From Chefchauen, take the R419 and the zig zag road through mountains and valleys. Portions of good tar gradually turn into rupiste. Shortly before the town of Tabouda, we turn west on a mini road and cross the Berber market of Kalaat Bouqorra. We take the P4104 and P4573 which will take us to the El Wadha dam. We are in the Rif region which is famous for its production of hashish. Crossing a small bridge, you enter a valley where cannabis fields are scattered between wheat, oats and barley. / We are welcomed by Touhami the owner, Fatima and Omar and we will spend the rest of the afternoon chatting in this new eco-lodge built in front of the family home and offering a magnificent 360° view. At the end of the afternoon, we leave with all the smala to go swimming in the famous lake of the Al Wahda dam. The trail to the lake is beautiful and the water ultra refreshing. If you are around, do not hesitate to visit Touhami and stay at La Belle Etoile. You will leave for sure, with stars in your eyes. The next day is the departure, we set off again towards the south to discover our first experience of Workaway in Morocco. But all that is another story.
On the R419 and the zigzag route through the mountains and valleys.
The portions of good goudrons turn little by little into roue-piste not très agréable
The car must always aim for the good portions.
Then, a few kilometers later, this ruined route turns into a veritable piste.
And it's a pleasure to slalom between the clean pools at an average of 36 km/h.
Bon, petit point sur la situation, on roulait et il y a une araignée mais genre bien mastoc. I'm not sure what you mean.
Who's there and so Nathan goes after her.
She's dead!
A little before the town of Tabouda, on a bifurcation to the west on a mini route
and cross the Berber market of Calat Bukola.
The attraction of the souk is clear, the greetings and encouragements give us a big smile.
We'll meet again later on the P4104 and P4573 which will take us to the barrage of El Ouada.
It's in the Rif region, famous for its hashish production.
We enter a valley where cannabis fields are scattered between wheat, barley and wine.
It gives a nice patchwork of color and a good ambience smell.
But we're not gonna sit here with our cameras.
I'm looking for a house I saw on the net but that doesn't have a precise address.
I tried calling him but he spoke Arabic and the line didn't stop.
We scrutinize with our four eyes wide open in order to find this building.
And after a long moment, we notice on top of a hill a building that looks like it.
On alors d'arriver au sommet en empruntant des petites pistes (on the way to the summit by taking the small pistes)
But every time it's a failure and we have to make a comeback.
We tried to ask around but no one spoke French or English.
We keep on a track and morale starts to drop.
We're wasting our time and we're really paumé in the middle of nowhere.
We're a little confused, there's no exact address of everything so that's why we're on this route.
We're really on a track where we don't know too much about what's out there and it makes me want to go see.
What do you want to see?
I'll go see anyway, just see if it joins the route.
And so there we come a little to this cul-de-sac and on se genre there it is more possible.
But I'm going to go see if it joins the main road.
I'm not going to have to re-write the whole thing.
But there I saw someone who is actually at the place where we would like to sleep.
It's incredible!
Bref, happy ending.
On being received by Thouamy, le Proprio, Fatima et Omar
And we'll spend the rest of the afternoon discussing in this new ecodge built in front of the family house.
and offering a magnificent 360-degree view.
We are so under the charm that we decide to spend a little more time in this little paradise.
Music
And well, as you begin to know us, we become friends with Thouamy and his family
And as the days passed, we felt closer to them.
We'll start with a full tour of his property.
Direct from the tree.
And on with a ballad in the village.
There's a vent, there's a vent!
Our last day at the Belle Étoile is magnificent.
He starts at 8 o'clock tapping with the delivery of a stock of fresh figs from the garden.
A déguster avec la vue, it is always a combo parfait.
On enchaîne avec une belle ballade dans les villages des alentours. We are going to see the whole thing.
We'll spend a moment to advance on our video projects
I'm going to take a few breaks with Youssef, the youngest of the fraternity, for some rackets.
In the afternoon I'm off with all the money to go swimming at the famous lake of the Ouada dam.
Go to the lake, make a dip, you're too happy!
It's a party!
The track to the lake is magnificent and the water is ultra-refreshing.
Yes, I forgot to mention that it's been two days since we hit 38 degrees in temperature max.
It was more than primordial.
Bref, magnifique fin d'après-m' avec cette famille. I'm going to have a great time with you.
And accompanied once more by Mar et de Saïd, our neighbour of the room.
On the return, on cruise for the third time of the day a man who speaks Arabic to us
And he wants to invite us to follow him everywhere.
This time, we accept and on boira an jus d'orange pressé sur la place centrale du village
The amused and curious look of children playing with their feet in front of us.
We will end this last evening with an endiabled game of parches, le jeu national.
Thank you friends for this unforgettable day.
If you're from around there, don't hesitate to visit Touami and stay at la belle étoile.
You'll be back with stars in your eyes.
The day after tomorrow, it's le départ.
We're heading south to discover our first experience working in Morocco.
But that's another story.
Subtitles by the community of Amara.org