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Scotsman
25 minutes ago
- Scotsman
Make for Marrakesh for a trip filled with wonder
A camel guide in the Sahara desert. PIC: G Adventures A trip to Marrakesh and the desert around the Atlas Mountains combines spectacular sights and hospitality, writes Jenny McBain. Sign up to our daily newsletter – Regular news stories and round-ups from around Scotland direct to your inbox Sign up Thank you for signing up! Did you know with a Digital Subscription to The Scotsman, you can get unlimited access to the website including our premium content, as well as benefiting from fewer ads, loyalty rewards and much more. Learn More Sorry, there seem to be some issues. Please try again later. Submitting... It was early January in 1987 when I originally went to Morocco. Pregnant with my first child and having just completed an acting stint in an arduous pantomime tour, the idea was to seek out some sunshine with a friend. We booked into basic accommodation in the coastal city of Agadir and found the warmth we sought. However, we decided that a little adventure was in order. So we boarded a public bus and made our way south to the Saharan city of Guelmim. We struck lucky when we were invited into the home of some locals. They lived in a mud hut, but for all that they lacked in material wealth by European standards, they were extremely generous and hospitable. We were served camel stew which was delicious and is classified as a healthy meat due to its low-fat content. One of the daughters of the house kindly painted my hands with henna, asking only in return for all that she and her family had given that I would send her sister a doll. She said, 'Do not forget the girl from Guelmim.' Advertisement Hide Ad Advertisement Hide Ad To my shame the child never did get that doll. In my defence I had a lot on my mind with impending single-parenthood at a young age. However, it is such sheer thoughtlessness that serves to undermine trust on the part of people whose countries have already been looted by bloody imperialists and shackled by colonialism or more exactly, in the case of Morocco, made a French Protectorate. Souvenirs on the Jamaa el Fna market in old Medina, Marrakesh, Morocco In 2010 my daughter, Natasha – she who was but a bump in the late Eighties – came with me, and we stayed in a luxurious riad in Marrakesh for 10 days, venturing out to stroll around the souks and soak up the sights and sounds of the main square, Jemaa el-Fna; a daily carnival of activity which never fails to entertain. A couple of months ago, I decided that it was time to go back to this wonderful North African country and I wanted to incorporate a bit of travel and adventure into my trip but with a degree of comfort. This is when I came across a company called G-Adventures. They offer small group tours, led by trained locals and with an ethos of giving back to host communities. It sounded good. So, I signed up for an eight-night holiday incorporating Marrakech and trip to the desert. Our group met in a central hotel in Marrakesh outwith the walls of the old city. We immediately boarded a Mercedes minibus and made our way south. Our guide was Ridouane who is of Berber extraction. A couple of corrections are in order. G-Adventures do not have guides as such. Rather, they have Chief Experience Officers or CEOs. Secondly the term Berber is considered by many to be pejorative. It was bestowed upon a noble and diverse population of people who are indigenous to Northern Africa and who were considered by the Romans to be less than civilised because they could not communicate in Latin with their uninvited guests, either by speech or in writing. It might be more accurate to say that Ridouane is an Amazigh. Fluent in his own language, as well as Arabic and English, he also has a good grasp of French, Russian and German. Advertisement Hide Ad Advertisement Hide Ad I had a particular interest in observing the modus operandi of our CEO. Having quit treading the boards a long ago and found that the world of legacy media has retracted somewhat brutally, I retrained as a tourist guide a few years ago. One of the things I learned is that guiding is a third each of entertainment, engagement, and education. From the outset Ridouane proved to be as professional and knowledgeable as he is kind and patient. Nothing was too much trouble and he never showed so much as a flicker of irritation even when we asked questions on topics he had already covered. All this was achieved during Ramadan when Muslims like him fast from sundown to sun-up. He maintained a light touch whereby the educational part of his delivery was made digestible seasoned as it with anecdotes, stories, and humour. The first stop on our way to camp in the desert was the city of Ouarzazate. This translates as 'the quiet