Morocco Travels 2024

This morning I skip breakfast and the morning tour to sleep.  Judith ends up going out with our guide to tour the port.  Although I’m sorry to miss out on this part of the tour (I suffer from FOMO in a big way - fear of missing out), I know that trying to get better was more important.  So using Judith’s four pictures she sent me (really I would have had about a hundred!) I’ve put together a port recap. Essaouira Port is known to be a pretty lively place.  It used to be the major port for Morocco up until the middle of the 19th century, handling half of the country’s foreign trade (which unfortunately was involved in trade items since abolished such as slave and ivory trading).  Today it’s mainly a fishing port.  I’m told, the fishermen go out in the evening and return in the morning.  Sardines are an important part of the fishery.  Where there are fish, there are also seagulls and so this port is chock full of seagulls, squawking and fighting for...

On the agenda today is a long drive to the coastal town of Essaouira.  It’s supposed to take about 2 and a half hours, and only because it’s not a major city, so the road system involves secondary highways.  On secondary roads where the route takes you through rural areas, not only are the speed limits lower, the number of clean bathrooms also reduces significantly.  Bathrooms are either squat or western style and clearly (and I can speak for Judith on this) our preference is for western toilets.  The guide and driver know where these toilets are throughout the route.  So when they ask if we want a toilet break, we can always ask how long it will be if we don’t take advantage of the one coming up.   The scenery is always interesting.  Here the topography changes from the Atlas Mountain range to the south to flatter plains as we move towards the coast.  I find going through the various villages and towns to be an interesting snapshot of Moroccan li...

Today we head for the hills, literally.  We’re heading out of town from Marrakech to the Atlas Mountains to enjoy some countryside scenery.  I’m planning to do a bit of hiking in the hills.  Judith, who is less of a hiker, will chill at the Kasbah Tamadot, a 43 room hotel owned by Richard Branson.  The story is that he bought it for his mother Eve Branson.  She was with him in around 2005 when he was in Morocco to launch his around the world trip in an air balloon.  She was able to tour the surrounding Berber villages and decided to set up a charity to help the Berber community.  The hotel was purchased for her to raise funds for the Berber community and to provide a new source of employment and training.  We’ll be having lunch there.  Judith will be enjoying some quiet pleasant reading time while I’m out hiking.   The drive starts off on the flat lands before we reach the Atlas Mountains.  We can see the usual commerce of street ve...