Yalla! Accompanied by our nomad Berber guides, we started our treks every morning with a resounding "yalla!" (meaning, lets get going!)
In my group, 30 Royal LePage Realtors and Brokers across Canada trudged along varying unforgiving landscapes of sand dunes, dried up river beds, mountainous terrain (a LOT of rocks) and even some greenery. We climbed small mountains, watched our camp appear many kilometers away and relied more than I could have imagined on our trekking poles (what a fabulous invention by the way).
Everyday we read stories at lunch that touched on the depth of the impact of our fundraising dollars, as well as first hand accounts of survivors of domestic violence. They were heart wrenching and hugely emotional for our group. This was all felt between our guides, crew and team members.
Of Royal LePage's total Shelter Challenge group (consisting of 120 members) we raised a record breaking $1.1 MILLION for violence prevention programs nation-wide. Having that amount of money injected into the multitude of shelters operating in our communities is a dream come true.
Our 11-day itinerary was highly scheduled, greatly organized and ensured we experienced Morocco in the traditional (local), tourist and nomad way. Between exploring the colorful medina in Marrakech, enjoying the laid back atmosphere of Ouarzazate and camel riding in the Sahara - there's a lot of beautiful pictures to sort through. I can't wait to share them!
A-salaam alaikum. Inshallah