place.' We stayed overnight in a pleasant hotel where we all had dinner together. The next morning, we made our way to the locally situated Atlas Studios. Here in the Atlas Mountains, there are over 300 days of sunshine a year. This along with local technical ability, acting talent and an uncanny knack of fashioning almost anything out of Styrofoam has made it the go-to- destination for such epics as The Last Emperor and The Mummy. Our small group of 12 had great fun making a Cleopatra video starring Finnish-born New Yorker, Anya who was one of our number. Advertisement Hide Ad Advertisement Hide Ad Later that afternoon we found ourselves walking across the desert, surrounded by undulating sand dunes edged with vegetation such as chamomile. It was hot but it only took two hours to reach our camp where we were served a sumptuous dinner and entertained by drummers who kept time around a flickering campfire. The highlight of the following day was a camel ride. Rather than eat the animal my job this time was to get on board and stay put. These creatures are extraordinarily well adapted to desert conditions. Two rows of eyelashes protect their eyes from the sand, their wide flat feet make short work of traversing uneven terrain, and they have three stomachs, the third of which is for water. The hump is for storing fat. This is how they earned their rightful reputation for being able to go for long periods of time without eating or drinking. These animals walk in a strange way with the two legs on either side making progress at any one time. In this landscape animals are held in high regard. There is a saying which loosely translates as; - 'you need a mule to get over the mountains, a camel to cross the desert and wife with whom to navigate life.' There were many truly special moments on this trip. The camaraderie amongst the group was notable and by the time some of us had experienced a group hammam or sauna, scrub, and massage back in Marrakesh we felt like we had little to hide. A food tour gave us insight into how the locals eat and we shopped for a fun and informative cooking class where we learned how to make tanjia. Basically, it is a casserole of beef on the bone, which is cooked in saffron, preserved lemons and spices and placed in a conical pot which is then buried in the ashes of a community oven overnight. As we walked through medieval alleyways clutching our creations, small children lit up in recognition that a truly special feast was in their midst, even if it was not to be theirs. Advertisement Hide Ad Advertisement Hide Ad My daughter Natasha turned out well. Degree educated she is now happily married with two children of her own. And I returned from my latest trip with a montage of memories. Thoughts of fresh food, colourfully presented, subtly spiced, and bursting with flavour, pique my appetite and inspire my cooking. The sight of wild, Barbary macaques close to the cascading waters of Ouzoud Falls was special too. Finally, though, it is encounters with warm-hearted Moroccans, like Ridouane, who make leaving home worthwhile. They are the ultimate ambassadors of their country. Much of the world beckons, waiting to be explored. But a fourth visit to Morocco is a distinct possibility.
Metro
4 hours ago
- Metro
Italian Oasis fans recreate iconic Manchester street Renaissance photo
No, the last time you saw the above photograph wasn't it hanging in the Renaissance section of the National Gallery in London. In 2016, photographer Joel Goodman captured a Manchester street strewn with drunk revellers on New Year's Eve. First appearing on the Manchester Evening News, the photo shows police wrestling a man in the foreground, crowds outside a Greggs and a man who looks ready to be drawn like a French girl with his belly half out. The snap went viral on social media, with users recreating it as a watercolour painting or using the man as their artistic muse. Others found it almost perfectly flowed with the golden ratio – a snail shell-shaped proportion frequently found in nature and paintings. A lot has changed in the nearly 10 years since the Well Street Renaissance photo was taken, but it doesn't seem anyone has forgotten about it. Mancunian Ross posted on Bluesky about how she was leaving the pub when she spotted 'young-ish people frolicking on a random side street'. 'They're all wearing black, have got their phones out and are in odd positions on the pavement and in the side street,' she said. 'They seem to be yelling directions at each other. After a second of observing, I realise. 'Are you all trying to recreate the accidental Renaissance picture?!' 'YES!!!'' The group of art lovers had travelled to Manchester from Italy to see Oasis perform in Heaton for Liam and Noel Gallagher's Live '25 Tour. Ross said she decided to help out the Adidas-clad fans recreate Goodman's photograph by pretending to be one of the officers. 