Well today is the day we leave Africa and return to Europe. An earlyish start as it’s about a 45min drive to the port plus we need to refuel and want to be there shortly after the first ferry has left; we’re aiming to catch the 1300 sailing.
With careful calculating (i.e. luck) we managed to spend almost the last of our dirhams on the last toll, leaving us with the grand sum of Dh6.20 – about 50p! Hope they take euros on the boat.
With only sketchy advice of what to do/expect we arrived at Tangier-Med with some trepidation at around 10.30. The first encounter was with the touts, but we already knew that we did not need them so did our best to ignore them. Spotting the Acciona office, we wandered across and were politely told to go away and come back at 1300; no reasons or explanation although we were given notices to put in the windscreen. Keeping a careful eye on what was happening, we idled away a couple of hours – no sign of a ferry though.
But at 1300 we went back to the office and were given boarding cards. Progress at last! Directed to the police posts, we were dealt with quickly and efficiently and directed to customs who cleared us out with a friendly smile and “bon voyage”. So that was 15mins killed. Round the corner we encountered a mobile X-ray machine and were instructed to vacate our vehicles while it examined three at a time. Then directed back to almost where we had come from, but this time on the quayside. But still no ferry.
About 2.45 a ferry - not the fast catamaran – arrived and unloaded, taking it seemed forever but around 3.30 we loaded. Taking bets as to when we might actually depart it was 4.28 (I won!) when we started the hour and a half crossing. Fortunately it was very smooth but it was 7.30 local, and dark, by the time we were clear of the port.
So Plan B. We urgently needed gas so, once the formalities were completed, it's direct to the nearest LPG station, only a few miles. But despite all our efforts we could not get it to fill (problem with the pump we think) so return to the Mercadona car-park at Algeciras, from where this trip started, to overnight and shop in the morning.
Our Morocco adventure was over.
Would we do it again? You betcha. It has probably been the best holiday we have ever had, helped enormously by doing it as part of a group – thank you MotorhomeFun.co.uk. We found the country fascinating, the people warm and friendly and not the least bit threatening, and of course the warm weather was what we really went for. The rest of our trip is going to be a bit of an anti-climax.
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