Canary Islands to Agadir

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27 April 2009

After two ports of call, Tenerife, in the Canary Islands and Agadir in Morocco and after days without good internet access, I’ll have to basically compare the two experiences.

Santa Cruz city in Tenerife was a surprise. I had been expecting isolated islands to be more quaint and somewhat behind the times. Nothing could have been more unexpected than to find a modern cosmopolitan city with every convenience, including a state of the art tram system.

This may be because the islands have become a popular destination for English and German tourists and expatriates (retirees who find sunny places to retire in foreign lands). The first sign of that was a daily paper in English. The Euro was the currency, since the islands are part of Spain, and the islands have fewer taxes than the mainland. The islands also have nearly ideal weather year ‘round.

The local issues are traffic, development, building a ring road around the island despite protests by environmentalists and others against new development. All the good and many of the ills of mainland life were observed. Pleasant place to visit, but not exceptional.

Agadir, Morocco is a different story. The original city was destroyed by an earthquake in 1960. The new city was built to the modern standards of the ‘60s and there it stays. It is a mix of squat toilets and western toilets, of resorts catering to Europeans, with a hard core of every day Islamic culture at every turn.

The local zoo is old-fashioned and rather small. Children can throw whatever they want to the animals. Some of the traffic has cars that are old and weather-beaten, but still running as taxis. Buses for tourists from the ship had airconditioning modules but they did not work.

I had a chance to talk with some students about the economy. They said it was agriculture based and that they still had to import some essentials, such as wheat, from the US, because their orange groves were an export crop that provided foreign exchange—along with tourism.

To tell the truth, the city resembled another instant, “modern” city I saw many years ago in India, Chandigarh—designed by a European—and one which began to decay before it was finished.

I’m certain that the many beach resort hotels provide great vacations, and the beaches seemed to be very popular before the winds changed at mid-day and began gusting dust everywhere. But the fact remained that the mid-20th century is still where Agadir stands with even more ancient ways within a short drive.

Traditional beggars on the street. A country man with beard and gray caftan leading a son through the city—the boy with mouth agape. Men in cafes drinking coffee and arguing without a woman to be seen—unless it was with small children, and then not in the society of men. Only western women walked unaccompanied and westernized Moroccan women always walked in no less than pairs.

Based on the condition of public transport, I suspect it is a good thing that camels and donkeys are available for use.

Having said that, It is a place that was very hospitable, Very good food, even better coffee. The local bread was phenomenal, especially a traditional flat bread drizzled with honey. I would choose to take a second look if I had the chance.

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Photos

Football in Santa Cruz
Children at a pickup game in the street after school.

A quiet spot
A cafe on a colorful side street in Santa Cruz

Energy efficient siding
Tourists shooting a picture by the roof of the Tenerife tourist office.

Agadir
In a dry place running fountains are a pleasure

A Morrocan student
People everywhere in Agadir seemed friendly. This young man wanted me to take his picture