Friday, November 29, 2013
Monday, November 11, 2013
Quick trip to the medina at Fes!
Quick trip to Fes Sunday. Located the medina and did a mini-tour on our own. It is the oldest and largest medina in existence; it's listed as a world heritage site. Had coffee and orange juice on the terrace of a hotel next to the medina. It looked out over the medina, the city of Fes and an Andalusian garden full of palms, orange trees and sculptured shrubs - very beautiful. The medina is surround by an ancient wall and lies across the slope of the mountain later a faded and tattered cloak of intricate design. The streets and alleys are twisted, narrow and full of humanity. The medina has a multitude of small shops, artisans, tanneries, dying vats, hotels, restaurants, street vendors, mosques and homes. It is ancient and worn but full of life and vitality. No cars are allowed. We often had to step aside for mules or donkeys or push carts loaded with everything from bags of Chinese rice to crates of CocaColas. It is a unique blend of antiquity and modernity.
Monday, November 4, 2013
Trip to Ceuta!
Because there was a problem when we "imported" our car into Morocco, we needed to drive back to "Europe" and re-import the car. The simplest way to do this was to drive to Ceuta which is a Spanish town on the northern coast of Africa, spend the night and then return to Morocco the next day so we could re-import the car and straighten out the paperwork. It turned out to be pretty straight forward and simple, but you never know what will happen at a border crossing until it happens.
Doris had been in Ceuta before but it had not left a good impression on her. We were pleasantly surprised once we were there that it was quite lovely. It is located on the northern coast of the Africa in the Rif Mountains on the Mediterranean coast directly across from Spain and the Strait of Gibraltar. Since the mountains run right down to the water, the city is sits on the shoulder of the mountain above the Mediterranean. Ceuta is also built on a peninsula, a finger of the mountain that extends out into the sea. So, on three sides Ceuta is surrounded by the starkly beautiful Rif Mountains and on the north by the soft, beauty of the Mediterranean sea. We stayed at the Parador Hotel. Our room was on the third floor and had a balcony that looked out over the harbor, the Mediterranean and the mountainous coast of southern Spain 9 kilometers across the strait with an incredible view of the surrounding Riff Mountains. Walk out the front door, turn left and the harbor was a half block away; turn right and the Mediterranean was a half block away. Right or left, there is a promenade along the Mediterranean with the most incredible panoramic views of mountains and sea. To the right were also two pristine beaches with a kind of funky brown sand. You had to walk down a long flight of stairs to get to the beach since the town is essentially built on the side of a mountain. There are not many "tourist attractions" but it is so relaxing there. It is great for long walks along the Mediterranean with a shifting panoramic view of water, mountains and the southern coast of Spain. You stand on one continent and look across a narrow strait at another continent. It is a very clean city with a number friendly little Tapas bars - we already have a favorite. When you cross the border from Morocco to Ceuta, it is like entering a different world. Most importantly for Doris it has really good beer. It is also a duty free zone and many people come from Morocco to shop. We got there Saturday so it was busy but Sunday was quiet since most of the shops are closed. Doris was having some "stomach issues" which she had brought with her from Morocco so I spent some time after breakfast exploring the city while she slept. If you want excitement, this is not the place to be. If you want to relax, walk and enjoy some really incredible beauty in a warm, laid back and friendly environment, then Ceuta is a great place to be. I wish that we could have stayed longer but we were anxious to get our "car issue" resolved and we had to cross the border to do that and we weren't sure how long that would take so we left about noon on Sunday, breezed through and wished we had stayed longer.
Since we had a 5 day weekend thanks to another great Moroccan holiday, we drove back through the Rif Mountains to Tanger. We got lost and found in Tanger but did not stay. Tanger was a bit too big and bustling for me since we had not planned for a trip there. We had no map. There were no street signs and we were still not comfortable with big city driving in Morocco so we headed south to Asilah, a small art community on the coast. We stopped in Asilah for an hour, wandered around the medina, enjoyed the water and left for Larache which is further south on the coast. Larache is a small, friendly, decaying city with not much to recommend it except a great view of the Atlantic. We had called ahead and made reservations at the Maison Haute which is a guest house rather than a hotel. We had found it as a recommended place to stay in the Lonely Planet. Once we arrived into Larache, we had a bit of an adventure finding the Maison Haute. I had locate it on the map but we just could not find the street so we drove round and round. We got stuck in a narrow, blind alley leading into the medina and had to back out through cars, vendors, horse drawn wagons, pedestrians and mounds of garbage (Doris did the backing and I did the directing). After numerous calls to the owner of the guest house, we finally met him in the street near the water and found out that the guest house was exactly where I thought it was but it was in the medina and not accessible by car. The Lonely Planet never mentioned this but there were two guide books at the Maison Haute, one in French and one in German, that did state that it was located in the medina and not accessible by car. We parked the car along the curb in front of the entrance to the median and slepped our baggage through winding alleys until we reached a green and black door and then climbed a very steep, long flight of stairs up to the top floor of this ancient house.
