Note:
Ok so I am finally trying to finish of the last few entries from the Morocco trip.  These are done mostly from memory, somehow I just didn’t get around to it before now.  So here goes.

Taroudannt to Essaouira

We did not really rush this morning, then again I can not say we rushed much on this trip at all!  We all wandered out of our respective rooms about the same time meeting out on the balcony before heading out of the hotel for breakfast.  Must say it was not really hard since we were just off Place al-Alaouyine.  A large open square with cafes around the outside.

We found a bakery and in short order we were perched up on the balcony overlooking the square, people watching and munching on our pastry of choice.  I had a chocolate croissant, though it was more croissant than chocolate but still nice, fresh orange juice and my usual coffee, you really do not want to be around me much in the morning if I do not get my coffee.  Somehow the day always seems better after that first cup or two!

After breakfast I set off trying to get a photo of the egg shop we had seen the day before with all the eggs on the counter and the chicken in the open pen behind the counter.  Unfortunately someone walked straight across in front of my camera just as I was taking the photo.  Then the owners noticed and indicated they did not want a photo taken.  Sigh.  Thought it would have made a good shot but you really do have to honor the wishes of people.  It is kind of rude to proceed in taking a photo if someone has indicated clearly that they really do not want a photo taken.  With my camera they really are going to notice, it really isn’t all that subtle!

So thwarted in my attempt to get a photo we went back to do that whole stuff all our things back in the bag thing and check out.  I am always amazed how much stuff can end up scattered around my room with only one night spent in it.  I’m also usually amazed at how much fits in what really isn’t all that big a backpack.

Before long we were all piled into Gary and heading off towards Essaouira with a couple of planned detours along the way.

First off we were planning to go through the Souss Valley, looping down through Tiznit.  The scenery is meant to be nice and we were told Tiznit is the place to buy jewelry.  So we thought we were off to a good start taking what we thought was the correct turn off for Tafraoute.  It started off alright then the road started getting worse and worse.  About thirty minutes later we finally ended up looking at a quarry and a dead end.  So we back tracked back to the main road where we had turned off, oh well.  After a bit of consultation between the four of us we stuck to the main road and headed towards Agadir.  We had a chance at that point to head to Tiznit if we really wanted to but it would have meant backtracking so we decided against it.

Instead we decided to go off the main track and see Immouzzer Des Ida Outanane.  We figured that there had to be some benefit from all that rain and thought that if the rain had come this far the waterfall should be running.  Well that was the plan anyway.  We missed the turn.  Sigh.  So second side trip for the day that obviously was not meant to happen.

We followed the road which mostly hugged the coast up to Essaouira and with no more mishaps we ended up in Essaouira in the early afternoon.  We parked Gary just outside the Medina and walked in to find accommodation.  That took a little searching but really wasn’t that bad and we found rooms in about the fourth hotel we tried.  The rooms had been recently refurbished so quite nice and were about 300 dirham a night.  We had a balcony overlooking one of the main roads into the Medina and the beach was only a couple of minutes walk down the road.

After settling in it was time to fill up Gary and take him back to Avis.  It was a sad time for us all handing his keys back we said a fond goodbye and with sadness in our hearts at this parting of ways we slowly walked away.

That night we all met up with Dena, Joani and Joseph walking up to watch the sun set over the ocean.  Despite the people lining the walls it was somehow peaceful with the colours spreading across the sky and the sound of the waves crashing on the rocks below.  We slowly wandered through the port and fish market ending up at a cafe on the beach while the boys made the purchases for the evening meal.

Dena and Joani had an apartment and the owners had offered to cook the meal for us all.  I have to say it was one of the best meals we’ve had in Morocco so far.  The night passed with much laughter and the trading of, for the most part travel related stories.  Still all nights have to end and we said goodbye to Dena and Joani for the last time for this trip and headed back to our hotel.

On our return to the hotel we realised a number of things.  We were pretty much the only ones moving on the street.  Our hotel was in darkness and our key did not fit the front door.  Sigh.  A little bit of bashing on the front door with just enough time to contemplate what it would be like sleeping outside and finally someone came and opened up for us.

Essaouira

All up we spent nearly a week here in Essaouira.  I wish I could say that we filled our days with activities but we really didn’t.  Do not get me wrong I kind of like Essaouira and nearing the end of our trip it was nice to sit back, eat, drink, people watch and laze away the days on the beach or strolling through the markets.  I’m not really sure how we managed to fill the days but fill them we did and they certainly slipped by.

So here are a few bits and pieces from our time in Essaouira.

Being shat on by a seagull is good luck.  Right?

Walking along, as you do, minding our own business we were heading into the fish market and port.  We were walking past baskets containing all manner of seafood the fishermen were calling out and trying to entice us into buying their fish, others were industriously mending fishing nets, all manner of boats both small and large were bobbing away in the harbour and seagulls with their raucous cries were wheeling above. 

We were walking through slowly absorbing all this when Lilian and Lou exclaimed.  Esther and I were a little in front and looked back to see Lilian looking down at her now white splattered shirt.  Lilian looked up at us all and stopped to get a tissue to try and clean her shirt.

The award for dumb comment of the day goes to Lil who while trying to clean herself up said:

“Being shat on by a seagull is good luck…..... right?”

It certainly gave us all some amusement for the day.

Moral of the story.  Try your hardest to get shat on by a seagull because according to Lil it is good luck!

The Mystery of the Well Fed Cats

Walking around Essaouira I started to notice that the cats, that seemed to be everywhere looked very well fed and quite satisfied with themselves as only cats seem to be able to manage.

