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.

Mar 5, 2024 - Altas Movie Studio, Ait Benhaddou, then drove to Marrakech

After breakfast, we visited Atlas Film Studios which will give visitors the chance to see for yourself the movie sets where so many successful films and series have been shot, including Gladiator, Prince of Persia, Game of Thrones, remake of Aladdin, the Mummy and Kingdom of Heaven. During the guided visit, visitor will explore the backstage areas, hear inside anecdotes, and learn about the evolution in construction methods over time.

Altas Film Studios is one of the biggest film studio in the world and it is named after the vast mountain range that surrounds it. It was build in 1983 by Mohamed Belghmi and a huge amount of modern American desert-based movies have been shot here.

We had a local tour guide who also directed and shot a movie with us as the actors/actresses. It was interesting.

Then, we visited Aït Benhaddou which is a historic ighrem or ksar along the former caravan route between the Sahara and Marrakesh in Morocco. It is considered a great example of Moroccan earthen clay architecture and has been a UNESCO World Heritage Site since 1987.

There is a bridge to cross in order to climb up to the village. This historic village of Aït Benhaddou is still inhabited, but only by a few Berber families. We had a bad guide at this location and he led us half way of the top quickly and took us to a small shop to purchase souvenirs. After we did the purchase, he rushed us back down to the restaurant for lunch. We are going to give him some unfavorable reviews on Tripadvisor.

We had lunch at L Oasis Dor restaurant. Then we drove over winding hilly road cross the high mountain to reach Marrakech. Marrakesh, a former imperial city in western Morocco, is a major economic center and home to mosques, palaces and gardens. The medina is a densely packed, walled medieval city dating to the Berber Empire, with maze like alleys where thriving souks (marketplaces) sell traditional textiles, pottery and jewelry.

Mar 6, 2024 - Jardin Majorelle, Bahia Palace, El Base Palace and back to Casablanca

Our first stop was Jardin Majorelle which is also known as the Majorelle Garden or the Yves Saint Laurent (YSL) Garden. The Jardin Majorelle, which extends over 9,000 square meters, is one of the most enchanting and mysterious gardens in Morocco. Created over the course of forty years, it is enclosed by outer walls, and consists of a labyrinth of crisscrossing alleyways on different levels and boldly-coloured buildings that blend both Art Deco and Moorish influences. The French painter Jacques Majorelle conceived of this large and luxuriant garden as a sanctuary and botanical ‘laboratory’. In 1922, he began planting it with exotic botanical specimens from the far corners of the world.

In 1980, Yves Saint Laurent and Pierre Bergé, who first arrived in Morocco in 1966, purchased the Jardin Majorelle to save it from destruction at the hands of hotel developers. The new owners decided to live in Jacques Majorelle’s villa, which they renamed the Villa Oasis.Yves Saint-Laurent said “For many years, the Jardin Majorelle has provided me with an endless source of inspiration, and I have often dreamt of its unique colors.”

Jardin Majorelle has special shade of bold cobalt blue, inspired by the colored tiles he had seen around Marrakech and in Berber burn-houses, was used extensively in the garden and its buildings and is named after him, bleu Majorelle—Majorelle Blue. Prior to his death, Majorelle patented the colour which carries his name. 

We had wonderful free time here to take many photos.

Then, we rode horse carriages to the Tinsmiths Square for visiting the Bahia Palace and the El Base Palace.

Bahia Palace is built by Grand Vizier Si Moussa in the 1860s, the palace was later expanded and embellished from 1894 to 1900 by his son and successor Abu Bou Ahmed. The Cour d'Honneur (courtyard) was converted into a harem by Bou Ahmed after he became Grand Vizier in 1894. Indeed, the expansion and beautification of Bahia Palace was driven by Bou Ahmed's desire to accommodate his four wives and 24 concubines. When Morocco gained independence from France in 1956, the palace was used as a royal residence, until King Hassan II transferred it to the custody of the Moroccan Ministry of Culture, so the building could serve as a cultural icon and tourist attraction. Despite the vast area on show, only a portion of the palace’s eight hectares and 150 rooms is open to the public.

