Marathon Des Sables 2021 - Desert Dad Diary Day 9
Farewell
We are awoken at 5:00am after another night of thrashing on my decrepit sponge mattress. Sleep deprivation is becoming an issue as well as the norm. Too hot to fight with my sleep suit and too cold in the early hours of the morning to not warrant a cover of some sort. Breakfast is again exactly what I expected and I think I even know the chicken now who is producing these eggs. We are presented this morning with orange juice but sadly not the fresh, pressed orange that I so long for.
The day starts in the knowledge that this will be my last in the desert which fills me with excitement as this means that I am within touching distance of seeing my wife and two fur babies in three days time. I have missed them so much.
It is that time of day again to do my rounds and to check on my new desert friends and acquaintances. More tears and more stories and learning of these people that I have shared eight days of my life with. One competitor is 50 today and will be running, then travelling the five hours and then making the long trip back to the hotel where he will be face timing his family and friends who are having a party in his honour at his house! I love heart warming stories like this.
There are rumblings of discontent regarding the start time of the Charity Run being that it should be earlier as everyone wants to get on, finish and return to normality. 9:00am turns into 9:25am by the time the runners depart on their final 8km. Seeing these hardy competitors emerging from their tents and descending on the start line was a sight for sure but as people assembled, the stark realisation of this who are unable to walk unaided or who shuffled slower than a pensioner with severe arthritis, came to fruition. My heart went out to them but also respect that they too took part and completed the toughest challenge on the planet.
Runners are away and it is time for me to rejoin my driver and to be whisked away to Ouarzatate, to our Hotel.
For me the Marathon des Sables 2021 is over and the success of this truly amazing experience is tinged with sadness with the earlier events of this week, however I believe the Race Director and originator of this event who completed a journey of 350km alone across the Sahara Desert in 1984 aged just 28 carrying just a rucksack and 35kg of provisions, he set off on a journey lasting 12 days. This was the starting point of Marathon des Sables. This year was the 35th race!
En route there we stop to find an ATM as I realise I have no cash to tip the driver for his weeks work, he finds a suitable venue and a transaction is completed. There is however one more memorable surprise for me in store.
I am awoken from a restful nod in the back of the taxi and am told that we have stopped at a Kasbah for a Tagine. This sounds like music to my ears and I am not to be disappointed. From the outside the venue appears to be fairly ordinary but like every book don't judge it by its cover. We are to lunch in an oasis of tranquility and are able to reflect on a week of highs and lows in relative luxury. However the swimming pool was less welcoming than a scorpion on your tent. The last memory of a green that colour was one that my wife painted the kitchen with.
Lunch was delicious and could not be faulted in any way. The salad was beautifully chopped and prepared, the kofta meatballs with fried eggs was exquisite and the accompanying tea, sweeter than a small lottery win.
It really was stunning with many palm trees which I am certain would have danced for us in the wind had there been any.
We are on the move again, headed back through a never-ending range of interlocking mountains.
The scenery is so stark but also so engaging. I am transfixed with the view on offer. We are now just a couple of hours from our final destination.
Eventually after winding our way through many mountains I am awoken from a light sleep to be informed that we had arrived at our destination.
Wow! is all I can say. This place was definitely making a statement.
We are welcomed at reception by an English lady who is part of the UK arm of MDS and her job is to allocate rooms to everyone.
I am confident that having booked in advance in June that my room would be safely reserved. How wrong could I be?! They had no booking in my name and I was asked to prove my reservation, which I did. Once again, I confidently showed them my booking and reference number. My temper is beginning to fray as three male receptionists with expressionless faces shake their heads at each other and I am informed that there is no reservation and the hotel is full. At this point I snap, tired and still travelling with Ghandi (who seems to strike at will) the UK lady kindly steps in and sorts me a spare room that had been allocated to the UK runners. Unimpressed by this 5 Star Hotel I am determined to find out what the issue is and I am informed that “it is booked through Expedia and we have had this problem before so we cancelled the contract with them’. UNBELIEVABLE!
I decide to let it rest as I just need a shower and return to normality. I am shown to my room which I have to say didn't disappoint. A sumptuous bed just aching to be lay on, a beautiful bathroom suite that I would die for at home and a rest area with sofa, coffee table and a 40 inch Samsung TV.
After an hour or more of preening, most of the time spent trying to remove 8 days of facial hair with a cheap hotel razor, I make my way to the pool to meet up with the fresh faced competitors who are now laughing and joking with beers in hand, a totally different atmosphere to the previous week that we had shared.
We then dine on an amazing array of food, everything tastes so good. A plethora of desserts and fresh fruit is just heaven. A number of bottles of beer and a glass of red wine later, I am ready for my bed. At that moment I realise that I am talking to the last two competitors who are brothers and we retire at 1:00am to our respective rooms.
