Amsterdam - the second Copenhagen

After Morocco I went to Amsterdam for three days. It was such a relief to go there because even though I had never been before it felt almost just like Copenhagen! The city was full of canals, tall, narrow buildings, and bicycles were everywhere! I even met several Danes there. My second night in the hostel I woke up in a room with five tall, blonde boys. They started talking and I knew that they were Danish; even though Danish is a strange language it is still nice to hear, especially after being away from it for three weeks.

I went to Amsterdam to meet a friend from the Netherlands who had been on an exchange in Canada last semester. It was fun to meet up with her again since it was December since we had last seen each other. I was her English Conversation Leader in Canada so it was fun to meet with her not in a class setting.

Me and two girls who I met in Amsterdam in a giant clog

Amsterdam is an expensive city, especially after coming from Spain and Morocco. It got me prepared to go back to Copenhagen, which is more expensive than Amsterdam. Most museums cost around 8 to 14 euros. By this time in my trip I was just about done with museums so while some of my new friends went to museums for the day, I wandered the streets and found a free local art exhibition which I enjoyed a lot more.

Holland played Japan in the World Cup while I was in Amsterdam. It was great to see the streets filled with footballs and orange balloons, and everyone was wearing orange. I went to a pub to watch the match, which Holland ended up winning. It was perfect timing to be there to experience the celebration of the win! I am really glad that I am in Europe during the World Cup! In Canada we don't really pay too much attention to it because we never make it to the World Cup, but everywhere in Europe it is on the tvs and people are talking about it. Even in Morocco, it was on every tv.

The Dutch celebrating their victory

I Amsterdam

Berber whiskey and camel chocolate

After my wonderful two weeks in Spain I headed to Morocco for a week. This leg of my trip started poorly; my flight was delayed for four hours and so I didn't arrive in Tangier until 17.00. The good news is that I had only paid 9 euros for the flight, and because of the delay EasyJet gave us 4.50 euro food vouchers, so really I only paid 4.50 euro for a flight from Madrid to Tangier.

Sylvia and I caught the 17.30 bus from Tangier to Fez. I quickly learned that 17.30 really meant 18.30. The bus station was such a culture shock! There was men everywhere, and everyone was talking to everyone else; I have never seen such a busy place in my life. And being the blonde white girl I was stared at very intently which was also a shock. In Western culture, if you stare at someone and then they look at you, you quickly look away and pretend that you weren't staring in the first place. Not in Morocco. When I would look at people they would just stare back, smile, or think that it was an invitation and start talking to me. I was glad once the bus started to go, but even then we didn't leave the station. The bus driver was the most talk-a-tive man I have ever seen and he was constantly stopping and talking to passerbys; people also were jumping on and off the bus. And the bus picked up hitch-hikers. I discovered that hitch-hiking is a very common way to travel in Morocco!

After 7 hours and 500km we arrived in Fez, checked into our hostel and went to bed. The next day was interesting. We went to a lot of shops, met a turtle named Google, purchased a three-day desert tour, and got to see the tanneries. Fez is famous for their tanneries; they were not incredibly smelly, but still potent. This is because they use pigeon dung to help the colours stay, so next time you go to buy a beautiful leather purse just think that it is swimming in pigeon poop.

Google, with the popular mint-tea in the background

The tanneries in the forefront. In the background you can see the labrynth of Fez

Arabic is the main language in Morocco, but most of the citizens also speak French. This was a great opportunity for me to practice my French. On June 12 Sylvia and I, along with a boy from the UK Pete, met Hassani (our driver) at 7.30 and we left Fez. Hassani is a great guy. He is a Grand Taxi driver but he is very classy. He knows people everywhere we went and I could tell that he was well-liked and respected. He and I spoke French for the majority of the trip which I loved! And the trip was long; we started in Fez and drove through several cities, the Atlas mountains, the monkey forest, a huge river, several small villages and the sites where movies such as Prince of Persia and Troy were filmed. We stopped at a fruit stand on the side of the road and got to meet some children fishing in the stream who chased us with their fish. They were really cute but already at such a young age they knew to ask us for money which I found quite sad.

