Part 3: Stupid Hurricane Force Winds

In order to get to Morocco, our team planned to take a ferry from Algeciras, Spain to Tangier, Morocco. When we stepped off the bus, the rain was coming down hard, and the first person we talked to said that all boats had been cancelled. We walked from the bus station to the dock side in the wind and the rain, hoping that we would find a running boat. A man we found told us there was a boat leaving so we purchased tickets, ran to get lunch, and headed to the loading area. We found the area full of wet people sitting on suitcases, and we were told that the boat we had tickets for still was waiting for approval to leave the docks. For the first of many occasions we sat down on the ground to wait it out. After a few minutes, our group stopped talking and began to listen to the two guys sitting next to us. We introduced ourselves to them and found out that they were Croatians from Split, travelling to Marrakesh as well. An hour into waiting it was announced that due to hurricane force winds on the channel, all boats are cancelled until further notice. What a time for us to be stuck...on a Sunday night when almost everything is closed, near docks far from the center, pouring down rain, and no place to stay. Earlier that day we passed the Hostel Marrakesh, and decided to go check it out. It was decided that we would stay, but there were a few down sides to the place...no heat, one shower for twelve rooms, and sagging beds. Even though the rain had not stopped, but rather had increased, we ventured out to find food. A man told us that if we walked up the street and turned by a certain store we would find restaurants. By the time we realized we had no clue where that store was, we were soaked and all a little cranky. Everything we passed was closed, and when we asked a tisak stand woman where we could find a open restaurant she laughed and pointed us back the direction we had come. Night had fallen and by my estimation we had been walking for over an hour. We finally decided to stop at a fried chicken place we saw, and eat there, even though the thought of that grease made us all sick. A very disappointing dinner did nothing to help our moods, and the women headed back to the hostel while the men headed up the street to a pub. As we hung our wet clothing around the rooms, we knew in our minds that nothing would dry out, but hoped that wishful thinking would be on our side. Sunny and Alexis also discovered that though there was a shower there was no hot water. To stay warm that night the five women slept in three beds pushed together, and still almost everyone woke up shivering the next morning. Nothing had dried so we resorted to a hair drier, which only helped a little, and then packed our bags. We headed to the loading area, and once again waited for our boat. The two Croatians we had met the day before ran into us again and were headed to Morocco on the same boat. We waited and watched as more people gathered, and we took our entertainment from the little children running around the waiting area. One little boy kept coming and taking Alexis' thing of pringles. It felt good to finally step onto the boat and head towards our vacation, because we had just lost a day due to the weather. It was sunny outside and so we each cheered up a little bit, and ignored the fact that we were tired and dirty.