Blogs from Essaouira, Marrakech-Tensift-El Haouz, Morocco, Africa

No onibus, enviei uma mensagem ao Jamal, meu host em Ouarzazate. Para minha surpresa ele estava em Essaouira e ofereceu o apartamento onde estava para eu dormir. Nos encontramos na Medina e fomos para o apartamento. Conheci o povo, uma italiana e outros 6 Marroquinos, super divertidos. Com direito a banho e massa de janta. Dormi na sala com o povo. O Jamal me levou para conhecer Medina e tambem a praia. O Jamal disse que estava disponivel para viajar comigo se eu quisesse. Bom, jah que estou no Marrocos por que nao? Fomos para Ouarzazate dormir na casa da irma dele e na manha seguimos para a casa dos pais dele em Kellat M Gouna. Chegamos na casa dos pais dele e me receberam maravilhosamente bem. A irma dele de Ouarzazate estava lah com os ... read more

Leaving the hustle and bustle of Marrakesh we drive through terribly poor, stony farms. Sparse shoots of wheat poke between the dirt and stones. Sheep and goats grazing on what I am not sure, but did find a group up a thorny tree. I kid you not. A local boy wanting some Dirams for that photo. The country is flat, boring and stark. Not at all what I thought it would be between Marrakesh and the Coast. Essoura ( I have no idea how to spell this town) is a white washed fishing village on the coast. Trying to become a tourist town I think. A big sandy beach sweeps up to the harbour full of blue wooden fishing boats. Battlements of stone walls surround the town, protecting it from the ocean and long ago the ... read more

Morocco Day 10 We left the high Atlas Mountains this morning as the first of this year’s snow had fallen on the peaks visible from our hotel. The journey to Essaouira took about four hours skirting the outskirts of Marrakesh, showing us some of the high end hotels and future golf resorts. We will see the city centre when we start our proper visit there on Wednesday. The hotel we were staying in was about four miles from the nearest metalled road, in the town of Ourika, which is actually a collection of Berber villages. Monday is market day and whereas yesterday when we walked through to visit the gardens there was a road, today it was not visible for people, animals and carts. However Abdul found his way through, by the use of the horn. ... read more

The Atlantic Coast – Essaouira This was the most relaxed of all Moroccan towns. Essaouira is a magical place of whitewashed streets, wide sandy beaches and a chaotic fishing port, famous for its craftsmen with local thuya wood. The town attracts artists and photographers, as well as windsurfers who consider Essaouira’s surf the best in Africa. Souirah means “beautifully drawn”, and the town has a definite European feel, designed by a French slave of Sultan Sidi Mohammed in 1760. The fishing port is the focus of the town. Tourism rivals sardines as the major industry. We had to have lunch in the port where you go to a stall and choose your lunch. The fish stall vendors were so loud and boisterous waving and coaxing you in every language possible to eat at their stall. Once ... read more

As the Grand Taxi drops us back in Marrakech from our hiking trip in the High Atlas we agree that our first priority should be to buy bus tickets for the next leg of our journey - a couple of days in the coastal city of Essaouira. Two years ago when we were here, a transport strike thwarted our plans to travel to the Atlantic Coast, so this time we were sure not to miss out. Supratours buses operate quite a few services a day between Marrakech and Essaouira so we had assumed we had a pretty good chance of choosing when we wanted to leave. At the counter we find out that first two buses of the day are fully booked; there are only five seats left on the 2:30pm bus; and for reasons beyond ... read more