Singing in the rain of stars

by Nicola Löffel Santana (Switzerland)

A leap into the unknown Morocco

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"You have the clock but I control the time". Those were the words that the young Berber, wrapped in his blue turban, said to me in the middle of that desert. The orange sky was getting darker over the tents, while I could distinctively perceive the strong smell of camels, that were finally resting after a long walk through the infinite dunes of sand. It had been a long journey before reaching this remote place. It all started two days ago, when I landed with a group of photographers in Marrakesh–a city in Morocco, a North Africa country–with the intention of traveling to the desert for admiring a meteor shower. We were also looking forward to taking amazing pictures without any light pollution; the big event was happening in a couple of days. Prior to leaving the town, we decided to have a good breakfast in the old city or as they call it: the “medina quarter”, where we found a rooftop cafe with incredible views over the famous market place Jemma el-Fnaa. When we finished eating, we took a short walk around the square, and as I heard the call for prayer from the nearest minaret, near to the Koutoubi mosque, I had this pleasing feeling of being away from home, discovering the unknown. My eyes were wide open, like a child watching Aladdin for the first time in his life; I was observing the snake charmer, merchants negotiating everything, women full of henna on their skins... Then, it was time to leave. I was totally in love with the “adventurous sensation” of this trip. Our destination was on the other side of the Atlas Mountains. The bus were zigzagging at high speed along the narrow and winding roads. It was a moment I will always remember: when our sympathetic driver took a sharp curve at the edge of the cliff, passing within inches of another truck. However, the impressive thing was that the truck's merchandise, sheep to be concrete, were flying all over the cage. This scene will stay in my mind forever, played in slow motion with some background classical music. After going down the mountain, in one piece I have to precise, the landscape that was passing through my window was arid, lonely and repetitive; a kind of beauty I have never seen before: desert and more desert. At the end of the day, we spent our first night in Ouarzazate, well known for the Atlas Studio: the greatest film studio in Africa, that has hosted productions such as "Ben-Hur", "Asterix and Cleopatra" or "The Mummy", among others. As a filmmaker I was fascinated! The next morning, as we continued our way on the road, we saw a couple of oasis ruled by fortified cities called "kasbah". We were almost there. The bus left us in front of a solitary building where, later on, the Berbers came to take us. And so, here I am tonight, listening to the drums played in harmony by the nomads, while hundreds of shooting stars are falling from the sky. What can I wish for?