I arrived in Morocco around 11pm on a Thursday night, hit the ATM for some Dinars and grabbed a classic diesel Mercedes taxi for the 45 minute ride to the house. Upon arriving, the house was dark and everybody passed out. It was cold in Morocco (low 50's at night and mid 60's to low 70's during the day), well cold for me. As soon as that sun went down I was wearing pants, 3 or 4 shirts, hoodie and beanie. The house didn't have heat, and we didn't get a fire going till halfway through the week, so I struggled a little, but survived and wasn't all the uncomfortable. I guess I've been spoiled here in Egypt with sun and warmth. As I write this on the 4th day in December, it's already in the 60's and is supposed to warm into the upper 70's. I'll take it.
My days in Morocco were spent doing exactly what I had planned on: surfing. I typically surfed twice a day either just up the beach from the villa, at the point or at Oued Cherrat. None of the spots were terribly crowded, but they definitely weren't empty. The water was fairly brown due to the big surf, and looked a lot like Ocean City, MD. A few days it cleaned up to a nice dark shade of green, but that pretty much meant the surf was small. Breakfast and lunch were usually served after I returned from a surf, and we'd either go out in town or eat at a local's house for dinner. The meals were good, but nothing incredible. Cous-cous, pastas, and some mixed meat/veggie meals. Being a Muslim country, we still couldn't get pork, and beer and wine were not the easiest to come by. Especially because it was a holiday week, leaving most shops closed. The pace of life was much slower than in Egypt, and traffic not nearly as crazy. The people seemed to be more laid-back and I didn't see as many full face-coverings as I do here in Cairo. The French influence was very strong, and my 'taxi-cab arabic' sounded much different than their dialect. The people at the camp were pretty cool. Met some decent Brits, a couple Scots and even the rare American. Massages and yoga classes could be purchased as-needed and I definitely took advantage of a few massages for all the golf balls in my back and aching arms from all the paddling. When we weren't surfing, we would throw the frisbee, lay around the garden, read, watch surf videos, listen to music and discuss surfing and world events. Whichever was more interesting at the time.
I was not happy to leave when the time came, I really hate being so far away from surf, but I love my new home and didn't mind getting back to my bed and the warmth of Maadi. I'd definitely go to Morocco again, but maybe check out the southern breaks for something different. Or maybe just tour the country. I've decided that my travel can either be only for surfing or for no surfing at all. I hate being in a place with waves and no way to surf them, so if I'm just going to explore, I try and pick places where I know I won't be tempted and can instead focus on other things. If there are waves around, there's very little else on my mind.