As I mentioned previously life here is a little slower, but then a lot more social. We’ve got our exercise routines before sunrise, with trips into the colourful souk to haggle with the vendors….we’ll it’s become more like friendly banter. Lunchtimes we’ve gotten into our beach walks, which are always interesting and very relaxing. We are also getting familiar with some of the locals who work the beach (human and animal) understanding a little bit more about daily life for them. The dromedaries (no camels in Morocco) and the horses are really well cared for and are treated with the upmost respect, you can see this when the animals interact with their guardians, there’s genuine affection on both sides. The beach is crescent shaped and very flat it’s also somewhat protected by the island of Mogador, which lies directly opposite. It’s long been abandoned, but was more recently home to a prison and a mosque, which you can see remnants of. Essaouira is a popular surfing and kitesurfing spot as the strong winds and shallow waters are perfect! We’ve decided to enrol in kitesurfing school next week, which should be fun. We took a trip to a very nice spa at the weekend, which was very relaxing indeed, it’s not really my thing, but Rach loves it. World Cup fever has taken over here in Morocco and everyone loves their football and their Country, proud times indeed. A big screen has been erected in the square, against the back drop of the Kasbah wall, which is interesting. Of the circa 27 thousand people who live in Essaouira a good percentage have turned out for each game, creating a fabulous and good natured atmosphere all around….Allez Maroc!

There’s some great restaurants here and a good few of them we’ve had the pleasure of dining at. The ‘tardis’ like restaurants line the small streets, intermingled with the impressive galleries and artisan stores. Essaouira has a hippie vibe running through its DNA, which in turn creates a very relaxed atmosphere everywhere. The medina is pedestrianised and those that aren’t walking, weave their antiquated, sometimes heavily laden bicycles, through the small streets and when a more substantial vehicle is needed, they roll in modified 3 wheelers, or small dumpster trucks, that somehow manage to slide huge loads through the narrow streets. The beach here is pretty flat and wide and when the tide marches out, it’s perfect to enjoy long walks along its 2km shoreline. Aside from the expansive beach, a large supermarket in a small mall, pretty much everything happens within the walls of the Medina, which takes on a different persona depending on the time of day. And with the exception of the souk which is busy from first light (8 ish), each day typically starts slowly at around 10am and builds thereafter, with merchants welcoming tourists steadily throughout the day. The sun sets at around 6:30pm, bringing out early diners and late shoppers (stores close at around 9:30ish), leaving the night owls to carry through to the early hours, supported by the colourful sounds of north African music drifting into the night sky. The partner of one of the guys that looks after us, was launching a cookery school and asked Rach and I if we’d be willing (mature) students for a promotional video and marketing stills. We spent a very sociable evening under the tutor ledge of the great local chef Hanane, learning how to make a lamb tanjine whilst whilst being filmed. We then sat down with the family to enjoy the tasty tanjine and some delicious Moroccan entrées.

We’ve enjoyed Rabat, but after nearly seven weeks, the time has come to move on. We’ve found it both interesting and very welcoming, in fact we’ve found all the places we’ve visited here in Morocco to be that way. Our car arrived at Salé airport at around 5:30pm, for an internal flight leaving at 7pm and after waiting in line with all of the other naughty people to pay for excess baggage, we sailed through immigration and boarded the flight, which actually left early! We arrived in Agadir just under an hour later and after collecting our luggage we found Miloud our driver. The drive was full of twists and turns and not really that comfortable. We arrived in Essaouira shortly before midnight and after carrying our luggage across the main square and through a passageway into the Medina (the Medina is pedestrianised) we put the key into our huge iron door and entered into ‘Dar Adjan’ and then promptly crashed out. We woke at around 6:20am, which is the Imam’s first call to prayer and lasts for 20 minutes or so and as the minuet is very close by and we don’t have a roof (more on that later), we were both wide awake by 6:30am. We are both getting used to the call to prayer, from our time in Rabat and Turkey and to be honest it’s quite enchanting. We were knackered and it was dark when we arrived, so we were too tired to look around, so it was time to have a wander. It really is an incredible old home, which has been lovingly restored. As you walk through large iron door, you enter into a foyer, with an attractive water feature, which is used to clean one’s hands after entering from the street and is typical in these wonderful old Riad’s. The steep, narrow stairs, wind around the side of the building internally and leads out onto each floor. The double terrace has incredible views out to sea on one side and views across the top of the Medina on the other and if look directly down, you can see right down through the middle to the ground floor (think of a cored Apple), that together with the very thick walls, helps to keep the building cool. As I mentioned, we’re staying right on the edge of the Medina which is very handy for restaurants and the meat, fish and veg markets. Essaouira has a relaxed ‘hippie’ vibe about it and is completely different to the other places we’ve visited in Morocco, no one hassles you as weave your way through the Medina and souks. We like it!

