34. Ben Guerir to Settat

Today was a tough, tough day!! 

In a word…..wind!! 20/25/30kmh wind all day…on the nose!….with 50kmh gusts…turning a comfortable ride into a slog!!

Barely 100km…and all batteries exhausted…..and both bodies exhausted…..when we finished.

We were thankful to have had breakfast at our hotel this morning…so we both had a bit more than usual in the tank!

It was just relentless. Tiring…and tiresome….but thankfully the road was not quite as straight and flat as yesterday…..

…as we passed some interesting landscapes…

….and small towns….

And there were some memorable moments en route….

And here….was a classic: we see crowds of schoolkids on a daily basis, always with a wave or a passing high-five….but the girls just get into giggles when they see Iain…particularly in his wife-beater!! A number of groups of girls had done a couple of walk-bys…giggling and pointing…and then these two came up…and asked for their photo with the hunk!! Haha! Whatever might their mother say!? What might Iain’s mother say!?

And then a pair of lads did the same!! So maybe it is just the exoticism which is the attraction…not the body!! (…but then…..I do not get the same attention!).

A bit of light relief to relieve a hard day!

We had not been able to find accommodation in Settat…so were going to wing it with local hotels. All with slightly better reviews than all those at El Kelaa!! But it is graduation day in Settat! And everything is full!! But the delightful hostess at Hotel Targa took pity on us…and showed is a room which she was not letting out due to a sewer smell problem! But it was not really that bad…and beggars cannot be chosers!! We took it! One room!! Alas…poor Iain….sharing with his Dad! (….apparently the snoring was kept well under control..and he slept ok!)

So to find beer. And we could find no-one who knew where that place might be! We walked around for nearly an hour and a half…chasing Google rainbows of promises of a bar all of which did not serve alcohol!

And then a guy at another hotel…told us to go and find Houseclub! 

We tried…and failed…and then just jumped in a taxi…the driver of which thankfully understood the word and knew the place….just a gate in a blank wall when we arrived…!

And here it is! Very weird! And completely deserted but for us…

We were welcomed with open arms…and one very full beer fridge! We deserved a few after today’s ride! 

And then back to our palace……for an unusual bit of cohabitation!!

PS…..Corey is back in NZ (poor thing!)…and was greeted on his return with this on his desk!

Very touching!! Haha. I think they missed him!!