The ups and downs of Spain

Every time I felt ready to leave Morocco,  and just book it to the ferry something amazing happened and I was so happy to be there.    Once I got to spain I felt a bit of relief,  in that everything should be a lot easier (language barriers,  cultural familiarity, drinking water, stealth camping etc.), and at the same time a bit bummed out that I'm not in such a new and exciting place anymore, and won't be for a while.    Europe basically feels like America with more techno music.   I lined up my first couch surfing host of the trip,  which was really nice.   I rode along the coast,  which at times was pretty, but mostly was pretty bad roads for biking.   I was either on a pretty major highway, or I would get off and be riding through very slow moving traffic or beach boardwalks which only went for a mile or two before I had nowhere to go but get back on the highway.  It was really nice having a host lined up,  I just rode into the cool night (the days are stupid hot) with no worries.   I got to Jose and Ornella's place and bought the first beers of the trip, and damn did they taste good.   The Moroccan mint teas were great,  but there's no substitute for a cold beer after a long ride.    Jose and Ornella were great hosts.   They were patient with my Spanish, and very welcoming.   I sleept until 11, and then we're spent the afternoon swimming at some ancient Roman cold springs and eating and drinking at a restaurant.  

 I left in the evening once it cooled down a bit and found a decent stealth camping spot.   But yeah, despite Jose and Ornella's recommendation, riding along the coast sucked. Not only are the roads bad but there is just nothing but tacky hotels and overpriced restaurants and everything else that you can expect at any other coast in the USA etc.   I made it to Malaga the next day,  and after talking with a guy at a bike shop I headed up into the mountains on a "classic" climb.   It was a tough one (5-9% for 16km),  but nothing compared to what was to come.   I had a great meal and then found a camp spot in the dark right next to a road that was closed off to cars.   There are basically no bugs at night, so I haven't been using my tent  which has been nice.  

The next two days after that were ROUGH.  My directions took me on some really bad roads, with some super steep climbing,  14% on dirt roads with short sections up to 19% (they put cement down for the really steep parts). I went through some beautiful scenery,  but mostly it was just farm land  with no shade and brutally hot sun.  I aimed for some free hot springs at night,  which were nice, but definitely not a place to camp (the hot springs were free but it was surrounded by a hotel etc). I was stuck finding another decent stealth camping spot in the dark.  I was already feeling a bit sick, like a cold, but that night it fully developed.   I couldn't sleep well because of my sore throat, and I woke up with a full sinus headache etc.  I stopped at the first town to buy cough drops.  I asked if there was also a place to buy bread,  and they said not this early,  but then went in the back and brought me out a frozen baguette for free.   Then,  an old lady in the pharmacy told me to walk her back to her house,  where she gave me a nice sausage and sweet almond loaf.   Not bad!  I only went about 50k to Granada,  and it was rough.   Bad roads, not scenic,  and super hot.  Plus these damn flies kept following me everywhere.   Most of the day I was going so slow that the flies kept up easily,  and when I went fast they were magically waiting for me at the bottom of the hill.   It also message dropping really unpleasant.  I got to Granada and drank a liter of fanta and then took a nap in the hammock while I wrote couchsurfing messages.   Despite feeling very sick I decided to go to the local rock climbing gym.  It was a great decision. For 5 euros I did some bouldering and got a hot shower,  and got recommended a good place to camp next to an outdoor bouldering spot, and it was a good thing too because I didn't get any responses from couch surfers,  and finding a spot would have been very hard.   I woke up here, expecting Jesus to meet me for some morning bouldering, but, just like most climbers,  waking up was hard and he bailed.   Probably for the best,  because I'm sick...  I decided to rest here all day.  And it's been pretty nice.  It's been a really long time since I just did absolutely nothing all day and didn't go anywhere.   In the evening when it cooled down I did some bouldering and met some locals doing the same thing,  which was sweet.   Now I'm cooking some spaghetti and feeling slightly less like staying home from school. 

Mountain Hospitality

From Fes I rode two days through the Riff mountains, through endless fields of marijuana and olive trees (pictured) towards Chefchawen, a city where you have no freedom of choice in house paint color.  

I stopped at a small cafe in the evening of the first day to get a coffee to push me the final 30km to a spot that looked like good camping.  Apparently by changing my clothes before coming into the cafe I showed great respect (I was told later). I was  Immediately invited to sit at a table where some guys were drinking coffee or tea and smoking hash (as was everyone in the cafe, and every other cafe I passed). through Google Translate we actually had a great conversation, and they were extremely friendly.  The local hash maker gifted me a nice big chunk, and kept giving me more every time he took one of my rolling papers. Eventually the conversation got to where I was planning on sleeping that night, and I told them, although I kind of hinted that I didn't really feel like biking the rest of the way there. Didn't take long for them to figure out which one of them wanted to host me. Said (guy pictured) ended up calling someone from the town that was attending English school to come over and help translate.  Oussama was a really nice young guy, and after all the discussion where I was gonna sleep I ended up just staying with him and his family, which was a really great experience. They immediately showered me with olives and fruit and bread and fish.  Dinner is a late night thing in the summer months in Morocco, so we ended up hanging out, his brothers and father and I, until around one o'clock in the morning. I slept outside under the stars which they didn't find odd at all, in fact the father of the family, pictured, also preferred to sleep outside, and he slept a few feet away from me.  

I made it to Chefchawen  Pretty late last night, just in time to get a nice sunset pic. I somehow got locked out of my phone, so I had to just wander around to try to find a place to stay, which was pretty difficult with the bike, since every street include stairs and is super narrow, and only ment for walking or donkeys. Somewhat out of desperation I accepted the offer to stay in this dudes house.   I was kind of hoping to find a cheap hostel and link up with some travelers,  but this was fine.  I am now taking a day off,  chilling in the hammock,  and later this afternoon I'll bike 25km to a rockclimber's hostel and try to make use of these shoes Ive been carrying around.

Diarrhea persists at a very tolerable degree.    Just enough to remind me this shit is real.