Author: melisajohnson

Beach

Up early the next morning and sad once again to leave we headed down the mountain to the beach town of Essouria for some fresh seafood by the water followed by some shopping.  Then we arrived at our wonderful little hotel.  It is such a charming place… lit only by candlelight.  A magical place as all the places Peggy finds.  We had an amazing dinner followed by live music played by local young men. 
I woke up in this morning to the sound of waves crashing on the beach and nothing else (well the house cat meowing as she wanted to go outside- so I had to get up and let her out).
Next as you do most Sunday mornings… take your camel for a walk on the beach.

 
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Leaving

This morning we have to leave Kasbah and head down the mountain to a little beach town.  It is sad as it is such a peaceful place and the people are just wonderful.

Tonight will be a first for me as a night without electricity…  then we wake up early for a camel ride down the beach.

 

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I woke up this morning to a view of snow-covered mountains from my rooftop tower.  You can tell the Kasbah was owned by a Brit as it was the first time we had proper breakfast tea.  So I settled in by the fire with my tea and they brought out these wonderful pancake type of thing with a spread of almond butter, honey and argon oil.  It was a wonderful way to start the day.
Next we headed off on a walk up the mountain and through the villages stopping for some tea and biscuits along the way at a private home.  We made our way back to Kasbah in time for a late lunch on the roof with the sounds of the stream the only thing you heard.  
After lunch a nap was in order as I was not feeling well.  We had a cooking lesson in the kitchen, which was the simplest kitchen I have ever seen, but produced the most amazing food. 

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The Journey to Imlil Valley…
Driving to Imlil Valley…
A few dozen miles, into a different world…
Passing under the endless skies surrounding Marrakech,
Through immense orchards of silvery olive trees
Dancing in the breeze.
Into the warm and golden foothills with their amazing
Hues of amber 
each mountain
With its own Berber village of matching colour blending
into the hillside.
Finally, into the heart of the starkly beautiful
High Atlas Mountains with their deep,
Clear skies. 
 
Arriving at the Kasbah… first impressions… 
 
being met at the Kasbah office in Imlil village with warm welcomes…
Walking through the little bustling Imlil village with a local muleteer,
his mule carrying my luggage…
Next walking up the zigzagging trail under the village walnut groves and
catching that first breath-taking view of the Kasbah hanging above. 
Being welcomed with warm, rose water to cleanse my hands and mint tea.
A place like no other… 

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The drive to Imlil village

 

We started off after breakfast and headed from Jnane to a wonderful herb garden.  The first thing we did was head to the outdoor kitchen and learn how to make some simple bread and then we baked it in the clay oven.  We enjoyed our freshly made bread with so herb tea they made themselves.  Next was a walk through the gardens which were just lovely.  Before lunch we were treated to a surprise with a foot bath- perfect for tired feet! 
 
 
 
As we sat down for lunch we realized that we were having a picnic lunch…  all the place settings, food and servers were from our hotel and had followed us up to provide us lunch.  The food was wonderful. 
 
 
Unfortunately it was time to get back on the bus and head off, but it was a lovely morning.

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Medina

We made our first trip into the Medina yesterday and I have to say I enjoyed it.  It wasn’t nearly as busy as the markets in India and the people were not as aggressive.  Now don’t get me wrong…  I am not ready to go and look to buy anything and haggle on price.

The first place we made it into was a community bakery.  Still you have families who bring there bread and other baked goods every morning for baking.

After that we went in and saw how they make pottery, heat the public bath houses and bake in the cooled ashes.  It was amazing!  Funny enough the guy liked to play a traditional guitar type of thing and a guy on our group happened to have a flute in his backpack so he could join in…  I mean doesn’t everyone carry around a flute?

 

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Day 3- Morocco

This morning started off with a little workout no the rooftop and Deborah was kind enough to join me.  It was really cold to be up working out… if you ask me, but I think I am just a bit spoiled.

Next came breakfast, a walk through the gardens and our first cooking class.  We all go to make our own tangine- my was a bit of a mixture, but really nice.

First we put a layer of onions (1/2 an onion), then added our chicken and spices.  From there it went onto the coals.  While it was cooking we cut up our “add ins”.  I added potato, carrots and zucchini with some lemon.  After we added in our vegetables we took a break and then came back to the main house.  About an hour later we were sitting at the table with our creations!  It was a great lunch!

Unfortunately the internet is not strong, so I can’t get the photos to upload now…

We are off to the markets this afternoon… so that should be an experience.

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