Day 6: The Oasis

So, we stand, transfixed by the view of the Oasis in front of us and stretching into the distance in either direction, while ahead of us, rocky desert headlands loom up like the Badlands in a Hollywood western. We now realise we are the only guests in this palatial, amazing building, which is too close to the desert for an overnight stop between Fes and the desert and hidden from anyone passing by on the main road. We don't complain. Delicious breakfast is taken on the terrace and the cold and damp of Chefchaouen is a distant memory.

After breakfast, we stroll through the neighbouring village enjoying the usual greeting of 'Bonjour' from the children, although adults are too busy getting the crops in or washing clothes to take any notice of us. Into the oasis, tall palms, fields of crops, women riding unladen donkeys in one direction and returning with huge bundles of animal feed, dried branches for the bread ovens and crops for the evening dinner. We wander with no particular place to go, turning left or right depending on how interesting each alternative appears.

A brief rest back at the hotel, then we head in the opposite direction through another village, past noisy school and quiet houses, returning once again through the lush, magical oasis.