Hougang Herald: Back to the coast and Marakesh

It was time to leave the Atlas Mountains behind but first we had to walk back to the village at the bottom of the valley...about a fifty minute walk. It was useful that both of us were born in the Year of the Goat as most of the walk was on what appeared to be a goat track!

We watched the sunshine hit the top of Jebel Toubkal as we made our way back to the bus. We had a different bus today, same driver, after yesterday's frequent stops to attend to an 'annoying light ' on the dashboard. The road was very narrow and winding and we experienced a rapid stop on one corner to accommodate a passing truck...if Michael had stuck his finger out the window he could have touched the truck and on my side I was looking straight down into the river a few hundred feet below. A kick start for the heart.
Our hosts had packed us a picnic so we stopped for lunch in a eucalyptus grove, then gave what hadn't been eaten to a homeless man on the side of he road.
Before arriving in Essaouria, we visited an argon oil factory to see the process. The argon tree produces a fruit which has a seed a little like an almond. The kernel is processed and the oil used for salads as well as cosmetics. A few purchases were made.

Argon fruit

Nuts are ground, residue formed into patties for animal food, oil used in cosmetics and salad dressing.

By the time we arrived at Essaouria, on the coast, the skies had opened and it was very much like north coast winters day...cold, wet and blustery.

The name Essaouira means image, which is appropriate since it's such a picturesque town. This laidback artists' town is a former Portuguese trading colony and was once home to sizeable British and Jewish populations. The town faces a group of rocky islands - called the Mogador - and is surrounded by an expanse of sandy beaches and dunes.

It's still a busy fishing port and its pretty harbour is filled with tiny colourful boats which go out early every morning for the day's catch. Visitors who have been seduced by its charms include Orson Welles and Jimi Hendrix, who (according to local legend) spent much of his time here in the 1960s. More recently, filmmaker Ridley Scott chose the ramparts as an important location for his film, Kingdom of Heaven.

Busy seaport of Essaouira

Samir took us to a local restaurant for a very tasty meal and an introduction to Gnaoua music. This form of music was brought to Morocco centuries ago by slaves from he south. The main instrument is a guitar made from camel skin...and the performer is able to swing the tassel on his fez while he plays!

Our guided tour the next morning with Rashida was very interesting as Essaouira has a mixed history. She also pointed us to the best hot chocolate cafe in town, which of course some us visited.

After having the best tagine to date, lamb with prunes and almonds, I wandered through the medina while Michael went with some of the others to experience a hammam. He came back feeling very relaxed after have boiling water poured over him, sitting in the steam room, being covered in black soap which was then removed, before being exfoliated with a 'sandpaper' glove...his description. There was also a massage thrown in there as well.

Samir shopped for dinner ingredients and the hotel cooked us Tagines around the fireplace. We followed up with a few rounds of cards before people succumbed to weariness.

The weather had cleared a little the next morning so we took a stroll along the beachfront before checking out the best hot chocolate in town...and it was seriously good! We returned to our lunch spot of yesterday before boarding the local bus for the drive to Marrakesh.

By the time we arrive everyone was weary, including Samir, so we ate a delicious meal in the hotel and retired early.

We all decided that a walking tour was a good way to introduce us to Marrakesh so Samir organised a guide for us. During the tour we visited the Palais Bahia, the ruins of the Palais Badi, reputedly one of the most beautiful palaces in the world in its time and the Saadian tombs, a recently uncovered gem of the Medina. After a wander through the souk we returned to the Place Djemaa el-Fna for our final group dinner. In the evening the area is full of singers, drummers, dancers, snake charmers, fortune tellers, tooth pullers, storytellers, jugglers and even old medicine men, who all make up what has been dubbed the 'greatest spectacle on earth'...but if you even look like taking a photo there is someone by your side immediately asking for money!

Souk in Marrakesh

The majority of our group departed the next morning but 4 of us had booked in for a tagine cooking class. Karima met us at a local coffee shop and after buying all our ingredients, including VERY fresh chickens we went to her home. Her mother and sister help with the preparations, while we had a demo on the correct way to make mint tea before cooking our Lemon Chicken Tagine.

After our lunch it was time to prepare for a train trip to Casablanca where we had an overnight stop before flying back to Singapore.