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Essouria, a restful change from Marrakech
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Today we caught a bus to Essouria which is about 3 hours from Marrakech on the coast. The road took us through many small towns which had active food markets in operation along the main road. The bus driver had to sound his horn on many occasions in order to move along pedestrians, horse and carts, cars or trucks. Using the horn while driving seems to be a Moroccan national pastime; it says hello, good bye and ``please get out of the way''.
Along the way we saw one vine plantation; which I could only assume was for table grapes as I understand that alcohol is decriminalised. That said, I have also heard that Morocco has some quite good wines; indicating people will always work around prohibition. At about the half-way point we stopped for a break, which was either a compulsory rest stop for the driver, or an opportunity for the bus company to share a bus-load of thirsty & hungary tourists with a local business operator which they probably had shares in. My cynical mind (and the connected nature of business in Morocco) suggests that the later would have been the case.Coffee at this stop was quite cheap at only 10dh (less than one euro)! That said, Shellie and I rested on the bus; the stop providing Shellie with another opportunity to continue knitting the rug for Niklas. In the background we could hear the Eagles playing over the shops speakers. I think it may be a CD they bring out for the Western Tourists.As we were travelling during a period of rain the rivers flowing alongside and beneath road bridges were filled and flowing quickly. I also had the opportunity to witness a twister beginning to form while we were at the rest stop. While it was not an impressive as watching a Tornado in the USA it was still quite spectacular; even though this one did not make it to the ground.After we left the stop it was not long before the colour of the buildings started to change colour. In Marrakech many of the structures are red; or coloured from the red end of the spectrum. In Essouria, the primary colour is blue; more specifically white buildings with blue highlights (window frames, doors etc). This reflects Essouria's bond with the ocean. Red Mosques was replaced with white ones. Similarly the crop being grown changed. Marrakech is Orange and Olive central; the Essouria region is famous for the production of Argan oil.We are staying in a Ryad within the Medina. Our room is on the top floor with an open air balcony facing east. We have a view over the Medina wall into greater Essouria; across the rooftops of our neighbours. Our first walk this afternoon was cut short by rain. As luck would have it, this was the only afternoon on our entire trip to date when we didn't have our wet weather gear; and would you believe it, it got heavier the closer we got to our hotel, stopping not long after we returned to get our wet weather gear. We think this was a sign that we are beginning to get a little holiday tired :) The rain enforced break allowed Shellie to return to her knitting and for me to catch-up on my notes over the last few days before we set out to watch our first sunset in Essouria.On this second walk we didn't get wet - it didn't rain; the rain gods must have known we have our wet weather gear this time. We started by walking along the beach. The high-tide mark was clear; marked by the presence of waste wood, mud and some (not very much) non-organic garbage which would have flowed down the nearby river mouth due to the rain of the last several days. There was also tractor marks on the beach, evidence the locals had already started to clear the beach (and it still hadn't finished raining). This river wash was also evident in the water - it was a brown colour (rather than blue) from all the top soil.The sun started to set, so we headed back towards the Medina to see what we could see before night set in and it got to dark. We walked past a the Ryad Mogador; Mogador was the name for Essouria prior to WW I. Eventually we reached the harbour wall to watch the sunset, which was rather spectacular. During watching the sunset we got up close and personal with the worlds largest seagulls. OK, I know they are not seagulls; but they look similar and you certainly would not one stealing a chip!After sunset we continued our exploration of the Medina; the vibe of which was very different to Marrakech. Essouria is more laid-back. We happily walked along, viewing the shops and seeing was was on offer at the various restaurants. Many shops here had marked prices; something we had become used to not seeing in Djemaa el-Fna and the Marrakech Souks.In some ways perhaps visiting Essouria prior to Marrakech would have been good as we would have had an idea of what to expect in the Souks; also what represented fair value, which would have helped during a negotiation should one have started. All would have prepared us for the hustle, bustle and in-your-face style which is doing business in Marrakech. This flip side of course is after Marrakech, we are finding Essouria a very relaxing place; and we may have thought the rest of Morocco was like this!We eventually settled for dinner at a small restaurant recommended by our Ryad; Petit le Perle. Dinner comprised of a hot Moroccan salad, a vegetable cous-cous, a vegetable Tagine and a yogurt for desert. Appetisers comprised of breed and olives (black standard and flavoured); with a serve of Moroccan Mint-tea. The total cost was 125dh, or less than 12 euro (24 australian); and we were both so full!To walk off dinner we decided to head for the beach at night. We learnt the beach is fully lit; it appears it has been designed to accommodate night swimming in the summer months. Tomorrow we plan to explore the Medina in more detail. The cost of food at restaurants is low, and the markets are friendly, so we feel we will be eating well (and cheaply) here for the next few days.PS: An interesting sub-note on the cost of transport. For our trip between Berlin and Frankfurt (on the train) we spent $255 euro (about $500 Australian) to cover about 700km. For our trip between Marrakech and Essouria, a distance of 180km we spent 13 euro. It seems that the richer the nation, the more expensive the public transport is. Strange, you would kind of expect it to be the other way around.
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