England to Morocco by motorcycle

	Day 1 - Day 4.. The first stop on my travels was to attend my son's wedding in Devon. We all had a great time and I was very proud to see my son getting married to his new wife Lisa. My daughter, Vicky is the bridesmaid on the left. Her cousin Bethany is on the right. I visited some old friends down there and hired a truck to move my son's stuff to his new home. Distance so far.. 400 miles.
	Day 5 - Day 6.. I packed up all my stuff on the motor-cycle - a 12 year old BMW 1000cc K100 . It is designed for long tours and is very comfortable. Lets hope it can go the distance. I travelled through France in freezing fog which wasn't too much fun, But by the time I had passed Bordeaux the weather had brightened up. Distance so far.. 1036 miles.
	Day 7.. All went well until I reached Santander in Northern Spain . At that point I noticed black smoke coming from under the fuel tank. Some electrical wiring had shorted on the the framework and was starting to burn the insulation. I stopped and removed the fuel tank, took out the burned wiring and made a repair to the circuit . Apart from not having heated twistgrip handles in the cold weather , I was OK to carry on. Let's hope that is the last problem. By that night I had travelled south over the Spanish sierras to Salamanca. Distance so far.. 1443 miles.
	Day 8..I carried on south until the Mediterranean was in sight . I was aiming to catch the noon ferry from Algeciras to Tangier. Distance so far.. 1838 miles.
	Day 8.. My first glimpse of Tangier from the ferry. It is a lively bustling place with lots of interesting things to see. The older Arab Muslim side of town and the more modern French part are two contrasting areas. The Old Medina and Market can be a bit intimidating and very tiresome with men always wanting get money off you by one means or another. A tourist not already accompanied by an Arab 'guide' gets very little peace to wander alone.
	Day 8..I found a secure place to park the bike for a couple of days and was directed to a hotel in the old part of town.The Hotel Mamora - It was comfortable , but basic . At 3pm I went into town to explore .
	Day 9.. Berber women in their distinctive hats come into town most days to sell their produce and crafts at the local souk (market)
	Day 9.. Muslims are not allowed to drink alcohol and so a traditional way for men to spend the evening is like this , in a small room above a cafe smoking hash and drinking mint tea. It was a very entertaining evening. The women don't usually frequent cafe's , but gather at home to chat.
	Day 9.. At 1am I was woken in my hotel bedroom by the call of the muezzin. They are the men who shout from the minerettes to call the Muslims to prayer. It is all done by loud speakers nowadays , which are attached to the minerettes. I was only about 20 yards away , so I got the full volume of the calls . It happened several times during the night! Distance so far.. 1898 miles.
On to 2nd Morrocco page
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