From Marrakesh to Todra

The road from Marrakesh over the Atlas mountains to Ouarzazate and the desert is nothing short of spectacular, from the flat plains of Marrakesh to the undulating green hills of a few miles east, to the stark mountain scenery of the passes, to the bright red earth of the hills around Ouarzazate and the contrast of bleak desert and green patches of oasis further on.

Unfortunately, God and my own retardation conspired to prevent me from getting more pictures of this journey.

On the way there, I didn’t realize until after crossing the mountains that my new Lumix camera (which my brother brought for me when I picked him up in Casablanca a few days earlier, since my previous one was stolen in India) was accidentally set on Macro. Note to self: Macro setting takes horrendous landscape shots. And then the battery ran out, because I’d forgotten to recharge it the night before.

I figured I’d get another opportunity on the way back, but then the unthinkable happened: a deluge of a rainstorm on that day, making the entire day almost impossible for photography. The last couple images are the only ones I managed between lulls in the storm after re-crossing the mountains. Ah well, next time.

The 3rd – 7th images are from Telouet, what used to be an important stopping/taxing point for caravans right before crossing the Atlas towards Marrakesh.

And take a look at the middle and right pictures on the 4th row. They look like totally different places (one has a town with lush greenery in the middle, the other a lone building and desolate desert), yet I took them from exactly the same spot…with a little fill in the middle the two would be a panorama.