I signed up for a sunrise balloon trip that would take us up over the desert and looking at the mountains. We were supposed to be ready to go from the hotel at 6:15. I had set my alarm for 5:45, or so I thought. I heard some faint knocking at my door and looked at my phone. It was 6:26!!! Luckily I had slept partially clothed and was able to grab the rest of my clothes, get dressed and run downstairs to find the lobby empty. I called Abdou to tell him I was there. He asked if I could come out to the square. I ran back to my room to grab my glasses and ran out to the square. We hopped in a taxi and took off in the dark empty street. We stopped behind a van where Abdou told me I should get out of the taxi and into the van. As I stepped into the van, I looked back to see no familiar faces. I said good morning and heard a little reply from the back that let me know my group was there. We continued on air about 20 minutes until we arrived at the balloon launch site. There were campfires, blankets, tea and coffee available. My friends were relieved to see me. I looked at my phone to see what had happened. I had set the alarm for 6:45. Ugh. But Abdou had done his best to get me there. Amazing and so appreciated.
We had a short introduction to procedures before being taken to our balloon. The pilots were testing the fire jets as the workers surrounding the balloons were blowing air into them using powerful fans. We then boarded our baskets after being divided into 4 groups apparently by weight. We had been asked to write down our weight in kilos when we arrived for the briefing. We sat down in the basket and held rope loops to practice the landing position. Once our balloon was inflated enough, our pilot, Cameron who was from Albuquerque, unclipped us from the ground lines and we began to rise just as the sun began to peek over the mountains. It was truly magical. We were the first balloon to take off. Then we began to see many very beautiful ballon’s rising around us. There are many balloon companies in the area. Cameron told us that Marrakech is an excellent place to go ballooning because the weather rarely if ever causes cancellations. We drifted up and down with burst of heat from the propane tanks and vent control at the top of the canopy. Our direction was based on prevailing winds. We came down slowly with our van and the truck for the basket and balloon having followed us. We sat down and held our rope handles as the basket came down to the ground. The balloon crew spread out huge tarps and began to pull at the base area of the balloon to deflate it and protect it from the desert floor. Our van took us back to the campsite for a nice buffet breakfast. Then we jumped in a van to get to the water museum back in Marrakech.
The water museum was dedicated to all the ways the Moroccan people have dealt with the need for water. It was a great recap of the many discussions and visits we have had throughout the trip visiting wells, aqueducts, dams and an oasis. As it is obvious to all, desert living requires a water source that is usable for daily life. The ingenious ways that water from the mountains has been diverted and used has been around for centuries.
We next visited the Majorelle gardens which were begun by Majorelle and then bought and revived by Yves St Laurent. It is a maze of cacti in the middle section with a ring of bamboo and other heat tolerant plants around. There is a small museum of Berber artifacts as well. There is a very specific blue color, Majorelle blue, which is everywhere in the gardens. Basically it is a vibrant cobalt color.
We moved on to lunch in the edge of the Medina. It was a clay roasted chunk of lamb served with salt and cumin. It is to be eaten with fingers. Very delicious!
The afternoon was free. I tried another Hammam at the hotel. This time the water was gently poured over my head and my body. I guess everyone here is used to the scrub. I probably won’t do it again.
Our final evening together was a goodbye dinner in a beautiful old house that had been built by a French woman in the 1920s. We had cocktails in a side room and dinner in a beautiful dining room with 3 large tables. It was a great ending for all of us although I still have one more part of the trip left to go. It’s sad to be parting from new friends and Abdou who has been a fun and extremely knowledgeable trip leader.
The Adventures of Anne 