We ended up at the harbour once more and decided to have lunch at the fish stalls.  The stalls are great, just a row of tents with wooden tables, benches, a display of all manner of seafood different types of fish, prawns, lobster,  crab and a BBQ at the back sending out enticing aromas as the seafood was cooked up by the industrious staff.  The staff call out to you as you pass by trying to entice people to eat at their tent.  Now their really isn’t much difference in the various tents, the fish on sale is mostly the same and whatever they manage to catch that day, the menus are the same and so are the prices.  So went to a different tent every time we went there.

Having decided on a stall to eat at and picking out what prawns and fish we wanted we settled down on a bench to wait for our food content to people watch.

Now how is this about the cats you ask?

Well while we were waiting a cat walked carefully across the tent and ducked under the fish counter while the staff were busy trying to entice others into their stall.  We watched somewhat amused as the cat darted out at a run across the courtyard leaping elegantly over hedges with a large fish firmly clenched in its jaws, with a staff member who noticed the small four legged thief in hot pursuit!

Another cat, using the distraction caused by the first four legged thief crawled under the fish counter made its selection then quickly, quietly slipped out the back with its prize.

Now I am not a beach person but as said I liked Essaouira.  If you are tossing up whether to go or not then if you have the time I would suggest going.

What Else?

‘So what else did you do?’  Well I told you already we honestly did not do much of anything.  In the evenings we went down to a cafe on the beach.

 

We ate:

We sat on the beach:

We walked around in the markets, um you know, people watched, um, just generally did stuff!

Essaouira to Marrakesh

Ok so this entry is a little late on being put on the journal, by about three months to be honest. I did mean to do it earlier but that whole falling back into life at home thing kicked in and before I knew it not only have months passed by but the year has ticked over. Since so much time has passed I really wasn’t going to put up this entry. Then today for some reason I changed my mind and decided to at least put something up here. At least to show that yes I did go to this town.

What can I say about Marrakesh that has not been said by others in many different form and forums? Probably not much, if anything.

Marrakesh seems to evoke extremes in people’s point of view. People love it or they seem to hate it advising people on how dangerous it is or touristy or any other number of complaints that could probably be said about many cities around the world.

My view? I loved it.

Djemma el-Fna

Djemma el-Fna is what I really came to Marrakesh to see. I’d read so much about it before I came here and I wasn’t disappointed. Yes it was touristy but honestly I can not see how people could be shocked at that one if they had even bothered to read up about the place before they arrived. So yes you will find lots of tourists, after all Marrakesh is one of the gateways for Morocco. Still you will see local tourists as well which in some ways is kind of refreshing. One of the giveaways that this place is not just totally set up for foreigner tourists is that everything is in Arabic including the street entertainment.

At night the square comes alive filled with smoke from the street stalls, calls from the from the food stalls trying to entice you to eat at their stall intermingling with local musicians playing and singing, story tellers deep into their tale to an enthralled ring of spectators. Medicine men sit quietly waiting for customers, fortune tellers, dancers, water sellers, snake charmers, the list goes on and through it all you wander part of a heaving crowd.

Eating at the food stalls was great. You could and should wander through the stalls. You can see just about anything that is on offer to eat at these stalls all being cooked fresh in front of you. You can snack, getting bits and pieces from a variety of stalls to make up your meal or park yourself at a stall that takes your fancy and people watch, that is entertainment all in itself.

Souqs

I was in Marrakesh, the end of my trip. It was time to shop. Do not get me wrong. I am not really a shopper at heart, that is probably why I leave the whole shopping thing until last. That and not really being interesting in hauling purchases all over the countryside. So you are not going to get an enthralling description of the Souqs and everything you can buy in fine detail or the details of a mad last minute dash in to buy up the markets before leaving. After all I had time. Lou was doing a three day cooking course, which she highly recommends if you have the inclination and the spare cash and the time when you hit Marrakesh.

I spent a bit of time during the day wandering the Souqs and the shops out on the streets getting a feel for the cost of things. I’d been told by many to avoid buying anything in the Souqs as it was inevitably more expensive. Personally I did not find that to be true. Ok so you have to bargain a little harder in the Souqs, but hey that is half the fun. That and there is just something about bargaining and buying in the Souqs, there is just more atmosphere or something.

One stand out moment was after a few days and I finally jumped in to make a purchase, I brought a leather bag for a friend. I was just walking away from that stall quite happy with my first purchase when the guy selling shoes just down from the bags caught my attention and asked if I needed some shoes to go with the bag. I laughed and pointed to my boots and said no I did not need any more shoes.

He didn’t even blink before replying “Yes madam you do. You need 365 pairs of shoes. One for every day of the year!”

Then the bag seller chimed in with “Yes and the bags to match!”

They laughed, I laughed. That was the Souqs for me. That banter with the sellers as you wander through. The little man who ran after me brandishing his bag the price getting lower and lower without me even trying. It is just not the same in the regular shops.

Other Stuff

Now we went to see a variety of things around Marrakesh, but you guessed that didn’t you? After all we were here for about a week. I’m not going to list them all. It was the usual stuff one does when you go to a place. You know old former palaces, gardens, museums, tombs etc etc.

Still there was one stand out we went to Chez Ali. Lets not leave any doubt about this yes, in no certain terms, it is very touristy. Still we had a great night. Amazing food, bottle of wine and a seemingly endless stream of locals singing, dancing and playing instruments parading past our table the night ending in a pretty expressive display of horsemanship.

All up as I said I loved Marrakesh and I thought it was a great way to end our five and a half weeks in Morocco.