Mar 4, 2024 - Sahara Desert Sunrise, Todra Gorge and Ouarzazate

We got up before dawn this morning and rode camels to see sunrise. It was the highlight of this trip. It took us about 20 minutes to arrive to the spot for watching sunrise. We all got off the camels and climbed to the top of a sand dune waiting for the sunrise. Of course, we already started clicking our cameras and smart phones for the sand dunes. We did not have to wait for too long and spotted the sunrise. It was a magical moment for all of us. This definitely was the highlight of our trip.

Above, is a clip when we were waiting for the sunrise.

Then, we had another wonderful meal (breakfast) before we left the camp. Again riding the 4-wheel drive jeeps to meet our regular van driver. 

On the way to the next attraction, we stopped and admired the High Atlas Mountains and the Todra Gorges in distant. We had lunch at Auberge Restaurant.

Then, we drove by the Todra Gorge which is a series of limestone river canyons, or wadi, in the eastern part of the High Atlas Mountains in Morocco, near the town of Tinerhir. Both the River Todra and neighboring Dadès River are responsible for carving out these deep cliff-sided canyons, on their final 40 kilometers through the mountains.

Later, we drove over the rocky Atlas mountains to Quarzazate which is an ancient Berber Town on a hill used as a backdrop to Lawrence of Arabia, Ait Ben Haddou, and the Game of Thrones movie set. 

We checked into Hotel Berbere Palace which is a beautiful hotel with a lot of decorations and wonderful pool. Our dinner was in the hotel. Prior to dinner, we went to the hotel courtyard and took a lot of pictures.