The Maison Haute is not for the picky traveler. It's clean, the shower is hot and the sheets are clean but faded. Our room had a musty smell and it was obviously not professionally decorated with ancient mismatched furniture but well hell...I really enjoyed staying there. The owner and our host, Hasan, was warm, friendly and engaging. Although not formally educated, he was multilingual, intelligent and insightful. He took us up to the roof garden where we had a panoramic view of the Atlantic Ocean, the estuary and the lower foothills of the Rif Mountains. We also looked out over the roof tops of a city in decay. Hasan explained that the government had little interest in preserving the past but was only focused on building the new. Many people were either being left out or left behind in this brave new world of modern Morocco. After our chat with Hasan, we walked through the city, walked along the promenade with its view of the Atlantic, stopped at an ATM and got a bite to eat from a small cafe. We called it an early night and went back to the Maison. We woke early the next morning. We climbed up the the rooftop garden. We had been told by Hasan that the estuary would be covered with flamingos in the morning since this is a major fly over between Europe and Africa but the fog was so heavy that we could not even see the water. We wanted to slip out without waking anyone - this is an intimate place to stay. It's more like staying with friends at their home than being at a hotel. However, Hasan came out of his room in his underwear - perhaps on his way to the bathroom. A bit embarrassing for him but humorous for us. He popped back in for some pants and then insisted on fixing some coffee and breakfast for us. Coffee is the magic word in the morning for Doris so we stayed. Just as we sat down to breakfast, a French couple emerged from their room and joined us for breakfast. It was a most pleasant and entertaining breakfast - very intimate and almost familial. It was so unexpectedly delightful. It really made the whole stay perfect.
After leaving Larache, we again proceeded down the coast to Moulay Bousselham, a beautiful village on the Atlantic with the most incredible beaches and seafood restaurants. Although I no longer eat seafood, Doris loves seafood but because of her "stomach issues" during the trip, she could not indulge her desire for really good seafood. Doris, Ken and the kids had stayed here when they were in Morocco so there were some funny and sweet memories. There are no hotels here but three really nice, quaint quest houses on the beach. We plan to come back for a weekend and some really good sea food for Doris. I would prefer to go before the beach season when it is swamped by tourists.
From Moulay we headed home to Ifrane. It was about a 3 hour drive - the drive to Ceuta is 6 hours. Doris suggested that we take a slightly different route back from Meknes. It routed us through Azrou rather than directly to Ifrane. I'm glad we took the detour. The views of the Middle Atlas Mountains were breathtakingly beautiful. This is one trip that I really wish that I had not left my camera at home.
It always strikes me when I drive into Ifrane how lucky I am to live here. The beauty of the country and the warmth and friendliness of the people. It's good to be home.
Doris had been in Ceuta before but it had not left a good impression on her. We were pleasantly surprised once we were there that it was quite lovely. It is located on the northern coast of the Africa in the Rif Mountains on the Mediterranean coast directly across from Spain and the Strait of Gibraltar. Since the mountains run right down to the water, the city is sits on the shoulder of the mountain above the Mediterranean. Ceuta is also built on a peninsula, a finger of the mountain that extends out into the sea. So, on three sides Ceuta is surrounded by the starkly beautiful Rif Mountains and on the north by the soft, beauty of the Mediterranean sea. We stayed at the Parador Hotel. Our room was on the third floor and had a balcony that looked out over the harbor, the Mediterranean and the mountainous coast of southern Spain 9 kilometers across the strait with an incredible view of the surrounding Riff Mountains. Walk out the front door, turn left and the harbor was a half block away; turn right and the Mediterranean was a half block away. Right or left, there is a promenade along the Mediterranean with the most incredible panoramic views of mountains and sea. To the right were also two pristine beaches with a kind of funky brown sand. You had to walk down a long flight of stairs to get to the beach since the town is essentially built on the side of a mountain. There are not many "tourist attractions" but it is so relaxing there. It is great for long walks along the Mediterranean with a shifting panoramic view of water, mountains and the southern coast of Spain. You stand on one continent and look across a narrow strait at another continent. It is a very clean city with a number friendly little Tapas bars - we already have a favorite. When you cross the border from Morocco to Ceuta, it is like entering a different world. Most importantly for Doris it has really good beer. It is also a duty free zone and many people come from Morocco to shop. We got there Saturday so it was busy but Sunday was quiet since most of the shops are closed. Doris was having some "stomach issues" which she had brought with her from Morocco so I spent some time after breakfast exploring the city while she slept. If you want excitement, this is not the place to be. If you want to relax, walk and enjoy some really incredible beauty in a warm, laid back and friendly environment, then Ceuta is a great place to be. I wish that we could have stayed longer but we were anxious to get our "car issue" resolved and we had to cross the border to do that and we weren't sure how long that would take so we left about noon on Sunday, breezed through and wished we had stayed longer.
