October 19, 2024

Tour of CHEFCHAOUEN, MOROCCO

Chefchaouen was founded in 1471 by the Berbers. It's a little over a 2 hours drive inland from Tangiers. A territory surrounded by the Rif Mountains, where the Moors and Jews expelled from Spain by the Catholic Monarchs, took refuge. it is believed the City was painted blue by the Jews fleeing Hitler in 1930. A couple other theories exist, but regards several other countries have copied the idea. The women are the ones who paint it with a white lime wash that has a blue pigment (made from a local plants leaves) mixed in. The women don't use ladders, so there are some interesting breaks in where the color starts and stops. This BLUE CITY of MOROCCO became popular, after a Red Bull commercial filmed there in 2001, showing motor bikes racing up and down the blue streets. We encountered many motor bikes as we climbed up and down the steps throughout the city, crazy on these narrow walkways.


Thirteen of us went by way of Mercedes Mini Bus, for this day tour. The drive there was broken up by a stop for a traditional Moroccan breakfast - mint tea, pancakes & bread and dipping sauces - the ground almond one was delicious. Then we were met by our guide Mohamed, who was recently married, and he walked us through all 5 sections of the city. Oldest to newest. He filled us in on all the wedding details - it's a 3 day affair and he is doing is doctorate studies on the history of the Blue City. So was extremely interesting. 

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  • Main Entry into walled city

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We spent about 3 hours touring and then a brief break for shopping before we had to dead back to Ship to sail out at 6 pm.

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WELLINGTON, NEW ZEALAND

By Patricia Patrick • March 4, 2026
We had a beautiful sunny day to explore Wellington ! Was a very nice change from the stormy, big swells weather we have had the last two days! Wellington is the Capital city of New Zealand and the CBD is nice and big with lots of shops and museums. We didn't make it to the LOTR studios due to the time crunch but we took the cable car up to the top, for a scenic overlook of the port and then leisurley walk down through the Botantical Gardens, parks and historical cemetary.

ROTORUA CITY HIGHLIGHTS - NEW ZEALAND

By Patricia Patrick • March 3, 2026
Rotorua became a bonus city for us. Our Port stay in Tauranga got cut down to one day, due to NZ biosecurity regulations and since we really wanted to do Hobbiton, we decided to get off the ship and stay in hotels and get back on the ship, in a few days. Due to a variety of factors, the Ship ended up doing a quick pick up of us in Tauranga, three days later. The Kiwi's we encountered along the way, who helped with all our last minute details, were amazingly kind, hospitable and generous. Below is our tired, chilly group huddled at the security shed, outside the Port in the wee hours (1:30 am) Monday morning, awaiting our final hurdle of getting back on our Home. Home sweet home! What an adventure!

ROTORUA, NEW ZEALAND

By Patricia Patrick • March 3, 2026
Rotorua, New Zealand is known for it's geothermal activity ( geysers, mud pools, hot springs) and rich Maori culture . I saw lots of that last time I was here in 2016, so this time I wanted to see their Redwoods in Whakarewarewa Forest. John and Colleen joined me in exploring. Their redwoods are smaller than the ones in Muir Woods California, but still impressive. Both are planted forest dating back to around 1908.