Essaouira Morocco 10-21-08

The men wear slip on slipper type shoes. Arabs have pointed toes. Berbers are round toed. Morocco has about 32.7 million people and is the 57th largest country in the world. 4th largest in Africa.

Can you believe Im really in Africa This is such a trip.

40 percent of the people work in argiculture. The country seems sparcely populated to me and large farms are not apparent. Mostly along the highways you see few herds of goats scattering away as the bus passes through with a lonely goat herder resting under a tree. A couple of times we saw, of all things, goats standing on their hind legs by trees reaching for leaves in trees. Other times we actually saw goats in the tree branches.

On Tuesday 10-21-08 we traveled from Marrakech to Essaouira. These names are a lot easier to say once you hear them roll off the tongue of a local.

The soil around Marrakech is red as is the color of most of their buildings. We drove about 3.5 hrs to the fishing village on the coast to Essaouira. The fields were flat and filled zith small fist sized rocks: You could rack them up over and over and still not have enough soil to farm. Twigs of trees, probably olive trees, were planted in rows with a berm around them to collect water in hopes that some day an orchard would grow. On this road the property lines marked in the Casablanca region by cactus were exchanged for neatly stacked rock fences about 4 feet high. The fields were cleared off as best as they could, except for the rocks.

Seeing a donkey pulling a cart was common place as donkeys are the Berber's taxis. Bicycles also dotted the landscape as we went through small towns or villages. Some towns had weekly markets going on. The market was called the day of the week for example, Monday Market. If a village had a market then the community was considered to be vibrant.

I noticed one guy unloading his duffle bag full of shoes onto a blanket. These were not new shoes. This gives you some idea that the market is not just fresh fruit and vegetables but also many flea market resalables.

On the way to Essaouira we stopped off at a women’s coop that turns the locally grown Argon tree seeds to oil. Women were seated on the floor cracking open the Argon nuts. Then another woman takes the nuts and roasts then in a large flat pan stirring constantly over an open fire. The fire uses the shells and wood to keep the fire burning.

Then onto another women who grinds the roasted nuts into a paste. Stan tried to grind a bit and his arm was sore moving the big stone with a stick in it over the grinding stone. Not easy work for sure. The paste is then pressed to extract the oil used for skin moisturizer and the like.

There must be an easier way. This place was out in the country in the middle of nowhere so I really don’t think an updated factory was hiding in the back yard.

Each day along the way we stopped off for a restroom break and for coffee, tea or soda. Pepsi is found infrequently. Coke, Diet Coke or Coke Zero, Sprint, Fanta we almost always available at room temperature for about 10 dirhams or $1.25. The key was to order what the locals drink. Nos Nos - half milk half coffee served in a glass a little bigger than shot size. Mint green tea was also available served piping hot in a small skinny glass. Hold the top or it will burn your fingers. No super sized starbucks out here in the middle of Morocco.

As soon as the bus doors opened to Essaouira the smell of fish permeated the air. SeaGalls were circling over the Marine Arch where they hold the fish auctions each day at 2. Town shop owners come to buy fish from the center. We saw moray and conga eels, spider crabs, red snapper, sardines and other such catches of the day layed out on tables and in tubs on the ground.

You could buy one or many then take them over to the fish cleaner. He would clean your selection for a few dirhams. The seagulls enjoyed the bounty.

In Essaouira we stayed in Ryad Mogocoor hotel just outside the city across the street from the beach. It was top drawer with thick orange / gold brocade bedspread that matched similar fabric in the drapes and side chairs. The whole bathroom was decorated in blue and white tile. It was a delight with manicured large court yard and a swimming pools with water as still as a cool evening night. The buffet offered scrumptious food like beef tips, tender chicken as well as vegetables, rice and many fresh salads. Choices of desserts were endless; flan, tiny chocolate cookies and tarts.

No time to ride the camel on the beach in the sunset as we were very tired from our city tour. We walked through the narrow streets of Essaouira. This was a much different walk from the souk in Marrakech. Still like a labyrinth, but no motorcycles and this was mixed use with shops and residences. Many doors were painted blue for good luck. I photographed a lot of them as we walked.

At the end of the walk we learned about wood carving and inlay work. Beautiful things, but too heavy to carry home. One person with our group bought the most interesting table that nested together in three parts like a puzzle. She had it shipped home. It was an art piece for sure.