in.

First we drove into town to top our cash reserves as I knew that we needed fuel which was almost certainly need to be paid for with cash. As it turned out I was right. Now we started to travel west on road that I recognised at points along the way. We arrived at the site at around 12:30pm to a great welcome.

We positioned ourselves across from Lee’s van which was currently being resprayed and due back imminently. Needed 2 25m cables to reach the electric distribution box only to find we were not receiving any electric. After checking our distribution board everything seemed OK. Soon after a fellow camper pointed out there was a site wide disruption to the supply. We did. get back on in about 30mins.

We spent the afternoon chatting with our newly found friends. Tina cooked her version of a chicken Tagine.

Tina really didn’t enjoy the site we were on last night. The Tagine was mediocre and so we decided to leave this morning and journey on to an old favourite at Tafraoute. Our navigation was set and we started the journey …. the first part was good road on a National road however the second part took us over the mountains on a single tarmac road with many potholes to be avoided. It was not pleasant but we endured it until the final part where we were back on a National road.

We arrived in Tafraoute and all of the recognisable things we still here however Tina didn’t recall any of the places. The only way I could get her to relate to the place was to refer to the “lion head” mountain.

At 2pm we were parked on the guardian parking and then the merchants started to come around. We had 3 garages trying to sell their services, a lad selling eggs, a lady that we recognised that does washing and food to order. Tina also couldn’t resist a young man selling a few trinkets. She bought a magnetic plaque of the lion head and a key ring. Hopefully this will jog her memory in the future.

The afternoon was hot and we watched aqs a few vans came in but the total number of vans is really small compared to all of our previous visits. The photo is the outlook from our side door.

The guardian came around about 7pm to collect his money …. 15 MAD (just over £1). and they stay alert all night protecting the vans.

We have decided to move to Tiznit tomorrow and rejoin Lee & Michelle. We hooked up with these guys when we entered Morocco and we are really looking forward to seeing them again.

On the move today so we emptied the black waste and searched for a grey waste dump…. non found so decided to open the tap en route.

Paid our dues and Tina was then collecting her new garment from the seamstress. The quality is excellent and looks fantastic.

We were soon on our 2 hour journey to Tata. No mountanous roads but all flat and straight with a few bends. Really good and fast to drive.

Arriving in Tata we knew we had to get a few things so I parked the van and left Tina and Tucker in the van to go and find some meat, vegetables, fruit and yoghurts. I also picked up a few peanuts which Rkia introduced us to.

Now back at the van we drove round to the campsite. Tina scolded me because she thought they ripped us off last time we were here over the cost & quality of a Tagine we purchased. After much discussion we eventually parked and set up only to be requested to move by one of the guys as we were close to his sleeping spot. Moved further forward.

On registration I ordered a Chicken Tagine and hoped that it will pass Tina’s approval. It was average but still saved Tina cooking. Watching Monday night football tonight hoping Everton beat Man Utd.

It has been warm here with a temperature of 25ºC this afternoon. Currently at 9pm its 19ºC

Relaxing day today trying to recover from the stress of the past few days. I can report that I am feeling much better and hopefully recovered as the internal plumbing is now working correctly.

This morning we wandered up to reception and booked in with our passports. Then we wandered just outside the entrance to visit a lady in a lockup we have visited before. She has a number of sewing machines together with material and trimmings. Tina wore a top we bought previously from her so I suggested that she should look for another. There was not anything ready made but she did pick out some material to have a top made. Once the price was agreed we confirmed we will collect the garment in the morning before we leave for Tata.

During the day I have watched the darts on ITV (afternoon & evening sessions) as well as some football on Sky.

It has been warm here with a temperature of 21ºC.

Thankfully I had a brilliant nights sleep. I was watching the darts but just couldn’t stay awake so at 10:30pm I was off to bed.

This morning we had almost run out of fresh water and the grey waste warning light was glowing so as we left we serviced the van. Fortunately Tina had emptied the toilet cassette yesterday… it was extremely full and very heavy for her. We paid our dues and first stop was to drive into town to find a bank and a butchers… more meat for Tucker.

Now we are on our way to Foum Zguid, a 2 hour drive, where we have been many times. I now realise where I had gone wrong on Wednesday.

