Today was a day that began with anticipated excitement, moved into frustration and angst and then ended in bliss.

We set off from Tangier towards Chefchaouen, the blue city. This place was on our bucket list so we were looking forward to today. We wound our way up into the Rif Mountains, passing many donkeys, mules, field workers and giant birds’ nests on the way. The nests are built by white storks and appear on top of mobile phone towers, minarets and the roofs of houses right across Morocco. They build giant communal-looking nests that can reach 1–2 metres across and weigh hundreds of kilos. These nests are reused and expanded every year, which is why they become enormous. We even saw one on top of a McDonalds sign!

We reached Chefchaouen and then the fun began. Apparently, our driver had never been here before, a fact that he failed to mention until we had been driving around in circles for over an hour. He parked in a carpark on top of the mountain and rang the hotel. He then told us we’d have to lug our luggage down dirt tracks to our hotel, since there was no way of driving there. We refused and he drove back down the mountain to find somewhere for the hotel to pick up our bags. We drove around in circles, being stopped and re-directed by police officers until he finally found a place to park. He told us to exit the van and wait for the hotel staff and then he took off. We stood on the footpath with no idea what to do next. A tiny, clapped-out van parked in front of us with bald tyres and I approached the driver, thinking maybe that was the hotel ride. He started chatting away in Arabic, so I took it he wasn’t.

Eventually our driver turned up on foot and told us to wait for the hotel staff so that they could guide us to the hotel. We were sick of waiting, so I fired up Google Maps and we took off on our own. We wound up steps and roads until we reached the old medina. This is where the magic began. The medina in Chefchaouen is beautiful; the buildings and streets painted in all different shades of bright blue. We stopped and took a few pics en route to our hotel.

When we reached our hotel, we were in for a lovely surprise. It was a beautiful, old Moroccan building. The rooms were stunning.

As compensation for their extreme disorganisation, the tour company organised a local guide to show us around Chefchaouen. Youssef arrived and started taking us through the winding, blue laneways. He was a wonderful guide who gave us lots of interesting information about the city and the Muslim faith, which is very prevalent in Morocco.

We dodged tik-tokkers doing their usual hair-flicking catwalk impersonations down the blue laneways. Our girls even got in on the action, although Caitlynne pointed out that in one of the photos it looks like she’s cracking one off.

Lidia tried to setup a photo of us staggered up the steps of a laneway, but Ian wasn’t listening and sat front and centre amongst much yelling and laughing. The photo was a gem and said it all about our group dynamic.

Youssef took us to a local bakery, where massive trays of all sorts of cakes were laid out, covered in hundreds of bees. The cakes were delicious and we sampled a few. Rob bought some cakes and then when he unwrapped one a bee came flying out.

We said goodbye to Youssef and then went to a local restaurant to enjoy yet another Moroccan meal. I’ve had tagine for lunch and dinner every day so far and they are delicious.

The next morning after breakfast we hiked back down the mountain to our driver, who set off towards our next stop: Fez.

On the way, Lahcine stopped behind a tractor at a roundabout. When the tractor took off, Lahcine followed. He was immediately pulled over by a police officer. The cop claimed that Lahcine didn’t stop at the roundabout and he was going to fine him 410 dirham (about $62 AUD). He went back to his car to write out the fine and Lahcine left our van in the middle of the roundabout and got out to talk to the officer. He came back a minute later and started to drive off. When we questioned him, he explained that he had given the cop 60 dirham as a bribe ($9 AUD). Apparently this happens all the time: A cop will pull you over, invent some infringement and take a bribe to forget about it. A couple of hours later we were pulled over again, but not for an infringement. The cop needed change for a 100 dirham note! Obviously making change for bribes!

Our next stop was the ancient Roman city of Volubilis. This city dates back to the 3^rd century BC and was a major trading hub for the Romans. Some of the mosaics and columns were still in fantastic condition.

After a short stop and lunch in the city of Meknes, we arrived in Fez. This city was the capital of Morocco for over 8 centuries. Our hotel was again located in a pedestrian area, however the porter met our van this time and we followed him through the maze of narrow laneways to our hotel. This hotel was the most beautiful yet. It was built using several Moroccan riads, with tiled archways between them. Each riad was a tiled courtyard with a fountain in the centre, surrounded by three levels of rooms looking over the central courtyard. Sumptuous couches lay throughout and we started by enjoying another Moroccan mint tea before being shown to our beautiful, traditional rooms.

The best thing about this hotel: it was the first hotel to serve alcohol! We all quickly made our way to the rooftop bar and ordered our drinks. The only issue was that, for some reason, it took about half an hour for the drinks to arrive. I think this is their way of ensuring nobody gets drunk. You only have time for 2 small beers before dinner!

After this, a few of us decided to wander out for some dinner. We found a small shawarma place on Google maps and headed out. We found the place ok and the shawarmas were delicious. When it came time to return, Google maps had no clue. The narrow, winding laneways took us way off course, the arrow on the map spinning in circles, until we ended up at a dead end, hopelessly lost. A young guy approached us and explained that this was a dead end and asked where we were going. We gave him the name of our hotel and he wound his way through the streets, taking us right to our door.

The next day we had a good look around Fez with a city tour, led by local guide Redda. He was a delightful guy and full of information about Morocco and its history. He took us to a famous city gate built for the king by the local artisans, a lookout with panoramic views across the city and a bustling market in a medina. This market, called Fes el Bali, is another maze of streets. Alive with noise and energy it was an assault to the senses, crowded with people and donkeys. Food, souvenirs and artisans working their craft. We saw metal workers, weavers and bladesmiths, who sharpened their knives by pumping one of their legs in a cycling motion to spin a huge, wheeled whetstone. Hard work!

We ended up at a tannery and the guide gave us each a few mint leaves, explaining that we would need them for the smell. We trudged up the three flights of steps to the rooftop for a birds eye view over the many tanning vats where they prepare and dye the leather. This tannery was established in the 10^th century and they still use completely natural chemicals, the workers standing in the vats in waist-deep solution, stomping and scrubbing. The leather is softened using pigeon crap and the smell is like nothing on this earth. Hence the mint. We were all crushing those leaves and sniffing like coke addicts with a head cold. All except Ian, who devised a foolproof method of stuffing the mint leaves up his nose. He reckoned this worked great until he had trouble retrieving a leaf from his nostril.

After descending into the shop and more bearable scents, Caitlynne decided she would like to purchase a leather jacket. She tried on a very stylish looking camel skin jacket and asked the price. The salesman told her the price and Linda shouted “Oh my God! That’s so cheap!” Probably not the most advisable way to start negotiating a price in a place where haggling is expected, so Dennis quickly ushered her away from the action. The salesman took Rob and Caitlynne into a separate room to conclude the negotiations. We knew Caitlynne had made the purchase when they came out: Caitlynne smiling happily and Rob looking like he was leaving a kidney behind.

That night we went out to a place called Restaurant Marrakesh for dinner. The owner called everyone “Habibi”, which means “my darling” in Arabic and refused to give anyone their menu until they danced with him. He was a real character and, paired with more magnificent Moroccan food, made the evening very enjoyable. When Ian and Rob ordered “Moroccan whisky”, which is actually mint tea, he bought out the teapot and poured the tea from a height, as they do here. He then invited both of them up to try this technique. Rob did really well, but Ian managed to pour tea everywhere and burnt his hand. We left happy and satiated: a perfect way to end our last night in Fez.