Blogs from Marrakech-Tensift-El Haouz, Morocco, Africa - page 69

My days in the Maghreb drew to a close. Mixed feelings. Anxiety - what lies beyond? Nostalgia - will this country ever leave me? Hurry - when will I get to Kenya? At Hotel Smara, just off the ramparts, Julie and Geraldine - two frenchgirls I met in Marrakech - waited for me. Despite the grey sky, they had good news. They'd met a nice moroccan guy who invited us for tea at a friend's restaurant. His name was Hassan. Craftsmanship was in his blood. Son of an artisan, he personified all I'd read about Africa. Tradition, heritage, tradition. He introduced us to the Gnawa Music. Rituals, soul and physical healing, trances. Animism, voodoo, capoeira? Perhaps. Its more inteligible facet being the Essaouira's Gnawa Festival. Held every year around the 26th June, it takes over squares ... read more

They may not be the Morocco you wanna see, but still, at some point, you'll have to come over here. In my case, I needed visas to Mauritania. Invaluable 'Africa on a Shoestring' told me to swap Fes for Rabat on a Sunday afternoon and make it to the Mauritanian Embassy as early as Monday 9am. So did I. It was 8 something when I got off the bus and saw the big sign for the Souissi II University. It didn't look at all like an embassy! No problems! I hailed a cab and reached the CORRECT address in time to be directed to 'Casa' (Casablanca) where the visas were actually issued. Again, no problems! I gladly went back to the city centre. There was some interesting sightseeing to be done. Impressive Tour Hassan, built to ... read more

Hello faithful readers! So, we somehow (after taking two buses, a beautiful ferry and an overnight train) made it to Marrakesh, which is right in the centre of Morocco. We found an Australian couple and clung to them, and eventually we were all dropped off in the main medina. Believe it or not, the very first thing we saw was a snake charmer...we knew right then that this place was made for us. After doing a bit of hotel shopping, we ended up at a very clean, very safe hotel where I proceeded to embarass myself deeply with my extremely limited French. We wasted no time in heading out to the market, and seriously? I do not have the adjectives to describe the utter chaos. Although a little overwhelming at first, OH MAN...I AM ON AN ... read more

We had a really great time in ESSAOUIRA last October . I can really reccomend this great town for a holiday . The Windsurfing is really AMAZING. The town has a great atmosphere and there is virtually NO hassle so if you are on a first time trip this is the place to be! Great Beaches , Some of the best SEAFOOD that I have ever tasted and its cheap! We were SO lucky with our accommodation - we stayed outside the town in the MOST Magical place I have ever been . Also it is great for groups of up to about 12-15 people - what fun we had! Their website is at moroccovilla ... read more

I am now in Marrakesh. I am not spending long here because I've got my Mauritanian Visa. The Visa is for one month from the day that it is issued. So, I need to make for the border. The Visa was issued yesterday. I was at the consulate at 8.30am. They said to come back at 3pm. I did, but they kept everyone waiting outside the Consulate for 1.5 hours! After getting the visa I did a bit of shopping including buying a new pair of Chino's for 100 Dirhams, from a shop which had everything for a 100 Dh offer on. I needed to replace my only pair of trousers as I had noticed they were developing an embarrassing hole! This morning I caught the 9.30 train from the Casa Voyageurs Station, which is about ... read more