Blogs from Essaouira, Marrakech-Tensift-El Haouz, Morocco, Africa - page 11

i guess my journey to Morocco began leaving Lagos and transferring a billion times to end up in Seville, Spain by the night. yes a full day of travel to only end up a couple hundard miles away. so we qrrive in Seville too late to find a hostel so we decided to sleep at the sation lol WELL....the station closed at midnight so we randonly walked around town for a bit then passed out on the street outside the station lol with the bums! i am so dead serious. I pretty much curled up in the fetal position and slept while Mallory stayed awake cuz she was too scared lol but it was actaully really safe. there were lots of other trqvellers who did the same thing and the police were around us the ... read more

The wind! It never stops in Essaouira. When I put this to our hotelier she smiled and said “pas toujours, mais souvent”! The huge beach was a splendid site nonetheless, particularly on a Sunday morning when no fewer than twenty separate football games were being played on pitches marked in the sand. Don’t miss the fresh fish stalls where you can have your choice of the latest catch grilled on the spot. Although the prices per kilo are marked on an official board, you should still haggle, as you do for most things in Morocco! Including for our ride on the camels along the edge of the sea - the highlight of the trip for my children at any price! ... read more

Here we are in yet another UNESCO-listed medina, this time in the charming, picturesque, and vowel-laden fishing town of Essaouira. We have kind of backtracked a little, after spending a few days in the Atlas Mountains south of Marrakech, but the thought of good seafood and cool sea breezes was too enticing yesterday afternoon, when we were delivered back into the searing, smoggy heat of Marra. First - the Atlas. Suze and I entertained grandiose dreams of trekking up North Africa's highest mountain, Jebel Toubkal, and so we made our way up to the village of Imlil, at the foot of the great peak. From Marrakech, this meant a very tight squeeze in a grand taxi, which is not as grand as it sounds, it is basically just a 1970s-model Mercedes sedan with six passengers shoved ... read more

Well it's the last day before we disappear into the deserts of Western Sahara so everyone is busy making the most of internet and showers as there won't be any for over a week now. The things you end up considering as luxuries! You should have seen our campsite the other day, 26 people's laundry strung up to dry is quite a sight. And typically we had the first rain in weeks the afternoon we hung it all out! I've had a fantastic few days, some of the best yet. We spent three days in Marrakech, exploring the souks (markets) and eating so much food (no surprise there!). There are so many fabulous things to buy here (if only I had the money and space): gorgeous, brightly coloured, soft leather slippers; intricately inlaid wooden boxes; beautiful ... read more

Three years ago in Tunisia, I read my first word in Arabic. It was written on a wall and I sounded it out. Shukran, which means Thank you. A guide overheard me as I said it out loud and praised me. I was quite happpy. The next time I figured out an Arabic word was Saturday. It was the letter miim' next to some numbers on a road sign. Miim means M and M next to some numbers on a road sign means meters! I was on a role and read my third word just yesterday. It was written Baa'...Alif'...Ray'. Yep, I figured out the word for bar. If I was't in a country where a woman drinking alone in a bar is considered a prostitute, I definetly would've gone in to celebrate with a beer. ... read more