There’s one bullet train (TGV) set up in North Africa and it’s called “Al Boraq” running from Casablanca to Tangier and seeing that Rabat sits in the middle, we were looking forward to checking it out. The initial implementation was completed 4 yrs ago (further expansion across Morocco is planned). The trains have a top speed of over 350kph and are apparently the 6th fastest train type in the world and in local terms cut journey times by two thirds. We boarded our train at the impressive, purpose built Rabat Agdal station and ten minutes into the journey and we were travelling at over 320kph sitting comfortably in our roomy seats, as the train marauded across the eclectic landscape, mostly dusty and arid, but also with swathes of somehow arable green farmland, with livestock littered indiscriminately along the journey. An hour and quarter later we arrived in Tangier after one of the most enjoyable train rides I’ve had. We decided to walk to the old town, along a beach promenade. It’s a wide beach that looks surprisingly serene, with the calm waters of the Med lapping up against the shore line, camels “bobbing” up and down, horses galloping along the waters edge and groups of people gathered here and there. After about hour, we arrived in the old town and at our hotel the “Grand Hôtel Villa De France” which is tucked away down one of the quieter side streets, looking out over the busy square and Medina on one side and across the ocean to the other. After dropping our things off, we made our way to the highly recommended fish restaurant “Le Servette” where after queuing outside for nearly an hour we entered the hazy foray into what was essentially a hole in the wall, with about 8 covers (We went to something similar to this in New Orleans and it was fantastic, so we weren’t put off). The menu was whatever fish the chef felt like cooking on his Smokey open grill. Everything to accompany the fish was grown organically on their farm. After the most delicious meal that we’ve had in Morocco, consisting of Fish soup, mezze’s, fresh olives, followed by some delicious grilled whitefish, rounded off with pomegranate, we headed off to the Kasbah museum, which is both a contemporary gallery, and a museum of ancient local artefacts. The following day we hired a guide for the morning, actually he was our waiter, who offered to take us around. We took in some more of the landmarks, including, an ancient forest, some notable historical houses and “Cap Spartel” a lighthouse that marks both the northwestern tip of Africa and also the line where the Med meets the Atlantic, with what would have been great views across to Cadiz and Gibraltar, on a clear day.

