The road back to Casablanca & beyond

We left Essaouira, and backtrack slightly to one of the argan oil cooperatives that we didn't have time to get to on our drive into town. As we enter, we are greeting by singing Berber women, and our guide Amina begins to explain the processes. Extracting the oil (for either cosmetic or culinary uses) is a very labor-intensive, and fairly primitive process. One woman cracks the nut on a rock, another removes the outer shell, exposing the seed, another begins grinding the seeds with a mortar & pestle-type device (she toasts the seeds first if producing oil for culinary uses; untoasted only for cosmetic), and another collects the paste that is formed from the grinding. About 50 women are part of the co-op (argan oil production is purely women's work), and Amina says they enjoy the work, hang out, etc. Some in our group do question the methods of extraction. Surely there is something more mechanized that would result in greater yields, but she says no, this is the only way.

Moroccans have been using argan for centuries, and here at the co-op they have all different kinds of products to purchase (what a surprise!). Amina explains how in cosmetics, it's used to keep the skin smooth & elastic, takes away wrinkles, etc. Foodwise, they have both the oil, and a nut butter thing called amlou, which is the oil, ground almonds, & honey; we get a taste & it's delicious on its own, but is usually used in desserts.

Returning to the bus, we head up the coast to Safi, a town known for its pottery. We stop first at a museum of pottery, and then to the pottery market where we can wander for a few. You can see the kilns just up the hill from where we are. Continuing up the coast, the landscape is interesting. Rolling green hills, with innumerable low stone walls.... they're go on and on, as far as you can see! The walls mostly made small quadrants, or I am guessing pens for the animals, but they weren't very high. I wonder how many generations they have been there.... On to a seaside town called Oualidia, where we have lunch at hotel called L'hippocampe, or Seahorse. We sit on the patio overlooking the water, and are treated to a nice meal of soup (I think it was some sort of pureed lentils in a fish broth), a whole grilled fish (dorado) drizzled with basil oil, and a pretty good flan for dessert. Don't know why, but I was fascinated with the fishbones!


Onward to Casablanca.... the area just past (and before) where we had lunch is a rich agricultural area, including the mining of sea salt, which you can see the pools from the road. (I was on the wrong side of the bus, and couldn't get a picture, but I thought it was neat!) There were mounds of salt, that I'd say were the size of 4 tractor trailers put together. Now I know where my sea salt that I found in the souks comes from! We make it to our hotel, the impressive Golden Tulip Farah, a luxurious accommodation, especially after our last place. Jen, Susan, Louise, Peggy, Mom and I decide to have our last meal of the trip at the onsite Moroccan restaurant. Kefta, kebobs, lamb & veggie couscous, and some nice pastries for dessert. A good meal to end the trip!

The bus leaves for the airport at 8 am. Casablanca seems like a total maze of streets and traffic, and 45 minutes later, we're at the airport. Getting through security is surprisingly easy, though they don't board people in a orderly fashion, like back of the plane first. It takes almost an hour to get on and seated. Once we take off for NYC, a very a pro pro meal of beef couscous & sauted veg. Not one of the more satisfactory meals on the trip, but heading home is a good thing. It's been a great trip with fun people, but my own bed calls!

Essaouira

Sunset in Essaouira

Monday, we left the Palais Salam and Taroudant behind, we head west to the coast and Essouaria. We go through the city of Agadir, which holds very little appeal from what we could see, but is a big beach & casino vacation spot for Europeans. Up the coast a bit more, through more argan tree/goat territory, and we reach the seaside town of Essouaria for lunch. I've got the name of it someplace, and while it certainly caters to the tourists, it was good food. All fried (but not greasy) -- calamari, sole, red snapper, and something else I know don't remember. Then to the hotel, the Hotel des Iles, right on the water and by the entrance to the medina.

As they say, location, location, location, and hate to say it, but that's all this place has going for it. Things have been a small comedy of errors. They didn't have a room for our guide, because they overbooked; they couldn't find our room key when we came back from a walk, and it turns out they gave it to another duo in our group, but it seems that ALL the keys open ALL the room doors. Great. The light above my bed didn't work, and while the wiring is clearing coming out of the wall, the bulb was dead. They came and replaced it, but then it turns out something else was wrong with it and they couldn't fix it til morning. Dinner was a huge buffet for us and the other tour bus of Israelis, a few other Americans here too. The buffet wasn't exactly stellar, with a lot of raw veggies that we cannot eat, some poorly cooked fish, and flavorless chicken. The pomme frits were the hit of the night, though actually, the desserts were good too.