'We got chatting and (although I had to admit my general neutrality towards Oasis) I was effusive about how much I love this city after over a decade of living here and that they should all visit again,' Ros added. 'It was so, so lovely. Supersonic! Molto bene!' And other Bluesky users agreed. 'Recreating the masterpiece,' said Daniel Savage, an artist. 'What a joyful thing in this miserable world.' More Trending Simon Smith, a journalist, added: 'This is one of the best artistic statements ever made by any Italians. Ever.' Goodman, the man behind the original photo, felt the same – and for a very important reason. 'You've got to love these Oasis fans travelling from Italy to celebrate Mancunian culture,' he told Metro. 'As artificial intelligence (AI) saps the humanity and diversity from the world's creative wonders, it warms my soul to see people celebrate their love for music and photographs that reflect real human experiences, only made possible because they were created by humans.' Get in touch with our news team by emailing us at webnews@ For more stories like this, check our news page. MORE: Berghaus drops iconic festival collection – including Liam Gallagher's legendary '97 jacket re-release MORE: Jack Grealish was slapped by Man Utd fan he called a 'little, ugly w**ker' MORE: Glastonbury headliner rocks out at Oasis gig despite Noel Gallagher beef
Leader Live
6 hours ago
- Leader Live
Ryanair asks passengers to act as flights cancelled in UK
The budget airline is calling on NATS CEO, Martin Rolfe to step down after staff shortages delayed 38 flights by up to an hour this week. Those delays impacted the travel of more than 7,000 UK passengers, Ryanair said. In a message to its passengers, the airline said: 'Ryanair has long campaigned for ATC reform to ensure that ATCs are fully staffed, but UK ATC delays are getting worse due to repeated NATS mismanagement and staff shortages. 'Ryanair calls on all passengers to visit the 'Air Traffic Control Ruined Your Flight' webpage and demand that Transport Minister, Heidi Alexander, sack Martin Rolfe and reform NATS's hopeless ATC service, so that airlines and passengers do not suffer further avoidable ATC delays at the hands of NATS's continued mismanagement and staff shortages.' NATS is the UK's leading provider of air traffic control services, providing assistance for both civilian and military aircraft in UK airspace and at several UK airports. ‼️ French Air Traffic Control strikes extended to 4 days (3-6 July) ‼️ ❌ further EU-wide delays ❌ thousands more passengers impacted Once again, we're calling on EU President @vonderleyen to urgently reform EU ATC services. Demand action👇 Ryanair's message comes days after fellow airline easyJet expressed their 'extreme unhappiness' with strikes by French air traffic control (ATC) workers. Tens of thousands of passengers were disrupted when French ATC staff walked out on July 3 and 4 in a dispute over working conditions. Flights to and from French airports, as well as those scheduled to fly over French airspace, were affected. Kenton Jarvis, chief executive of the Luton-based carrier, warned that the industrial action is presenting 'unacceptable challenges'. Mr Jarvis said: 'We are extremely unhappy with the strike action by the French ATC in early July, which as well as presenting unacceptable challenges for customers and crew also created unexpected and significant costs for all airlines.' He described the walkout in early July as 'very, very disruptive' as it forced it to cancel 660 flights and cost it £15 million. The UK Civil Aviation Authority (CAA) states that airlines must provide you with care and assistance if your flight is cancelled under UK law. This means they need to provide people with accommodation if they are re-routed to the next day, transport to and from the accommodation, a reasonable amount of food and drink (usually as vouchers) and a means for you to communicate (often by refunding the cost of your calls). The authority adds: "The airline must provide you with these items until it is able to fly you to your destination, no matter how long the delay lasts or what has caused it." If there is major disruption airlines are not always able to arrange care and assistance for all passengers. In those situations, the CAA recommends organising your own accommodation and transport and claiming the cost back later. They add: "If you end up paying for things yourself, keep every receipt and do not spend more than is reasonable. "Airlines are unlikely to refund you for things like luxury hotels or alcohol. Some will provide guidance on reasonable costs." Additionally, your airline must offer you the option to receive a refund for all parts of your ticket that you have not used or choose an alternative flight for.
