Sun March 04 2018  —  e-mail Manfred

Driving home.

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Thursday, July 12 2007

2 years, 11 months, 20 days

Casablanca, Morocco

Photography Blog

About Travel Photography,
Colors of the World.

Manfred is creator of ThisFabTrek.com, travel photography, a travel blog and a photography blog (a journey from 2004 to 2013). 'I set out to see the colors of the world, always I try to capture the colors'.

Seeing, is understanding, so I report and photograph, but formost enjoy and live those different conceptions of life (all that TV [and the web] cannot give). I reject jealousy, animosity, bigotry. Be free!

Manfred in the desert of the Western Sahara

The mind, when pondering at night and always asked those questions. What am I doing in corporate wonderland of bank, university, office or church? Who is the other animal asleep deep inside, the thinker, punk, creative, or Indian, vagabond and healer, maybe artist, writer, photographer, traveler, globetrotter? Oh God, dare you to think. When I saw the lies, gambles and manipulations I follow the old dream and set out for the journey of life lived, the journey to see the colors of the world.

During years on the road I have taken the turns as they came along, and realized one thing: Only such a small part of the planet can be explored and such a vast land and sea mass will always remain unknown, to me; many swamps, jungles, deserts and oceans will never be traveled. But then I am father of twin boys, Daniel and David, my most important, and I show them some of the wonders and colors out there.

ThisFabTrek, Photography and Journey, the Stories from the Road and Life around the World, stopped in August 2013 after more than 9 years, Love and Peace.

Last vehicle.

G20, Chevy Gladiator.

Chevrolet Gladiator G20, The boys in Cordillera Blanca, Peru.
The boys and Chevy van, Peru.

The G20, the vehicle that came to me for the Americas adventures.

6 wheeled Land Rover.

Land Rover Defender 6x6
Link to Foley

The vehicle of the Africa adventures, a Foley 6-Wheeled Land Rover Defender.

Before, the MB307.

Manfred and MB307
Journey, Middle East.

The vehicle of the Middle-East and North-Cape Journeys. See all vehicles.

Daniel and David with nanny Aisha, the best we ever had, black African Woman carrying white twin babies, in Bamako, Mali.

Land Rover 50,203km

Trekking 335km

Ferry 1,514km

Train 238km

Other cars 36,030km

(MB307 9,965km)

Travel Blog

contains Festival/Fiesta/Art photography.

generizon. clean. sustainable. feasible.

"There is nothing more powerful than an idea whose time has come." - Victor Hugo.

"What matters in life is not what happens to you but what you remember and how you remember it, to tell the tale." Living to Tell the Tale - Gabriel García Márquez.

"They never taught wandering in any school I attended. ... they never taught the art of writing a book, either. It's all so mysterious."
"Wandering is an art in itself. Wandering and writing don't mix"
"Writing demands commitment and if one thing your wanderer is allergic to is that very quality of commitment, for once one is committed he runs that very risk of failure ..." Wanderer - Sterling Hayden.

"Photography enables you to grasp a place first time round. ... Photography is a means of exploration, it's a vital part of travel, almost as essential as a car or a plane. " - Wim Wenders.

"The worst prejudice we acquire during our youth is the idea that life is serious. Children have the right instincts: they know that life is not serious, and treat it as a game..." , Egon Friedell.

"How far you gonna go. Before you lose your way back home" - Tryin' To Throw Your Arms Around The World, Achtung Baby, U2.

"If you want to be a hero well just follow me." - Working Class Hero, John Lennon.

"When I think of all the things I have done, I know that it's only just begun." - I love you, Lou Reed.

"One does not escape the Sahara - the Sahara let's you go or not" - Touareg.

"Planet earth is blue and there`s nothing I can do" - This is Ground Control to Major Tom, David Bowie.

"Glory for the crazy people/in this stupid world" - Ahmed Fouad Negm.

www.thisfabtrek.com > journey > africa > morocco > 20070712-casablanca

Sardegna and Corsica.

Map: Journey Vienna to Casablanca.

Download GPS (KML) track/waypoints.

27th of June 2007 we are on our way home. The back down south (BDS) path takes a detour. There are friends waiting in Toulouse.

The holiday (silly) season has started, families, school classes, boarding the ferry with us. Soon all will be packed, with busses, caravans, and tourists that don't know how to drive and behave in a foreign country.

Some rude Romanians and their entire families, with mothers and babies who we have seen begging in Trapani, go aboard the ship as well.

I don't want to discuss with them, when they press to get in front of us in the line when we buy a ticket, too rude is their behaviour. This is summer, and the tourist hords lure all kinds of businesses, it seems.

And this is the EU, (im)migration is a fact, and some is unwanted - by some. There are about 1,000 Roma arriving from Romania in Italy every month and unlikely going back. Though, I am 100% pro EU.