The Monkey Forrest

Atlas Mountains

Myself, Hassani, Pete, and Sylvia in front of the stream

At 18.00 we arrived at our destination: the desert. It was magnificent. Out of Sylvia, Pete, and myself I think that I was most smitten with the desert. I love it. Going to the desert was one of the best things I've done in my life and something that I will never forget. It was so serene and pure; there was no computers, no internet, no tv, no electronics (except for cell phones). At night the sky was so dark and the stars so bright and brilliant; I have never seen a night sky that beautiful.

Our hotel.

The men who worked at our "hotel" (it was made of mud and straw) were also incredible. Most were in their young 20s and they were so kind with a beautiful outlook on life. They took life day by day and had no worries; many were working and living in the desert and sent money home to their families. They could speak Arabic and Berber (the language of the nomad people), English, French, some Spanish, and in some cases German, Italian - almost any language. I find this incredible because many have never left Morocco, and have rarely left the desert! They were also amazing musicians who could play different drums, guitars, clappers, the flute, and sing Mama Africa. One of my favourite things was to sit and listen to them play and join in with the drumming a bit.

Mooha, our guide, leading Jimi Hendrix and me.

Our guide, Mooha, took Sylvia and myself, and three French people out by camelback. My camel's name was Jimi Hendrix, but I re-named him Jamel (the Arabic word for camel). The novelty of riding a camel wore off within the first few minutes - they are probably the most uncomfortable animal to ride. We rode the camels two hours into the desert until we were in (what felt like) the heart of the dunes. Us five tourists climbed to the top of a dune, only to realize that it was not the top and we were only half way there. We returned down and Mooha made us Berber whiskey and offered us camel chocolate. Mooha was a great guide, and very sarcastic! Berber whiskey is mint tea with a huge amount of sugar and is the traditional Moroccan drink which we had multiple times every day, and camel chocolate is camel poop which of course none of us ate.

In the middle of the dunes, two children and a woman with a baby on her back emerged. They live in the dunes all year round.

Our living quarters for the night.

Our camels surrounded by camel chocolate.

That night we all ate dinner together and played some drums under the stars and then slept in the tents that were pre-set up. The next day we were to the Black Desert on the Algerian border and met a nomad family who lived there. We helped water the donkeys, camels, goats, and fill water at the well. In the evening we ate cous-cous and I slept under the stars instead of inside the tent. Sleeping under the stars was amazing; I fell asleep with the stars staring down at me and woke up in the middle of the night and the stars were just as brilliant. I wish that every night I could see the stars like that.

Mooha helping the Berber woman fill the water jugs

In the morning Antoine and I woke up early and watched the sun-rise over the Algerian mountains. After sun-rise we rode our camels back to the hotel. Mooha let me lead the camels for a bit of the way which was great because I was very sore from riding Jamel for the last three days.

The caravan: Antione, Celine, Helene, Mooha, Sylvia, and myself (after a shower, change of clothes, and teeth bursh upon return from the desert).

I was really sad to leave the desert and all of my new friends there, but Sylvia and I had to continue on to Marrakech. We caught the bus from Riassani to Marrakech at 17.30 and arrived the next morning at 7am. All vehicles in Morocco go the speed limit because there are police with radars everywhere! This, along with stopping in all of the small cities, and picking up hitch hikers, makes the road longer than it should be.

The bus station was not as crazy as in Tangier but it was still quite busy.

Marrakech was beautiful; I liked it better than Fez. The people really tried to sell me things and push their crafts on me but I had learned from Fez how to deal with it. My French also served me well in Marrakech.

Life from a backpack

I don´t know how some people travel for months or years on end living only from their backpack! I have a 45L backpack and I definitely made the most of my space! Up until my last trip, I had not gone to any hot places and so I didn't know how to pack for Spain and Morocco. I brought shorts, dresses, skirts, flip flops, flats, two bathing suits, a beach towel, pants, sweaters, t-shirts, tank tops, long sleeve shirts...basically I fit almost my entire wardrobe into my 45L back pack. This was not the best idea I ever had, but now I have learned from my mistake!

I was just travelling for three and a half weeks; from May 28 until June 20 so I wanted to be sure that I did not forget anything. When I was packing, I did forget the fact that I have to carry my backpack everywhere, I have to get it onto the plane, and that I may want to buy souvenirs that will need to fit into my backpack.

