I apologise if this thread p***es anyone off, but am worrying myself sick about something

[Callmemadam]

My ds (15) is about to go on a school trip to Morocco (a jolly disguised as essential GCSE work), and as I am not very adventurous myself, and as I am a fairly anxious sort I have got myself more and more worried. These are: he has to fly to Casablanca and then take an internal flight somewhere else: he will be taking a camel trek into the desert and sleeping out one night: another night they are trekking to a 'remote village' and on another they are trekking into the Atlas mountains. One more interal flight and they then get to wander around Marrakech!!! Aaargh! I am choked with worry, particularly as I feel this is not a great time to be a Brit abroad, Morocco is a wild and scary place in my imagination, and this is the first of my offspring to do anything like this. Im scared. I have been REALLY good and not even hinted how I feel, but please, has anyone else sent their teenagers off like this, anyone know Morocco better than I do, and anyone have some sage and calming words for me?

LARK i am not suprised

a school trip?
belrimeyw here does he go eton?

ps sorry went ot morocco in 1972 so cant rememebr much apart fom stinky donkeys and mum and dad haggling fro a ccarpet bu i wanted to seeif i woudl be pissed off!

Wow - I'd feel the same as you, but hope I'd manage to say nothing because you've got to admit that it sounds like the trip of a lifetime. Perhaps you should have a good chat with the school.

Have the school organised this trip before?
I imagine it will be well thought out, and hopefully prepared well.
I'd be nervous too, if thta's any consolation.

I think there's at least one MNer who lives there who could reassure you. Morocco is pretty touristy,so he'll be safe enough. Don't know if Morocco has "tourist police" like Egypt- their job is specifically to protect the tourist industry by keeping everything sweet for the tourists!

parenst have just got back from Morocco (about two hours ago) and had a fab time, I think they got pestered for money alot but other than that they found it safe, although they were on a tour with a group so often kept to the tourist trail! I know my mum wore typical dress whilst out there and they had to eat descretely because of ramadam (?) but they didn' mention anything of a hostile nature at all, and believe me they are Mr and Mrs sensible!

I've been to Morocco a couple of times, last time was a couple of months ago. It's a fab and very interesting country and most importantly my experience was that the people were really friendly. Also the King has an initive atm of wanting to increase the yearly tourism to 10 million by 2010 so they have a huge tourism drive on and are really enthusiastic that people have a lovely time in their country.

I would say trekking in the Atlas mountains is going to be a benchmark in your ds's life to date. He will have an amazing time, he is a lucky boy

I think he'll have a wonderful time. What an experience. Does he need an adult chaperone? I'm reasonably sure I could absent myself from home for a wee Morrocan trip.

i was born in morocco and go over all regularly to see family. it'll be an amazing experience for him, better than my GCSE field trip to whitby i'm sure! dh was nervous about going for our honeymoon, just because it's somewhere a bit 'different', and he loved it. we did the flight to casa, then trains etc all over the place. the king of morocco is very keen to promote the place as a tourist destination, even ryanair fly to marrakech now. be excited for your son!

Thanx everyone for that as I feel a bit calmer knowing Mr and Mrs Sensible go there too. I know it is the trip of a lifetime, and yes, the school has done it before, but I am onre of those people who always always imagines the worst, and I am afraid of flying myself which makes it worse. Thing is, I know that if it were up tome none of my children would take any risks. but you can't imprison them. DH says I should be glad he's going in a group before he tries going on his own. Sad, though, because as luck would have it I sat on a table at a dinner last night with a couple who lost a daughter in her Gap year in Africa - killed in a car crash - a few years ago, it was in all the papers at the time. Needless to say I was even worse after that.