El Badi Palace was commissioned by the Saadian Sultan Ahmad el Mansour towards the end of the 16th century. Its Arabic name roughly translates as “the incomparable palace”. The palace took 25 years to complete and is thought to have included no fewer than 360 rooms. In addition, the complex included stables, dungeons and a courtyard with several pavilions and a vast central pool.

El Badi Palace was once a showcase of exquisite craftsmanship adorned with the most expensive materials of the era. From Sudanese gold to Italian Carrara marble, the palace was so spectacular that when the Saadi Dynasty eventually fell to the Alaouites, it took Moulay Ismail over a decade to strip El Badi of its treasures. Unwilling to allow el Mansour’s legacy to survive, the Alaouite Sultan reduced the palace to a ruin and used the looted goods to decorate his own palace at Meknes.

Visiting El Badi Palace today will need to use some imagination to recreate the complex’s former splendor. Instead of snowy marble columns and walls inlaid with onyx and ivory, the palace is now a sandstone shell. The pool is often empty, and the guards that would once have patrolled the ramparts have been replaced by the haphazard nests of European white storks.

It is still possible to feel the grandeur of the palace’s past in the courtyard, where four sunken orange orchards flank the central pool and ruins spread out in all directions. In one corner of the courtyard, it is possible to climb up on to the ramparts.

Then, we drove back to Casablanca and checked into Hyatt again. We had dinner at Cabestan Restaurant with ocean view through the windows next to our table. This was the last dinner in Morocco and we all had a great time.

Mar 7, 2024 - Left Morocco and flew to Barcelona, Spain

After breakfast we had a chance to wandering around the hotel and found a lot of memorable movie posts for the famous movie "Casablanca".

Then, we drove by the famous Rick’s Cafe for more photos.

Flight to Barcelona is provided by the only airline - Royal Air Maroc.

After we arrived Barcelona and checked into Hotel EXE Laietana Palace, we walked to a nearby restaurant "Taller de Tapas - Argenteria" for tapas. 

Mar 8, 2024 - Self touring Barcelona

We have planned to visit several of Antoni Gaudí’s buildings in the area. First, we took subway and walked to La Pedrera-Casa Milà which is one of Gaudl’s building, and was declared an UNESCO World Heritage site in 1984.

Then, we walked to Casa Batlló which is a building in the center of Barcelona. It was also designed by Antoni Gaudí, and is considered one of his masterpieces. This is a previously built house and was redesigned in 1904 by Gaudí. It has been refurbished several times after that.

Then, we visited Casa Calvet which is a building, designed by Antoni Gaudí for a textile manufacturer which served as both a commercial property and a residence.

Due to time constrain, we did not visit the inside, we just admired his wonderful designs from the outside.

Then, we walked to Plaça de Catalunya which is a large square in central Barcelona that is generally considered to be both its city centre and the place where the old city and the 19th century-built style meet. It is the north end starting point of the La Rambla.

Then, we walked to the Mercat de Sant Josep de la Boqueria, simply referred to as La Boqueria, which is a large public market in the Ciutat Vella district of Barcelona, and one of the city's foremost tourist landmarks, with an entrance from La Rambla. We had a very nice tapas lunch there.

After lunch we walked to Güell Palace which is a mansion designed by the architect Antoni Gaudí for the industrial tycoon Eusebi Güell, and was built between 1886 and 1888.

Later, we stroked along La Rambia to the Columbus Monument which is a 60 meters tall monument for Christopher Columbus at the lower end of La Rambla. It was constructed for the Exposición Universal de Barcelona in honor of Columbus' first voyage to the Americas. Unfortunately, there was maintaining work going on and it was very difficult to take photo with it as background.

Next on our planned itinerary was Port Cable Car. On the way, we wandered around the Port Vell and we spent some time there for photos.