After replacing the gearbox in the very south eastern corner of Sardinia we take the quickest road.

Sardinia (wiki) is beautiful, I have to come back, on a bike maybe, for a month or 2.

Corsica/La Corse (wiki) is different/French/or not (even) French and overpriced and overrated. But I have to rethink this/complicated is the matter. But one thing is clear going north all is getting more expensive very very quickly. The last pizza in Sicily for 4, now in Ajaccio, the cheapest for 12 in a run down beach restaurant. We don't buy it, the quality of a French pizza would surely suck and depress us even more.

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Ferry Trapani Cagliari.

From Trapani in Sicily to Cagliari (wiki) in Sardinia.

Ferry Trapani Sicily, Cagliary Sardinia
Bright blue morning.
Ferry Trapani Sicily, Cagliary Sardinia, Italian Flag Man and Sea and Sun.
Man, flag, sea and rising sun.
Ferry Trapani Sicily, Cagliary Sardinia, Italian Flag and Blue sea and sky.
Say good bye to Italy.

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Sardegna/Sardinia.

Sardegna/Sardinia clouds evening sky.
On our way back.
Sardegna/Sardinia clouds evening sky, red sky clouds.
Light for photography gets better all the time.
Sardegna/Sardinia clouds evening sky, red sky clouds. roadsign, reflections.
A roadsign.

We camp at high altitude, late at night with no idea of the surroundings. In the morning hogs gather outside the van, in search for our company.

Sardinia/Sardegna, Hasna and the hogs.
Lure them.
Sardinia/Sardegna, morning hogs around camp.
Beautiful morning.
Sardinia/Sardegna, Mountains in the East, morning.
Nature untouched.
Sardinia/Sardegna, Mountains/Valleys in the East, morning.
Mostly.
Sardegna/Sardinia marble quarry.
Not everywhere. Marble quarry.

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Ferry Ajaccio Marseille.

From Ajaccio (wiki) in Corsica to Marseille.

Ferry Ajacciou/Marseille, Calanques de Marseille/Cassis, people watching from railing.
In back, Calanques de Marseille/Cassis.

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Toulouse, to Madrid, to Casablanca.

In Toulouse and around we meet Phil and Caroline, Brett and Linda and others.

Phillip and Caroline/Cornelia Weissfloch.
Phillip and Caroline.
Brett Chappell.
This is Brett.

Nico and I.
Nico and I.

We meet Nico and Julie who we got friends with in Mali and Marco and Marylouise. We stay a week, but then it is really, really time to move south. In Madrid we meet Daniel as always. We spend the night right in front of Santiago Bernabeu Stadium (wiki), - and I have a hair cut in Madrid, getting civilised again.

We enter Morocco on the 11th of July 2007.

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Gorse or whatever it is... South of the Pyrenees.

Gorse/Ginster.
Is it gorse?
Gorse/Ginster blue sky.
Is it gorse?
Gorse/Ginster.
Is it gorse?
Gorse/Ginster.
If you know ...
Gorse/Ginster.
... Let us know.

The gorse... is gorse.

Ulex gallii ssp. gallii [Planchon, 1849] = Western gorse. Living from 0-1620 m elevation in some provinces of Northern Spain, not quoted as very common in Huesca, but yes in neighbour Navarra along the same mountains.

"So we might have the gorse, it is a logical bet", thanks Gustavo Iglesias git-forestry.com

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Southern Spain.

Always a differnt route through Spain. But always through Madrid.

Pictures below taken somewhere in Extremadura (wiki). Beautiful untouched country. When will we come and explore Spain? How long would that take us?

MB 307.
MB 307, he has held well.
Southern Spain, Manfred.
Me and ...
Southern Spain, Hasna and MB307.
... her.

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Casablanca.

Bent Sliman, Sliman's daughter, Hasna's grandmother.
Bent Sliman, Sliman's daughter.

July 11th late: We arrive in Morocco, Casablanca. And not just Bent Sliman is happy, Sliman's daughter, Hasna's grandmother.

We have taken the long way back down south and running out of time been doing many kilometres per day recently. The boys are tired, a bit.

"La fête a commencé aujourd'hui", the celebrations (in honour of the boys) have started today, says Abderrahmane, Hasna's father. This is the first time that Hasna's large family get to see them.

And this is Morocco in summer with all emigrant family members coming back home. This is the times of marriages and stuff. Not a day goes by when not 20 people come by the house to visite and see each other, the boys and Hasna, the runaway girl, and me.

And in Morocco everyone is following with great interest the New Talent Pop Star show and the Wedding Show on TV, ... Who is gonna win? The same rubbish TV as elsewhere. This is true globalisation.

Gives me some space in time to work the Italy pages.

And the MB 307 has held well - still holds after nearly 10,000 kms.

www.thisfabtrek.com > journey > africa > morocco > 20070712-casablanca

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