Day 25: Camping Echrigui (in Asilah) – Camping La Chenaie (in Kenitra)

Our first breakfast in the rain. The awning proves itself and only needs to be relined a little so that the water drains away easily (beer cans, for example, are working well).

After the rain comes the wind and it develops into a sandstorm. Impressive, but it also has something of a “doomsday feeling” about it and the car’s fuel consumption increases noticeably in direct headwinds of up to 65-75 km/h.

We make a first stop in Moulay Bousselham – the lagoon there is supposed to be a good place to watch birds. But with this weather it's a different kind of spectacle and we only see a few storks and starlings in the area, which have probably already made it here from Northern Europe.

We know from an animal documentary that the Strait of Gibraltar is the most life-threatening part of the journey for storks. We're keeping our fingers crossed that the birds didn't even try today.

Because of the weather we decide not to drive to Rabat and not to head for the coast but to drive to the municipal campsite in the town of Kenitra. We may not be so exposed there.

The campsite is simple, the showers are cold, but the place serves its purpose. And now it should be noted: We had suppressed how bad the sanitary facilities are in Morocco and that eight years ago, on our first trip here, we were often happy to be wearing motorcycle boots.

The campsite is next to the local stadium, today Kenitra is playing against Rabat – judging by the mood, Kenitra won. That's why – and also because it's Sunday – there's not much going on in the city, but what's nice is that the city isn't touristy at all.

We learned a few terms: Shukran means “thank you”, Shukran bisse (however it is spelled and the s is mumbled through gritted teeth) is then “thank you very much”.

Msemen are a type of pancake and Harcha are fresh, thin to medium-thick, large or small flatbreads – our lunch at the motorway service station today was made from corn flour, but they are also available from other flours.

And we have now bought a power adapter – the great world travel adapter from Globetroter doesn't have the combination required in Spain and Morocco! So: photo of our plug, photo of the socket at the campsite, mini shop with a counter front of around 2 m and apparently somehow concerned with electrical systems and lamps, show photos, the young colleague is called and has to climb on a ladder, rummage through the shelves and that's it. You can get the right adapter for the equivalent of one euro and it works quite solidly.

Oh yes: Since yesterday we have of course also been hearing the muezzin calls, see also the audio recording from yesterday. They are the most direct part of the Arabian soundscape, even if the calls from the various mosques mix into a canon that doesn't really sound harmonious to us.

Tonight's dinner is harcha and cheese, we're not feeling very well. Wolle has a sore throat and Brigitte has quite a bump on her head after hitting her head on the toilet door frame last night. The standard size here is different than in Northern Europe.

PS: Unfortunately, uploading camera images doesn't really work here in Morocco, either via WiFi nor via the mobile phone hotspot. The cell phone photos, on the other hand, work. Therefore we currently only have a limited selection of photos on the website.