It was a long walk to Port Cable Car. After we got there, several of our traveling companions decided to give up the cable car ride and went back to hotel. The iconic port cable car that cuts across the city's skyline to Montjuïc was about 20 minutes ride. It carried us over the city port and skyline, it allowed us to have a 360 degree view of the ocean, beech, port, and city from the top. It was a memorable experience. After we got to Montjuic, we had more opportunities to take photos with the whole skyline as background. It was an excellent and exciting experience.

In the evening we went to Rambla de Catalunya (recommended by Wendy) for tapas dinner. They were truly amazing. Everything we ordered (based on Wendy’s recommendation) was delicious. We took some photos as the following: 

Mar 9, 2024 - Barcelona, embarked Sun Princess

It was raining in the morning, therefore, we cancelled the original plan of visiting the Arc de Triomf. We took a taxi and got to the cruise terminal earlier to embark onto the Sun Princess. The embarking process was smooth without any issues.

Sun Princess is a new ship and this was it's 2nd voyage. Sun Princess is Princess' newest and biggest vessel, and the sole ship in the line's new Sphere Class of vessels; and the first in their fleet to be powered by Liquified Natural Gas (LNG).

 Once we got onto the ship, we noticed immediately that it has a giant Piazza with huge screen to show it's status. This Piazza screen can be changed to be the backdrop of any particular event happening in the Piazza. When we got on, it was a giant screen with Princess logo, ship name and the "Inaugural Season" status. We took many photos in front of it.

Then, we got lunch a the Eatery on Deck 9. We did some exploration of this new ship and got an early dinner at 6:30PM at the Horizon Dinning Room. Then, we went to see the Magical Bones show at Princess Arena Theater. Normally, Princess will have stage production show on the 1st night, it was a disappointment to see the one person magical show on the 1st night. In addition, the way the new theater's layout, they may not be able to do the stage production show. As far as I concern, it is going backward on the entertainment part.

Mar 10, 2024 - Dock at Palma de Mallorca; Did self walking touring of Palma

Palma de Mallorca, Spain was our first cruise stop. We did self touring of Palma. Due to the docking location (far from town center), we took the shuttle provided by Princess to town center. The main attraction in Palma is the Catedral-Basílica de Santa María de Mallorca (Catedral de Mallorca).

After we got off the shuttle, we just followed the crowd and walked to Parque del Mar which is a park right in front of the cathedral. We had a full view of the cathedral with good lighting for taking photos. Unfortunately, we were there on Sunday and the cathedral was closed, so we could only admire it from the outside.

Then, we walked to Royal Palace of La Almudaina which is one of the official residences of the Spanish royal family. Categorized as an Alcázar in Palma, An alcázar, from Arabic al-Qasr, is a type of Islamic castle or palace in Spain built during Muslim rule between the 8th and 15th centuries. They functioned as homes and regional capitals for governmental figures throughout the Umayyad caliphate and later, for Christian rulers following the Iberian Reconquista.

Then, we went to S’Hort del Re (The Royal Garden) which is a Moorish-style garden with elaborate fountains & shady paths.

We walked through Passeig del Born (Passeig is Walk in English, therefore, it can be called Walk of the Birth). It is the most elegant avenue in Palma. Not surprisingly, many luxury designers such as Rolex, Louis Vuitton, Sandro, have stores here, and the area has been nicknamed the Golden Mile. The tiled boulevard is situated between two small squares, Plaça Joan Carles, and Plaça de la Reina. We had a very relaxing time walking on this shaded boulevard.

Then, we walked to Plaça de la Llotja which is 15th-century build building with dramatic Gothic architecture.

Afterwards, we walked along Passeig de Sagrera and came to the big red Palma sign. We took photos there.

A further stroll along the Passeig de Sager and we came to Parc de Sa Feizina. It was Kodak moment again.

Due to road constructions, we took a detour and got to Casal de barri Es Jonquet which is an old historic fishing village on the cliffs to the east of the Feixna Park overlooking the Bay of Palma. It dates back to the 14th and 15th century. Apart from the small streets and charming old houses there are a number of ancient windmills. Another Kodak moment.

Then, we walked down to the ocean front Parc dels ànecs to our shuttle stop to get back to Sun Princess.