Diterbitake: 24.10.2019
On the ferry, an Italian cartoon channel was showing a series with three cats. Whenever they find something cool, they shout: Fantastico, MEOW MEOW MEOW! We decided to make this our holiday motto.
Now, in the High Atlas, every hill and every turn reveals a changing landscape: Fantastico, MEOW MEOW MEOW! The scenery is impressive, diverse, and overwhelming. The Berber villages are very aesthetic, and the green agricultural valleys (up to 2500m above sea level) provide delightful contrasts to the otherwise barren mountain world.
Here, everything is still done by hand. Women carry the harvest on their backs or with donkeys, and even on the field, you won't see any machines. They wash their laundry by hand in the river (it reminds me of Cinderella, where she washes the laundry in the river in winter, with the beautiful melody...that seems to be my only connection to hand washing, except maybe cleaning the essentials in the sink). Even at the campsite, the staff washes the bed linen by hand while there is a washing machine for the tourists.
Back to the High Atlas...we get lost, the road gets worse and worse until it is partially collapsed or blocked. At first, we still follow the few tracks through the riverbed until we decide to turn back. Fortunately, the new road, apparently built with Swiss help, is wonderful to drive on. But our off-road excitement is awakened, and the next day, it even snows, we dare to venture onto a trail that leads up to 2900m above sea level. It's definitely worth it, and we shout: Fantastico, MEOW MEOW MEOW!