Since we had a 5 day weekend thanks to another great Moroccan holiday, we drove back through the Rif Mountains to Tanger. We got lost and found in Tanger but did not stay. Tanger was a bit too big and bustling for me since we had not planned for a trip there. We had no map. There were no street signs and we were still not comfortable with big city driving in Morocco so we headed south to Asilah, a small art community on the coast. We stopped in Asilah for an hour, wandered around the medina, enjoyed the water and left for Larache which is further south on the coast. Larache is a small, friendly, decaying city with not much to recommend it except a great view of the Atlantic. We had called ahead and made reservations at the Maison Haute which is a guest house rather than a hotel. We had found it as a recommended place to stay in the Lonely Planet. Once we arrived into Larache, we had a bit of an adventure finding the Maison Haute. I had locate it on the map but we just could not find the street so we drove round and round. We got stuck in a narrow, blind alley leading into the medina and had to back out through cars, vendors, horse drawn wagons, pedestrians and mounds of garbage (Doris did the backing and I did the directing). After numerous calls to the owner of the guest house, we finally met him in the street near the water and found out that the guest house was exactly where I thought it was but it was in the medina and not accessible by car. The Lonely Planet never mentioned this but there were two guide books at the Maison Haute, one in French and one in German, that did state that it was located in the medina and not accessible by car. We parked the car along the curb in front of the entrance to the median and slepped our baggage through winding alleys until we reached a green and black door and then climbed a very steep, long flight of stairs up to the top floor of this ancient house.
The Maison Haute is not for the picky traveler. It's clean, the shower is hot and the sheets are clean but faded. Our room had a musty smell and it was obviously not professionally decorated with ancient mismatched furniture but well hell...I really enjoyed staying there. The owner and our host, Hasan, was warm, friendly and engaging. Although not formally educated, he was multilingual, intelligent and insightful. He took us up to the roof garden where we had a panoramic view of the Atlantic Ocean, the estuary and the lower foothills of the Rif Mountains. We also looked out over the roof tops of a city in decay. Hasan explained that the government had little interest in preserving the past but was only focused on building the new. Many people were either being left out or left behind in this brave new world of modern Morocco. After our chat with Hasan, we walked through the city, walked along the promenade with its view of the Atlantic, stopped at an ATM and got a bite to eat from a small cafe. We called it an early night and went back to the Maison. We woke early the next morning. We climbed up the the rooftop garden. We had been told by Hasan that the estuary would be covered with flamingos in the morning since this is a major fly over between Europe and Africa but the fog was so heavy that we could not even see the water. We wanted to slip out without waking anyone - this is an intimate place to stay. It's more like staying with friends at their home than being at a hotel. However, Hasan came out of his room in his underwear - perhaps on his way to the bathroom. A bit embarrassing for him but humorous for us. He popped back in for some pants and then insisted on fixing some coffee and breakfast for us. Coffee is the magic word in the morning for Doris so we stayed. Just as we sat down to breakfast, a French couple emerged from their room and joined us for breakfast. It was a most pleasant and entertaining breakfast - very intimate and almost familial. It was so unexpectedly delightful. It really made the whole stay perfect.
After leaving Larache, we again proceeded down the coast to Moulay Bousselham, a beautiful village on the Atlantic with the most incredible beaches and seafood restaurants. Although I no longer eat seafood, Doris loves seafood but because of her "stomach issues" during the trip, she could not indulge her desire for really good seafood. Doris, Ken and the kids had stayed here when they were in Morocco so there were some funny and sweet memories. There are no hotels here but three really nice, quaint quest houses on the beach. We plan to come back for a weekend and some really good sea food for Doris. I would prefer to go before the beach season when it is swamped by tourists.
From Moulay we headed home to Ifrane. It was about a 3 hour drive - the drive to Ceuta is 6 hours. Doris suggested that we take a slightly different route back from Meknes. It routed us through Azrou rather than directly to Ifrane. I'm glad we took the detour. The views of the Middle Atlas Mountains were breathtakingly beautiful. This is one trip that I really wish that I had not left my camera at home.
It always strikes me when I drive into Ifrane how lucky I am to live here. The beauty of the country and the warmth and friendliness of the people. It's good to be home.
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