My biggest problems was at the airport in Madrid when I flew from Madrid to Amsterdam with EasyJet. They made me put my purse into my backpack before they would let me get on the plane. I managed to shove it in okay and close my backpack, but then it was obviously oversized. I think that the check-in guy felt bad for me and so he just let me pass through.

It is tiring to live from one bag for such a long time. I returned back to Copenhagen yesterday and the first thing I did was empty my backpack and then went straight for the laundry room with all of my clothes. The thing about travelling is no matter how many times you shower, you never really feel clean. I did some laundry twice on my trip, but I still did not feel that clean because all of the clothes were shoved into my backpack and a little bit wrinkled. Now that I am back home I have showered, done my laundry, cut my nails, ate a good home cooked meal (thanks to my room mate, not me of course!), and slept in my own bed. I love seeing the world and travelling but it's always a good feeling to go back home.

On my bus ride from Amsterdam to Copenhagen I sat next to a Danish girl who had been studying for a year in Amsterdam and was returning home to her family in Denmark. Talking to her about going back to her family made me realize that I haven't been in Canada since December 31st, and since I have been gone travelling for 3.5 weeks I haven't even spoken to my family in about a month. I do consider Copenhagen my home, but it's just a temporary home. I am looking forward to going HOME to Canada; I think that by the time my flight roles around in August, I will be ready to go home home.

Spain, I love you!

So when I went to Italy I didn´t think that there was a place in Europe that I would like better! I was mistaken. I arrived in Barcelona on May 28 and fell in love with the city. I arrived with Sarah from Australia and Sylvia from Canada, and no place to stay due to the difficulty of finding a couchsurfing host here. We ended up staying in a hostel for our first night and I called a girl from CSing who had given me her number even though she was unable to host us. These two things ended up being some of the best things that could have possibly happened to me. Through the hostel we learned of a free walking tour, where we learned of a Spanish cooking class, and at both places we met a ton of fun and interesting travellers. Through Ana, the girl from CSing, we found our host for the remainder of our time in Barcelona, and we found a great friend.

Me, Ana, Sarah, and Sylvia eating our last meal together in Barcelona

Ana was truly amazing. A fiesty Spanish chica who showed us the city, introduced us to her friends, and also introduced us to Acroyoga. It combines acrobatics with yoga and massage and it is amazing! We did acroyoga everywhere - in her house, in the park, in front of the Magic fountain, and in the acroyoga class.

I fell so much in love with Barcelona that I extended my stay there by a day. It was definitely worth it; everything about the city is beautiful! Gaudí is the architect who has helped to shape and define the city through his magnificent parks, apartment buildings, and churches. Everyone that we met on the street was friendly and smiling. The beach wasn't great, but we nonetheless had some great times on the beach. The food was cheap and delicious. But alas, all good things must come to an end and so I left Barcelona and went to Tarragona.

On top of Gaudí's La Pedreras looking out on to La Sagrada Familia

Tarragona is a little city about 1 hour outside of Barcelona. It is famous for its beaches and Roman ruins. It was a great place and Sylvia and I enjoyed hours at the beach and walking through the quaint little streets. We parted ways with Sarah here as she had to go back to Copenhagen to finish exams.

The beach in Tarragona

After two days in Tarragona we took a night train to Granada. Originally we were planning on going to Valencia, but all Spanards and travellers that we met heavily recommended Granada above Valencia and so we found ourselves a host there and went. I am not disappointed that we made that decision. The city was beautiful!! It was over 40 degrees so I mainly stayed in the shade and ate lots of ice cream and smoothies. We went and saw La Alhambra, a famous Arabic palace. I have never seen anything like it! The walls were all carved with beautiful, intricate designs; it was so different from any of the Northern European palaces that I have ever seen.

Sylvia and I with Tom, our host in Madrid who we met in Granada, in front of La Alhambra

After three days in Granada Sylvia and I took the bus to Madrid which is where we have been for the past several days. Tomorrow we will be going to Morocco which is very exciting. I was able to get a little taste of what to expect in Morocco while in Granada and I know that I am going to love it! Will update when back in Copenhagen!!