Half the Fez population lives in this crowded warren of narrow passages, there’s mosques, souks, artisan workshops & madrasas (schools for Islamic instruction), and humble homes. The religious and artisan schools, some of the oldest in the world and are located deep at the heart of the Medina. The mosques, of which there are more than 300 in the Medina (the most impressive being the “Quaraouiyine Mosque”, which can hold 20,000 people) are dotted throughout. What’s helpful to the consumer, but perhaps not the vendor, is that the Souk area is laid out like a giant medieval supermarket, with all products and services grouped together. Likewise the artisans too have there own designated areas, where they get to showcase their amazing talents & creations. As we made our way through, we made a few stops where we spent more time with some of the artisans. First stop was the government & UNESCO supported “Palais Quaraouiyine” a 14c carpet emporium which showcased not only some of the finest Arabic & Berber (tribal) rugs I’ve ever seen, but a lesson in how they’re made, where they come from, and some of the stories behind them. From there we moved further in and got a pass into the “Mderssa Rascherratine” a 15c Koranic boarding school recently renovated under the instruction of the king, which was very impressive indeed. Finally we made our way to the Chouara tannery, established in the 11c, where everything has pretty much remained the same ever since. They still use cows’ urine, pigeon poop! quicklime, salt, and water, to strip the leather. The smell is so overpowering that you are provided with some fresh mint to place under your nose. To colour the leather, red dye made from poppies, indigo for blue, and henna for orange which are all natural are used. Each stage is carried out by hand, the way it’s always been.

Our train left Rabat main station about 10:30am, for what was to be a 3hr journey to Fes, the spiritual home and cultural capital of Morocco. Although the train was pretty busy, our compartment was nice and quiet with AC and seats like very comfortable armchairs, which made the journey sail by. Our driver met us outside the station and took us to our resting place for the next few days, the “Dar Victoria” Riad’s are the way to go in Fes and this one, which sits right on the edge of the Medina came highly recommended. Many are historical buildings in their own right, that families have turned into self styled B&B’s and this one was no exception, it was a delight! We decided on having lunch (entrées and a delicious chicken tangine) before sliding into the medina, which Incidentally was founded in the 9th century. The UNESCO protected medina is the largest, medieval walled city in the world with over 9400 streets all of which are pedestrianised. The only way to successfully navigate and fully appreciate the history of the medina is with a good guide and Nourdin arrived just as we were finishing lunch. So after introductions and agreeing on what we wanted to see we opened our heavy cast iron door and stepped out directly into the Medina. In the direct sunlight the temperature was 30 degrees, but the medina felt cool and as we turned from one corner to another, it began to come to life. We moved through a small square where men were engrossed in card games, oblivious to life going on around them. We crossed a road, where a river once stood, but it had been diverted to accommodate life beyond the medina. Once back inside the medina, we moved through the vegetable sellers through to the butchers, which immediately awoke senses I never knew I had!

I’m still enjoying wondering around the depths of this interesting city. Everyone seems to get on with everyone else and there’s a sense of calm wherever I seem to go, maybe it’s me! And even though the car horns are very well exercised, I’ve not witnessed anything remotely close to road-rage. The newer buildings are fashioned in a typical North Africa style, known as “Brutish” architecture. It’s a mix of rough square concrete façades, with lots of sharp edges, all packed tightly together and looking ready to tumble into the street below, at a moments notice. Garish at first glance perhaps, but as you look deeper into this urban cityscape, there’s a strange attractiveness to each building. It’s been a pretty hot week, with temperatures around 30 degrees, so I’ve spent the hot afternoons, booking trips and planning our next move, which always requires careful consideration. We spent most of the weekend on the other side of the Bou Regreg river in Sale. It’s a newer part of town and there’s recently been a significant amount of investment into developing the Marina, with some swanky apartments with rows of restaurants and cafés underneath and endless promenades. It seems to be a big hangout for the hip and trendy locals to meet friends and socialise. A little further on from the marina and perhaps on a little less glamorous stretch of the river, is where a small wooden fleet of fishing vessels sit marooned, waiting for the morning tides to take them back out into the Atlantic.

