Carpets, camels, couscous, concubines and Casablanca all made for an eventful visit to Morocco for the crew of HMS Liverpool.

Destroyer Liverpool put into Casablanca to coincide with Armed Forces Minister Adam Ingram’s visit to Morocco to re-affirm Britain’s ties with the north African country and the RN’s links with its Moroccan counterpart.

While most of the ship’s company remained with the Type 42 destroyer, a few managed to get away to experience the ‘real Morocco’.

After a four-hour bus trek snaking through the Atlas Mountains in temperatures nudging 36°C, a group of ratings and their guide finally reached Marrakech – known as the Imperial Town of the Kingdom.

“The first thing to strike you was the absolute chaos. Donkeys, pedestrians, traffic of every description seemed to merge together – the person who had the loudest horn seemed to have the right of way,” said PO(MEA) ‘Bunny’ Warren.

The sailors made a bee-line for Marrakech’s legendary Kasbah market to snap up carpets, traditional dress of kaftans and fez, and local herbal remedies for every ailment (they probably caused a few too).

Exhausted by haggling, MEMs Plummer and Scarff volunteered for extra sea time on the ‘ships of the desert’ – but were disappointed to learn that a camel ride didn’t qualify them for the longer service at sea bonus.

The tourism continued with traditional entertainment of men on horseback, folk music and belly dancers.

The flying visit to Marrakech closed with a tour of Bahia Palace, until 40 years ago home of the ruler’s harem and concubines.

The Moroccan leader traditionally had 25 wives and up to 50 concubines.

“Everybody agreed that it was a truly remarkable place, but we were happy to return to Liverpool,” said Bunny.

The North African visit has capped a memorable spring for Liverpool, which visited Dartmouth before heading south.

The destroyer anchored within sight of the town’s illustrious RN College, home to officer training, for a ceremonial visit to allow townsfolk, children, students and dignitaries to see the ship – and allow ratings to look around the officers’ counterpart to HMS Raleigh.

The ship hosted tours by local schoolchildren and RN veterans, while crew enjoyed the hospitality of the town in the evenings and Liverpool herself was illuminated.

Under glorious skies, her football and cricket teams gave the college sides a lesson in age and experience; other sailors borrowed BRNC’s yachts to go sailing or cast off on deep-sea fishing trips.

The visit to the South Coast town provided some light relief after a busy week in the Channel assisting Flag Officer Sea Training in a ‘Thursday War’.

Fliers from 702 NAS also made use of Liverpool, conducting landing training in their Lynxes on her flightdeck.