Places we visited in Morocco : 3) Ait Mansour

Although we don’t plan step by step what we are going to do day by day during our vacations, we know at least the places we want to visit. The spirit is to relax and enjoy every moment and see what places the road offers to us without having the stress of arriving at a specific place, at a specific time because we have already booked the accommodation!

The road to the Gorges of Ait Mansour was splendid with its curves and landscapes. The red rocks as well as the villages with their houses well camouflaged in the desert colors made us feel as if we were in a cinematic scene. Looking at the picturesque landscape that this road offers, one would think that the traffic would be unbearable and that we would be bored. However, we drove for miles and miles without meeting another car. From time to time local cars and some tourists passed by.

At the entrance to the gorges, there was a sign welcoming us! Suddenly, the landscape changes. The big palm trees on both sides of the road make it seem even narrower and make you want to get out of the car for a walk, which we did at the first parking lot! As soon as we entered the village, signs offer local accommodation for those who would like to spend a night there. We kept wondering how the village is not crowded with visitors. During our walk, we met very few tourists who were also passing by! At the exit of the village, we found a small café where we waited for Stefan who had to return to bring the car.

Back on the road, the landscape became more and more fascinating. For Stefan, it was a good time to tell us how important his studies were. A moment of us holding a geography lesson which was occasionally interrupted by frequent stops to take pictures!

Little by little, the night began to fall when we arrived in the tiny village of Igmir. at the bottom of some other spectacular gorges. A sign indicated that there was one guesthouse, “Gîte des Amis”. Stefan went up the stairs with the girls to find the place and enquire about conditions, but the guesthouse was not open during low season. Village elders were having a chat by the side of the dry riverbed dividing the small village where we had parked the car and Stefan asked them about other options to spend the night. Mr. Halim confirmed that the guesthouse was closed and kindly invited him to spend the night at his house, on the only condition that we wait for him to finish the evening quietly in the company of his friends. I was very excited getting the news that we were going to spend the night at Mr. Halim’s place

While we were waiting for him, I started to check out the different items we would need for the night. Suddenly, a feeling of fear started to creep in: I was a bit reluctant to spend the night at Mr. Halim’s place. Although I too am a hospitable person, I must admit that there is a big difference between hosting 1 or 2 people and 6 people. Let me not go into details here about what it means if the guests have small children and I was not sure if Stefan had explained to him that we were six people. As I’d like to believe most men do, sometimes he doesn’t realize how important it is to offer all the details to avoid misunderstandings! Anyway, it didn’t matter whether he had told him or not, because he had accepted the invitation spontaneously. In any case, Stefan was in his element: he who had traveled a lot on his own in his twenties, he was now reliving his nostalgic moments where he was living human hospitality in all its authenticity. As for me, it took me a little time before I could realize how lucky we were to be able to live this very moment.

In the meantime, Mr. Halim was waving to us and inviting us to follow him! It was a nice surprise that we didn’t see coming at all! Mr. Halim’s hospitality reminded us of the true meaning of travel for us. That of traveling to learn about other cultures, to taste the way of life of a nation, to share values, to meet new people and to create memories that will be cherished forever!