We’re getting a lot more familiar with the streets and when and where the best times are to visit the food markets for the best fruit, veg and fish, there’s quite a few to choose from, but our host has been great at sharing her local knowledge. As our maid comes early on Thursday, I’ve been getting out into the city early and this week I headed to the Museum of Contemporary Art. I wasn’t a big fan of the art on display but there was an interesting photo exhibition depicting social gatherings, taken between 1960’s-1990’s by a Congolese photographer. The weekends tend to start on Friday, “couscous Friday” It’s a long standing tradition here, families get together from Friday lunchtime over this traditional Moroccan dish, with the celebrations spilling out onto the streets, but it’s all good humoured. Saturday we decided to visit the “Hassan Tower” which is about a 45 minute walk. The building work was commissioned by Sultan Almohad Youssouf, towards the end of the 12th century. The tower which when built, would of been the largest minaret in the world, and the mosque, when finished, would have been the largest in the western Muslim world, alas the Sultan died not long after the work started and it was never finished. All that remains are the columns, the half built tower and a few walls, but the proposed area gives you a good idea of what would have been, if it had been completed. We had a late lunch at a very good Palestinian restaurant, before dropping into the Medina to get some fresh nuts. We have been there a few times and each time we go it’s incredible, with its sounds, smells and sellers and buyers all going about their business. Sunday was a quiet day chilling on the terrace and a walk around one of the botanical gardens, before taking a stroll along a boulevard lined with artists displaying their work.

We’re staying in the Ocean Quarter, which although isn’t the most salubrious part of town, we’re close to most things, including the local fruit, veg and fish markets. Our apartment is tucked away down one of the many back streets, it’s very quiet, has a really nice vibe about the place and a wonderful terrace. As I mentioned, we are in walking distance of most places of interest and for everywhere else there’s “Careem”, an Uber type service. On Saturday we decided to take a trip to Chellah, which is a UNESCO World Heritage site, with a mausoleum housing past sultans and the remains of an ancient Roman town, something we were both looking forward to seeing, which if we’d have visited last weekend would have been fine, unfortunately we didn’t, so after an hour’s walk we discovered it was closed for renovations, for the next 2 years! We were able to walk around the perimeter though and experience the lovely gardens and views across the city and Bou Regreg river. We then headed to the Dar Naji for some Moroccan fayre, which was ok. The temperatures have been in the mid to high 20’s and walking around any city at the weekend can be a little uncomfortable when it’s like that, so on Sunday after chilling on the terrace for the morning and a delicious lunch thereafter, we headed off to the recently refurbed “Kasbah des Oudaias”another UNESCO World Heritage site. The 12c Citadel is designed in a wonderful typical Moroccan style, with its strong square lines and unique sandstone colouring. Inside the city walls we were treated to beautiful white walled, small winding alleyways, with ornate front doors hiding each dwelling. After about an hour exploring, we found ourselves looking out over surfers on the Atlantic side and to the other the mouth of the Bou Regreg river, set against the back drop of the City. We spent the rest of the day walking along the beach before heading back to the apartment. There’s a few things I’m still adjusting too, but it’s definitely growing on me!

It’s was the last visit to Huntingdon to bid farewell to our parents, the last time we spent this amount of time with our parents, we were kids and testing times aside it’s been really nice immersing ourselves in their lives again. We’ve both enjoyed marching along the river Ouse and rambling through the countryside every morning with my mum leading the way, as well as time spent catching up doing little job’s. We left on the day after the Queens very sad passing, which most of the country wasn’t ready for, she had been a constant presence in my life as both the head of the Country and as an incredibly strong woman to look up to. From there we headed to my brothers for the last time and a final catch up with friends one last time before the off! I caught up with Andy and got to hear all about his wonderful safari. I met up with Paul & Steve at the quays, unfortunately I’m not allowed to ski for a while and Paul’s not skiing either so we both sat in the boat and shouted obscenities at Steve, while he entertained us both….All good fun! On the last Sunday before leaving we’d been invited to Alan & Linda’s wedding at a beautiful venue not too far from my brothers. The weather and ceremony were both perfect! The following evening we had the pleasure of Christien who dropped by to say his farewells. Then off to London to park the car up for winter and then a final few nights with Jon & Jo, in Braintree before setting off to Rabat in Morocco. After just under four hours we landed in Rabat and were generously met by our hosts who took us to our new home for the next six weeks.