DAY 13 ESSAOUIRA

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A guided tour of the town followed a late breakfast allowing enough time to build our appetite for an amazing BBQ seafood lunch. The heart of the town is the 300 year old medina (relatively new by Moroccan standards) & the much older Portuguese fortified ramparts & towers at the working fishing port.

Essaouira is renowned for its silver products, filigree jewellery & carved polished timber. The best timber is from the enormous bulbed roots of ancient thuya trees that is now inlayed with modern sustainable timber replacements for ebony & ivory as well as mother of pearl etc.

While we were touring, our guide went to the port to select 6 varieties of fish from the overnight catch to bring to a hole in the wall type kitchen where an endless supply of the freshest I have ever tasted arrived at our table. Normal table manners were temporarily put aside as hands became the cutlery of choice. The most surprising & delicious fish was grilled sardines.

A brief rest was required to prepare us for a hammam, a traditional sauna, body scrub, massage & stretch. The stretching was much less brutal than expected. The whole experience was great with & gave me a much better appreciation of the importance of cleanliness in the Muslim faith.

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Photos

Fishing boats in the harbour
The small blue boats are long line fishers while the larger boats are for sardines.

Kite surfing
Perfect windy conditions

View from the beach
Back to the ramparts, Medina & mosque