Northern African: Morocco - The Lions on the Road: Cycling London to Cape Town - page 62

especially when it was so obvious. Plus, I really wanted to establish a rhythm as soon as
possible so I could climb without really thinking about it. Of course I am conscientious of
my safety, but the physical aspect of cycling goes on the backburner. However these idiots
were ruining it for me.
We eventually reached a short plateau where the road branched off. They took the
sideroadtotherightandinsistedthatIgowiththemtoarestaurantforlunch.Iaskedthem
howfaritwasandtheysaidabout5kilometres.Thatwouldhavebeen10kilometresoutof
my way in the mountains, so I was firm and said a quick good-bye. It was a smart decision
for my best cycling was about to begin.
My goal was the Tizi-n-Test Mountain Pass but I knew it would take longer than a
day for me to arrive. So I set a rhythm and plodded along until mid-day and then stopped
for lunch. Ever since I left Marrakech, the number of pedestrians and vehicles dwindled
significantly to the point that there were no people on the road and a car passed by once
every half hour or so. After I resumed cycling, what caught my attention came from the
valley below. As I climbed, I could hear beautiful singing coming from the river. I stopped
and look down to find a group of women washing their laundry. They were singing in uni-
son and rhythmically beating the clothes against the rocks. I forgot that I shouldn't have
addressed them but I shouted from the road, “Bonjour!” They all looked up and replied,
“Bonjourmonsieur,ça-va?”Iwasinshock.ItwasthefirsttimeinMoroccothatwomenre-
sponded. They waved frantically to me as Ihopped back onthe bike to continue my climb-
ing.
I met more women later that day who gave me a similar cordial response. I made
a mental note to ask someone why these women's demeanour contrasted so greatly to the