We have parked in the same spot as we were in on our last visit in January 2024. Tina took a great photo from the van doorway of something we had not seen before. Its similar to the lion in Tafraoute.

I watched the remaining time left in the early kick off game in the Premier League and then endured the 2-2 draw Bournemouth had with West Ham. With the number of chances we should have won the match.

Tina is cooking her version of a Tagine in the Skillets on the electric hotplate. I am sure it’s going to be tasty. I hope I can stay awake to watch the darts tonight.

What a night….

I spent most of it sitting on the toilet trying to empty my bowel which was very unspectacular and caused Tina concern. I was bleeding from the rear. During the night I soiled 10 pairs of boxers as I wasn’t always quick enough. At one point we used puppy training pads to protect the bed from my rear end and what it was ejecting.

Tina and I decided we needed some help so she asked the site owner, Siad, to get me a doctor. Within 30 minutes a taxi arrived to take me to a clinic in the small town new where we are parked. The medical staff took my blood pressure, diabetes reading etc before I met the doctor. He did an ultra sonic scan much like pregnant ladies have. It was confirmed that my bladder was bloated which I knew from the discomfort of not being able to pee. The doctor was not able to do anything more but to refer me to a bigger clinic in Ouzazate, about 40 miles away. He expressed the urgency for this to happen. The taxi returned me to the campsite where a further taxi was organised to take me to the bigger clinic. I was charged 200 MAD for the consultation.

Once back in the van I was able to take a pee which eased some of the pain and also a huge dump with no visible blood. Maybe this was a turning point.

We were now taking the 75-90 minute drive to the bigger clinic. On arrival I was soon seen and this doctor prescribed some medication I needed to take for constipation and before a visit to an even bigger clinic in Marrakesh so they could take a colonoscopy.

I am now feeling so much better with no apparent issues from last night. I am not sure about Marrakesh but maybe discuss this with my own GP when back in the UK.

This afternoon I decided to catch up on the sleep I lost last night. Hopefully I will not have the same reoccurrence of my problems tonight.

The featured photo is the view from our doorway. Morocco never fails to impress.

We had a very disturbed nights sleep as I am suffering from Constipation and spent much of the night sitting on the toilet. Eventually I did pass something but today I have continued to suffer.

Tina asked the site owner to try and get some medication for me from the local Pharmacy. Due to language and translation problems they initially obtained medication for Diarrhoea but then obtained something for my condition.

Early afternoon I did take a nap on the bed for a couple of hours. I felt so much better after having a sleep.

Tina has administered canule a couple of times and it is having the desired effect. Hopefully I will get some sleep tonight. Moving tomorrow all being well.

We left Skours this morning with the intention of travelling the 3 hours to Foum Zguid where we have stayed many times before. On the way we would visit a Carrefour supermarket in Ouarzazate to pick up a few things. We have used this supermarket in the past and parked on the road. I took the opportunity to withdraw some more local currency … Moroccan Dirhams (MAD)

I now set the sat nav for our desired destination which was 3 hours drive which is on the limit of what Tina allows us to travel in one go due to Tucker not being happy in the van. Around half way the sat nav was reporting that we still had over three hours to go even though we had been travelling around 2 hours. Checked the maps and we had taken a wrong turn and travelled an extra 40 miles towards Agdz and on the way to Zagora. Not what we had planned.

Fustrated Tina insisted we find a campsite and continue in the morning. We are not on a schedule so this was not an issue. Looking at the apps I found a campsite with good reviews just 3 minutes from the centre of town so we made our way there.

The surroundings are lovely so after we filled with fresh water we parked up with a promise of free fresh bread delivered in the morning.

Very quiet day today…. no pressure on getting up. Seemed really strange not hearing the kids catching the School Buses outside of where we parked nor hearing Yanis banging on the door. It’s something we are going to have to get used to not hearing in future days.

Spent time catching up with administration and some YouTube videos before my normal English lunch of cream crackers & corned beef. Oh how we love life!!

Showers this afternoon and then Tina cooked Steak & homemade chips UK style. I didn’t bring the BBQ so the steak didn’t cook quite as well.

Before we left yesterday morning Rkia showed me her progress in creating the woven carpet with my CherryPirate logo. She is making steady progress.