We had the opportunity to walk around the medina for a bit before dinner. It does have a nice relaxed feel, and not the pressures to buy stuff like in the big cities. Old hippie, surfer town, fairly tranquil. My mother WAS offered 1000 camels, plus a cat named Mimi for me....

Tuesday, we took a quick drive over to a woodworking studio, which is one of the main crafts they are known for here. It was incredible to see the inlay work they do, I've never know how it was done! I think almost all of us walked out of there with some treasures. We had the rest of the day on our own. Wandered around the medina a bit more, and ate some very good thin crust pizza for lunch, a nice change of pace!



I've take too many cat photos! These were at one of the street-side shops.


We had our farewell dinner just inside the medina, at a place called Dar Loubane, which is owned by a French woman. On the heels of our great meal at the Riad Maryam, this too was one of our better meals (and the portions were just right!). We sat out on the courtyard, with portable heaters in the wings. We started with wine, olives, eggplant, tomato sauce, calamari w/ tomatoes, a nice pastilla, and a trio of tagines: lamb with apricots, beef with eggplant, and a firm white fish with caramelized onions & raisins. Monkfish kabobs appeared, as well as rice & sauteed squash. Dessert was a trio of chocolate mouse, different Moroccan cookies, and a creamy white sauce, sort of like melted ice cream. Back to the hotel for another night of seagulls squawking all through the night....

In & Around Taroudant

My one group photo, taken on my camera by Harvey, at the delightful Riad Maryam.



After getting a better look at our hotel in the daylight, we took off to the far side of town (really, maybe 1.5 miles away, tops) for the open air market. We had time to wander by ourselves through the used clothes, and then the more interesting produce (seeing the items we had seen growing along the road yesterday), spices, and the livestock. We then went inside the kasbah, and into the souk. After some wandering around, we visited two antique shops apparently run by the same people. I am getting tired of being herded to certain shops (where our local guide probably gets some sort of commission), where the men working there hover non-stop, trying to make a sale with their promises of “we have good price.” Twice today, the guy tried to put a necklace on me that my mother tried on, and both times I quickly backed off, and said No. I know it's their way, but I take it as an invasion of personal space!

Finding the place for lunch at first was a bit dubious, as we were walking through some back alleys to find what turned out to be the incredibly lovely Riad Maryam, named for the proprietor's daughter, who was our server. It was a beautiful courtyard, with a long table set up for us. And when they say lunch is the main meal of the day here, they're not kidding. It all begin with a pureed vegetable soup with fish stock (I think) in it. Then sauted young zucchini with a light tomato sauce. Then came the baby eggplant. Then a big mixed vegetable plate (all cooked), with carrots, cauliflower, beets, potatoes, green beans, and I think parsnips. Then a chicken kabob for each. Then a fava bean & green pea salad. Then a salad of cuke, tomatoes, and what was probably green bell peppers, or an extremely mild green chile. Then kefta kabob for each. At this point, we were all fairly full, but suspicious, because they hadn't removed our dinner plates yet. Then they brought out the tagines, and at that point, we told them we simply couldn't eat any more. I HOPE we did not insult them by refusing their main course, but everything up to that point was delicious, but it was a crazy amount of food! So we asked them to bring dessert, expecting fruit or a cookie. Maryam brings out this gorgeous layered dessert; Our guide called it a jowhara, meaning “jewel”, and that is was! (Looking at my book on Moroccan foods, I am pretty sure this fantastic thing is called a keneffa.) It was like traditional French crepes, flash fried, so they were crispy, layered with a light pastry cream with cinnamon, honey, peanuts and almonds in between the multitude of layers. It looked beautiful, and tasted even better! A superb treat, and their hospitality was wonderful.





Back to the hotel for a bit, and then we took carriage rides around the kasbah. I got to be one of the lucky ones and sit with the driver. Fortunately (or not) my driver was young, 32 to be exact, and rather handsome. But he was definitely interested in meeting me later for coffee or tea, and showing me the town. Very persistent! And even though I said I was traveling with my mother and aunt, he kept saying how beautiful I was and how he would wait for me after the group's dinner. Blah, blah, blah. Very persistent though...He asked if I had a boyfriend, and I said yes. I was prepared to tell him my boyfriend's name was Charlie, and just leave out the fact that he has 4 legs and a furry tail! This town seems to be the place for men, as the hotel porter, Abdul from Mali, whom I was talking to about Obama, asked me if I had a boyfriend.

