A day filled with so much movement began the total opposite. I found myself struggling to get out of bed and confront the bitter coldness of our room. A night in the mountains with not enough firewood or blankets resulted in a very slow moving morning as I tried to adjust to my cold surroundings. With a blanket wrapped around me, I sat down to breakfast and felt grateful for the steady flow of mint tea that I’ve come to look forward to in Morocco.
Helena and I were eagerly awaiting our day of hiking following our trail recommendation brought forth from our hitchhiking the previous evening. But first, we needed to switch our accommodation to the guesthouse next door. We only booked one night here, not knowing how much we’d love Imlil and would want to extend our stay. We were of course met with more mint tea and cookies upon our check-in of the new accommodation. We were very pleased to see there was a heater in our room :) though, no fireplaces and not as cozy. But, we would later see just how much hospitality this new accommodation brought to us.
By the time we started hiking, the day had warmed up considerably and the sun was shining bright. The weather couldn’t be more perfect, blue skies, maybe 65 and sunny with a slight crispness in the air. We walked through a clear path surrounded by pine trees and observed how the ground turned more rocky as we emerged above the tree line. To our right, we looked down at the town of Imlil getting smaller, positioned amongst big red/brown mountains. Ahead of us stood the snow topped 13,671 foot peak of Mount Toubkal, the tallest peak in North Africa. We took a break once we found a nice spot where we had a Panoramic view of all sides. I hope I never forget the feeling of eating my orange up here. Although there are probably 20 other fruits I’d rank above oranges on my list of favorite fruits, as I sat here and bit into this orange, I had the feeling that’s what all other oranges are supposed to taste like. Maybe it was my appetite growing from the hike, or maybe Moroccan oranges are really just that good. My bet is on the latter.
The smells of our hike, sheep and goats, accompanied us as we made our descent into a small Berber village called Aroumd. A small village of around 1500, mostly comprised of homes, we were excited to find a guesthouse that served food. At this point in the trip, we found that there isn’t much variety in food here- it is common to eat tajine or couscous every day. So when we found they were serving a berber omelette (essentially just an omelette with vegetables), we were thrilled. On the terrace we sat with the warm sun beating down on us. There we were yet again drinking more mint tea, petting a soft cat, and looking out at a beautiful view of the surrounding mountains that we had just hiked. We devoured our omelette, and talked about how refreshing it felt to move our bodies and be surrounded by nature again. Feeling so small juxtaposed against the expansive mountains, I took a deep breath and smiled to myself with a warm feeling that these were the moments that I quit my job for. 😊
As we walked back to Imlil, we passed by a few small villages. At one point, there was a rug shop and we wandered in out of curiosity for their art. The typical Berber rug, made by Moroccan Berber women, has a signature look to it, but each rug is made with a different combination of symbols. We were taught that these symbols are only understood by Berber women, and it’s akin to a language. Examples of some symbols are one for if the woman making the rug is married or not, and another symbol represents the cycle of life with ups and downs. We touched the carpets, smelling the wool they were made from, as we listened to the traditions and history behind them. We left loving and appreciating their beauty. Spoiler: I came back the next day and bought some after Jovan’s encouragement. Bad influence for my wallet! But more great additions for our future home that we hope to fill with many meaningful items from our travels :)
Feeling tired but fulfilled from a long day of walking, we got another hitchhiked ride up the steep hill to our accommodation. This time, a father and son that lived up the hill picked us up. The son happened to be a local hiking guide, and gave us a recommendation for the next day. This experience reinforced the feeling of kindness and local warmth that we’ve been feeling on our trip, especially in Imlil.
Speaking of local warmth, our guesthouse family member joined us for dinner. He so openly and pridefully wanted to share the culture with us, showing us the typical wedding dress attire and putting on a YouTube video of a local tradition. We both found it beautiful how much happiness it brought for him to share this with us. Everyone was so careful to make sure we were happy and that everything was good. We were feeling like Imlil was our favorite place in Morocco so far, and were looking forward to our next day. The next day consisted of another beautiful and long hike, and another great dinner at our guesthouse. The photos of this hike on day 2 speak more to its beauty than I can.
As much as we love Imlil, we’re off to our next destination 1.5 hours away in Ourika.
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