Today I want to talk to you about this mysterious train which I discovered existed a few days ago … I don’t know if you already know it but for me it was a real discovery.
The Oriental Desert Express is a privately chartered tourist train that covers the route between Oujda and Bouarfa. It runs along a little-used railway line near the Algerian border and was used in the 2015 film Specter. So does Agent 007 James Bond’s train really exist? Yes, but we will not have the pleasure of traveling in luxurious wagons like those in the film !! Which I honestly don’t mind. You can choose to travel in first class with air conditioning or second class with the windows opening.
In the northern part of Morocco is the imperial city of Fez, a true stronghold of the country’s culture and identity. Entering Fez (or Fes) you will feel like you have taken a dip in the past and you will breathe a medieval air: your senses will be lost in wonderful landscapes, particular sounds, rich scents and many colors. Fez is divided into the New City (Fès el-Jedid), that is the imperial city built starting from 1200, where the station, the Royal Palace and the Jewish quarter are located, and the Medina (Fès el-Bali), the oldest walled part of Fes, a real labyrinth of narrow streets, with markets of all kinds, from carpets to brass objects, ceramics to fabrics and leather. The city, founded as the capital of the Idrisid dynasty between 789 and 808, is home to the oldest university in the world and reached its heyday between 1200 and 1300 when it ousted Marrakech from the role of capital of Morocco.
Ifrane was built in the 1930s by the French, who deliberately wanted to recreate the same atmosphere of an Alpine resort. Its clean air, scrubbed streets, red-roofed houses, white winters, and being set high up in Atlas mountains, Ifrane is a go-to destination§ Set at an altitude of 1,650 metres, Ifrane charms never ceases to amaze its visitors with its calm waves of its lakes, and the waterfalls pouring cold waters into the valleys. It is beautifully surrounded by the largest cedar forest in the world, with its picturesque green trees on the Middle Atlas Mountains slopes. Its lake studded-parks gives its visitors a taste of an unexpected atmosphere, where its enjoyable to stroll. A rich and varied fauna decorate the most beautiful hiking trails. Diverse bird and monkey species inhabit its park : A Barbary macaque will amuse you, while you’ll get to see also the Barbary deer watching you a few meters away.
The Mauritanian capital, founded in the 3rd century B.C., became an important outpost of the Roman Empire and was graced with many fine buildings. Extensive remains of these survive in the archaeological site, located in a fertile agricultural area. Volubilis was later briefly to become the capital of Idris I, founder of the Idrisid dynasty, who is buried at nearby Moulay Idris. Volubilis contains essentially Roman vestiges of a fortified municipium built on a commanding site at the foot of the Jebel Zerhoun. Covering an area of 42 hectares, it is of outstanding importance demonstrating urban development and Romanisation at the frontiers of the Roman Empire and the graphic illustration of the interface between the Roman and indigenous cultures. Because of its isolation and the fact that it had not been occupied for nearly a thousand years, it presents an important level of authenticity. It is one of the richest sites of this period in North Africa, not only for its ruins but also for the great wealth of its epigraphic evidence.
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