My, cough, knight in shining armour:

Through the Anti-Atlas Mountains

Photos: Goats in the argan trees; argan nuts, with the fabulous Moroccan tangerines!

So, we've been through the Middle Atlas and the High Atlas, and today we got the Anti-Atlas. Creative with the names, no? We left Zagora – thankfully not on camel – and headed back west, stopping for some photo ops along the way. The first hour is fairly flat, driving along the palm oases, and then it gets more hilly as we get into the Anti Atlas. Very pretty, fairly uneventful drive. We were supposed to stop at a weaving cooperative, but for some reason, they will not see us, and we're all a bit unsure as to why, so we continue down the road, looking for a place for lunch. We find a small restaurant in the middle of saffron country, and they are also of course happy to sell the saffron. The guy says “it's the real thing, the best quality,” and I tend to believe him. Outstanding price on a large quantity of the stuff, and they made a good lunch too – meatballs with a light tomato & saffron sauce.

As we head further west towards our destination of Taroudant, we come into the region were the argan trees grow. The oil from argan nuts has been used for centuries in Morocco for both cosmetic and culinary purposes. Some is exported to Europe, while the US seems to be still just learning about it. For culinary uses, it has a nice light smell, not unlike toasted sesame oil. While I haven't yet tried it (I did smell it) yet, apparently it makes for wonderful salad dressing. What also makes argan unusual is its method of preparation. The nuts are eaten by goats, who climb up in the trees for them, and their digestive systems breakdown an outer coat on the nut, which are then collected from their dung, and pressed for the oil. That's right. We're eating nuts that have passed through the goat. Anyway, it was really quite a sight to see the goats IN the trees!

The remainder of the drive was through a rich agricultural valley that reminded me of the Mesilla Valley in the Las Cruces area. Argan & olive trees, banana trees in green houses, melons, winter squash, tons of citrus, and other things that we couldn't really identify from the bus. Very pretty region though. So into Taroudant, which is a city that is mostly behind the thick walls of the ancient kasbah. One section of the wall serves as the backdrop for our hotel, the Palais Salam, which is an old palace that has been converted; there are tons of little courtyards, pools on two levels, very quaint. Dinner was at their restaurant, soup and a fairly good chicken tagine with onions and preserved lemons.

Zagora & the Sahara

That's me on the camel in the back!

The day started with a drive along the palm tree oases about 20 minutes from here to a town called Tinfou, where the sand dunes begin. There are still mountain formations, though they trail off a bit more down the road, and I imagine that's where the fun really begins! There are signs all around which say “Timbuktu – 52” meaning 52 days by camel! Uhhhh, not this time around! Anyway, the winds have deposited sand in these large dunes off the main road. The Toureg people (dark skinned nomadic Africans from the Sahara) occupy the area with their camels (occupy for the tourists.....), and of course, for a price, you can ride one.


So, ride the camels we did! We each got our own camel, they tied a few together, and then the Toureg guides lead them through the sand, and up and down the dunes. They have carpeted tents set up for the tourists who come to spend the night, as well as modern amenities as motorcycles. These people are obviously accustomed to tourists, as they spoke basic English, and were happy to take your picture of you on your camel with your camera, and happily took your money for the fabric they wove around your head into a turban. (I actually have become quite fond of my royal blue fabric, I just have no idea how to recreate the desert turban look!) We would lurch along, and then stop for some picture taking, and then pitch forward as the camel headed down the dunes. The saddle on top of the camel isn't the most comfortable thing in the world, and it took a second to get your land legs back once you got off, but great fun! It was a good 30 – 40 minute ride, and thoroughly entertaining! When else are you going to ride a camel in the Moroccan Sahara?!?? It was a treat!

From there, we headed back up the road to a town called Tamegroute, which oddly enough, is known for its Islamic library. It used to have upwards of 40,000 volumes, and scholars came from all around to study the books on math, astronomy, philosophy, Koranic verse, and other sciences. Adjacent are pottery makers, who do ceramics with a green glaze made from natural manganese, mined from a nearby region. We had a tour of their rustic studios, and of course had buying opportunities. Lunch was back in Zagora at a small riad (cooked carrots and a beef pot roast tagine), and then to an antique & rug store, operated by men in traditional Toureg dress (blue kaftans & turbans), though they didn't look like it ethnically speaking. As in, I think the dress was for the tourists. Some time to rest in the late afternoon, and dinner at the hotel of kefta, (instant) rice, and veggies.