morocco

Moroccan dreams

Morocco, the land of light, in an under-served travel slogan for a majority of its tourists who visit this North African nation lining the Mediterranean and the Atlantic. It is more known for its cities such as Casablanca and Marrakech, which inspire visions of historical romance and spy-thriller-esque environs. But far in the interior of the country, lays a landscape with varied geology that would give even the US a run for its money. Fault lines that cris-cross the Atlas mountain have folded the landscape over like crumpled paper, pushing multiple layers that were hidden deep below high into the sky.

It is not a forgiving landscape. Wind-swept plains intersperse the lowlands between the ranges, with poor soil and arid conditions leaving very little room for sustenance. The blue line of the paved road that traverses this landscape carries the lifeblood to remote settlements that dot this region. And provided me with an opportunity to explore this remote hinterland of Morocco.

Atlas mountains
Morocco

The Medina

My heart goes out to the people of Morocco who have been affected by the terrible tragedy that occurred last week. During my travel there, I was struck by the kindness and hospitality, the richness of their history, and their way of life rooted in tradition. Walking around the medina was an experience where all my senses got overwhelmed: the fragrant smells of spices, the dine of the street hawkers, the colorful fabrics, carpets and leather goods and so much more. I can only imagine how terribly these places were impacted.

The people of Morocco are resilient. I hope they pull through this difficult time.

Marrakech
Morocco

Deserted Alleys

With travel now opening up generally, where are you planning to go next? What are your fondest travel memories?
I still fondly remember walking down narrow alleyways of the walled city in Chefchaouen where every door, walk, step and adornment was dunked in a rich blue color. After immersing myself in the hustle and bustle of a working medina during the day, I returned back early the following morning to capture the place in silence, where the only sounds were those of a barking dog and a crowing rooster.

Chefchaouen
Morocco

The Lone Monument

The landscape around me was a grand spectacle, towering red sandstone cliffs with a little dusting of snow rising from the dry desert landscape. Yet what the photo doesn't capture the communal culture of rural Morocco. Apart from the Bedouin herders, the villages and towns surrounded by a palm fringed desert are perhaps the only places of respite in the harsh landscape. And in these oases, you can find solace in the airy riads with a glass of ice-cold mint tea, and meet the community in the farmers markets that attract crowds for miles.

But the vast desert doesn't really give that away.

Dades Gorge
Morocco

Highway to the Danger Zone

I was revving up the engine of the tiny Hyundai up the inner edge of a sharp hair-pin bend, struggling to time the gear change just right so that I wouldn't lose momentum and stall on the steep ascent. This was my first solo road trip in a foriegn country with chaotic traffic in a car with manual transmission (aka a stick shift), and this location which looked intimidating from the air, was a place where I was pushed to the limits of my driving skills.

I had spotted this sinuous segment of tarmac years ago while scouting Google Earth for strange places on the planet. I had parked this location in my mind, not giving it a second thought until I was planning a trip to the very location, the Dades Gorge. The drive up to it had been fairly smooth, and apart from dealing with the unpredictable traffic, with pedestrians and animals using the road as their personal highway, wasn't too challenging.

But once the vertical walls of the canyon closed in, leaving no room for the road to straddle the fast flowing river, it was forced to climb up the red sandstone to higher grounds. And that was where I found myself on that fateful day. Thankfully, I pulled through, praying that my path downhill wouldn't be so nerve wracking.

When I did reach the top, I turned back to capture the scale of this deep scar on the earths surface, with the tiny remnant of human civilization winding through it.

Dades Gorge
Morocco

Life on the Dunes

The sand dunes of the Sahara desert represented a clash in anachronism: ancient nomadic Bedouin lifestyles adapted to modern living, the ship of the desert ferrying people alongside 4x4 zooming across the dunes, berber desert camps nestled side by side with modern hotels replete with pools and air-conditioning. It was, therefore, hard to capture the true essence of the desert that I had come to seek here. This scene was one such attempt at capturing that figment of a nomadic life.

Erg Chebbi

Morocco

Portals

The darvaza, or a doorway, signifies many things in many cultures, ranging from the metaphysical separation of the death from life, to the more mundane indoors from the outdoors. As a photographer, perhaps the appeal lies in its ability to frame the organic shapes and colors of the outdoor with a well-defined man-made structure.

I collated three such doorways from different parts of the world: the doorway of an outer portico for the Taj Mahal-inspired Bibi ka Maqbara in India, an arched window in the kasbah in Chefchaouen in Morocco, and the stone-hewed entrance of an old caravanserai on the Silk Road in Kyrgyzstan. Each are different, and yet, they share the intrinsic property that is common for a darvaza.

The High Atlas

The descent of winter onto the Pacific Northwest brings with it short gloomy days often accompanied by rain. This would have normally been the time to socialize indoors, but it is our duty to be responsible and reduce social interactions to slow down the spread of the pandemic gripping the nation. That, however, does not come without consequences.

To help ease the stress of the dark winters, I use my photography to escape to the furthest places I have photographed. This time around, I relived my memories from driving through the high Atlas mountains of Morocco. While spending a night in the rocky spine of Morocco, I found a vast windswept plain between Lac Islit and Tislit, two surreal bodies of water surrounded by snow-capped peaks.

Life is harsh in this area, and even the arrival of roads, motor vehicles, electricity, and the internet, have only slightly eased the difficulty of living here. Subsistence living with meager livestock still remains the predominant form of sustenance. Two donkeys from one such herd graze on the sparse vegetation in the high Atlas

Imilchil

Morocco