Most Inspirational Moment
Not sure whether it was 'inspirational' but there were two stand-out moments. Firstly, standing on the balcony at the gite, staring up at the night sky and being able to see the Milky Way with the naked eye, while two of my fellow travellers explained the constellations. There were so many stars; being a city girl, I'd only ever seen a fraction of that number. The other one was reaching the highest point of the second (shorter) walk and seeing the glorious panorama of the High Atlas and Anti Atlas ranges. There was a lovely clear sky and you could, to quote The Who, see for miles and miles and miles.
Thoughts on Group Leader
Hassan was a lovely, gentle and humourous man. He seemed quite introverted and didn't join conversations easily, but if you take the time to ask questions or show an interest, he opens up and can be very funny, in a dry way. His timings for the walks was impeccable (one fellow walker said he could run the Swiss Railway) and he really pushed us on the last day to be able to get us back by nightfall. I think, at the time, we felt a little abandoned and that we had to look out for one another, but in hindsight I can see why he pushed us.
He was also very helpful in the city, giving tips and advising as to where to go. He has been with Exodus for nearly 25 years and knows his stuff.
Advice for Potential Travellers
Don't take too much spending money - at the gite the food is provided and Marrakech is generally very cheap. Also, you can only change your money inside the country so it's worth keeping that in mind.
Learning a couple of basic words of Arabic is useful - the waiters/taxi drivers etc seemed to be very happy when I said hello and thank you in Arabic rather than French.
Suggestions
The gite isn't as basic as the trip notes advised - there are showers and comfortable semi-private rooms. The weather in November was akin to a British summer - warm in the day but cooler at night - and a couple of us struggled at night with winter sleeping bags as it was far too warm. Do a weather check before you fly out!
There are blankets, sheets and pillows provided by the gite - a couple of nights I climbed out of my sleeping bag and used these, it was much more comfortable.
I would also question Exodus' meaning of 'moderate' - I am quite fit, a rambler and a jogger, but really struggled, especially on the last day, to maintain the momentum stamina required to get through. A couple of my fellow travellers agreed too, including one that had climbed Kilimanjaro. However, the spirit of camaraderie kept us all going!