More from Morocco: desert, city and surf

We rounded out our time in Morocco with a few stops and some very memorable moments. After we left Fès, we made our way to the Sahara Desert, where we stayed for one night. We slept in a tent, but I would describe it as glamping at its best, since we had a full bathroom inside. We woke up early in the morning for a sunrise camel ride, which a very peaceful way to see the desert. The stars were still out when we got up and we rode as the sky got lighter.

It’s an experience we won’t soon forget. We also tried sand boarding, which was really fun but also slightly terrifying since none of us actually snowboard. Some of us were more scared than others…

The scenery to and from the desert was beautiful and so different than anything we had ever seen. We went through mountains, valleys and saw an oasis. We saw tons of dates growing on palm trees, discovered fossils and saw ancient casbahs built into the mountains.

We spent a few days in Marrakech, where we stayed in a traditional Riad. Marrakech has a Medina similar to Fès, but there are tons of people on motorcycles driving through it, so we had to constantly be moving to the side to avoid getting run over. It has nice big, open squares, including one main one that has tons of street vendors and food stalls. Everything there was a bit much, especially for the kids, so we also spent some time outside the Medina in the Ville Nouvelle.

Still, Marrakech was very colourful and not as hot as Fès.

We then headed to the coast - back to the ocean. It has become everyone’s happy place, which is little wonder considering where we live. We discovered a small surf town called Sidi Kaouki with a very laid back vibe and a lovely beach.

We settled into a routine of doing homeschool and surfing. We made some home-cooked meals, did yoga on our rooftop terrace and went horseback riding.

We took a day trip to Essaouira, a lovely old city just 30 minutes away. It has a long beach, a big fishing port, a Medina and ramparts built along the ocean’s edge. It was breezy and has wider, more spacious streets, but also some lovely narrow walkways.

In Sidi Kaouki, we all had some really great surf days. It was hard to leave.

Possibly because the kids made friends with the local donkeys and stray cats. And the sunsets were hard to beat.