Adieu, Morocco; Hola, Canarias!

Leaving Morocco

Wow, leaving Morocco today was a lot harder than I thought it would be.  There are several new friends and people whom I will miss very much.  Although these last few days have been difficult, I definitely enjoyed my time here, and I’ve come to love many things about this…

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Ait Ben Haddou…or Do not. Your call.

I arrived in Ouarzazate yesterday rather late in the evening, on the bus from M’Hamid via Zagora.   I was happy that I knew exactly where I was going already, since I’d called ahead and talked to the guys at Hotel Baba about getting a room again and the hotel is…

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Ramadan Moon Rising

The day after I returned from the desert, Hassan invited me to join him and his family at their house in the evening, to celebrate the beginning of Ramadan.  I hadn’t really intended to still be in Morocco when Ramadan began, as I have been hearing horror stories about everything…

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Journey to Desert’s Edge

After leaving Legzira, I spent one night in a town called Taroudant. I stayed in a nice little riad, but was only in the town for a very short time, so although I walked around in the Kasbah a bit, I didn’t really go to any specific locations or see…

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Lieu Experiences

The past couple of days have been pretty chill.  I needed it, I think, after the chaos and commotion of the music festival, fantastic though it was.  I’ve been staying at the Riad Le Lieu in Tiznit, a lovely little hotel just inside the kasbah.  After getting me checked in…

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And the Bands Move On….

Leaving Essaouira was hard, and the suckiness of the actual journey only reinforced for me the idea that maybe I should have stayed longer.  The day started out so well…. When Ana and I got up on our last day in Essaouira, we were just in time to go meet…

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Music Lessons and All-NightClubs

Anna and I had decided to stay an extra night in Essaouira after the festival ended and so we got a hotel room near the center square of town to share the next day.  She’d been staying at another friend’s house the previous night or two, so we met up…

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Sand Castles and River Homes

Ismael, Anna and I had made plans to meet up with Anas and Haitem over coffee the following morning.  Coffee, was a leisurely experience, as most of our mornings thus far have been, with different friends popping in and out to join us for a coffee. I think my favorite…

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Beaches and VIP Concert Moments

The second day of the music festival, we decided to go to Sidi Kaouki, which is a town near to Essaouira known for having a particularly beautiful beach.  Youness is a surfer, so he goes there a lot and wanted to show us the area.  His sister decided to join us, along…

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Essaouira, Port of Timbuktu

Wow.  Essaouira is so amazing!  It’s been such a whirlwind since I arrived that I haven’t had a chance to write anything down and I have so much to say, but I’m going to give it a go! I’ve totally hit it off with Anna, the girl from Belgium who…

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It’s Akchour Thing!

Akchour is, indeed, spectacular.  I am so glad I went even though it took a bit of doing to get there.  First, I walked from my hotel in the kasbah in Chefchaouen to the square where I could get a petite taxi to take me to the place where I could catch…

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Chefchaouen Blues

After an long bus ride, I just arrived in Chefchaouen, a town in Northern Morocco up in the Rif mountains. It’s a beautiful town, known for the way most of the buildings have been painted blue and white.  It looks a bit like I’d imagine a little mountain Santorini would be.  I…

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Figs, Fountains, and Facials in Fes

  Yesterday, after breakfast, Maia and I decided to go to a garden the French woman in our home recommended.  She used to live here in Morocco, so she’s pretty comfortable here and knows her way around.  Since the Jardin Jnane Sbil is relatively near to the Bab Boujloud (Blue Gate)…

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