Day 188 – Ben Mansour to Kenitra

Day 188                                                             23rd January

 

28miles (Ben Mansour to Kenitra) Average speed 10.1mph Top speed  19mph

I have had the most amazing first week in Morocco. I’ve met some incredible people. From Anders of Sweden who has run 161 marathons and cycled between most of them to the most generous host Kamal who welcomed me into his family like a brother and treated me like a king when I most needed a roof over my head. A chance meeting has brought me some lifelong friends.

 

Awake at 7am with Younas and Aman begging me to stay. Younas cried again but he was OK by the time he went off to school. It was raining fairly heavily and Kamal also tried to persuade me not to go over brekkie. I said farewell to his mum and  dad, and his brothers came out to wave me off as I left at 10 in the rain.

It rained for the first hour or so and spray from lorries and holey roads were the only problems. I stopped at a roadside shop for water, next to a bridge under the motorway. The rain stopped and the sun came out and a man got me a chair and put it in the sun for me. Kids were sat around a fire which looked very tempting to my wet feet, but the sun did a good job of warming me up. I carried on along the same road and saw quite a few storks nesting and then the houses started to get bigger and more grand as I passed big farms.

Coming into Kenitra I stopped at a Shell garage to hose down the bike but there was no water, but the jetwash man came over and took me to use the jetwash. He did a good job and then I found a bank across the road. I looked around for a hotel and found the Ambassy Hotel, but even though I needed a shower after 6 days without one, 350 dirham was a bit steep. I carried on and found Hotel Commerce at 150 dirham, plus 10 for a warm shower, and a double and single bed with a sink ensuite was a much better deal.

I went for a walk and was surprised to see so many women in western clothes. I found a Carrefour and their alcohol department downstairs through an unmarked door, where they sold all sorts at about 3 times Spanish prices.

I decided to find a bar instead and went to Oran bar for Stork beer at 16 dirham a bottle and watched footy with the locals. The free tapas was a nice touch with boiled eggs, potatoes and chick peas.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Then I found the Atlas bar for the second half and had a few beers there too at the same price. Got one to take away for 1 dirham more, wrapped in paper, and a pulled beef roll with chips which I ate back at the room. Then out to a cafe for coffee and wifi and onto another bar to listen to a local singer and have a couple of beers. It was strange to see women out drinking in bars. The waitress was not there to attract the men but she was fairly good at serving beer.

 Hotel Commerce 160 dirham