The Blue Pearl of Morocco

11.03.23 Quezzane - Chefchaouen Today we only have 70 kilometers ahead of us to our last stop before returning to Tangier: Chefchaouen, the blue city. As the saying goes, the best comes last, which everyone knows since the movie with Jack Nicholson and Morgan Freeman in 2007. For me, Chefchaouen is definitely a worthy conclusion to our Morocco adventure.

As a true Bavarian, blue must be one of my favorite colors, and it is. That's why I was really excited to visit the city, which has the exact same population of 45,000 as my hometown Straubing. I'm currently about 2,500 kilometers away from there, but on the way here, there were moments when it seemed easier to reach Straubing than our destination today. Especially the last few kilometers were challenging. Chefchaouen is nestled in the mountains and hills of the Rif Mountains. I believe there is no street in this city that does not lead uphill or downhill - at an angle of 45 degrees. At least! I crawled up some slopes in first gear only to lose at least a centimeter of tire tread.

But even if I had arrived here on steel rims, it would have been worth it. I already knew that on the approach when the city spread out below us in its white and blue colors, as if poured into this hilly landscape. We were then very lucky to find space for our ten motorhomes on the campsite, which is located above the city and offers a magnificent panoramic view.

And we men were even luckier that the women exerted all their strength against the rising shopping lust, to at least give us a short break. But at 3 p.m., their endurance was over and we started the descent into the Medina. That was not without danger, because the path led down steep stairs made of large, untreated stones. Over the decades, they have become worn and are now extremely slippery.

We made it safely and finally immersed ourselves in a sea of white, blue and colorful shops and souvenir shops. Chefchaouen was considered a sacred city for centuries, forbidden to foreigners under the threat of death penalty. This has ensured that the medieval architecture and structure have been preserved. The many small alleys in their blue color - which is said to protect against the evil eye - are an attraction that attracts tens of thousands of visitors to "The Blue Pearl of Morocco" every year. In 2019, it even ranked ninth in the competition "Beautiful Streets and Alleys in the World".

Tomorrow we will immerse ourselves once again in this labyrinth of colors, scents and sounds, and let ourselves be enchanted for the last time by this African country under the sunny blue sky and almost 30 degrees.