When I sat down to write about my recent trip to Morocco. I had no words. I had too much yet too little to write. The trip had been full of experiences, sights and people, that I didn’t know where to start. Yet, I felt that I would simply repeat all the stories that have already been told about Morocco: the hustle and bustle of Marrakech, the hassling in the street, the beautiful things sold in the souqs made by local artisans, the difficulties experienced by tourists when trying to cross the road, the more relaxed atmosphere at the coast. There, this is Morocco. Or not.
Essaouira - the beach
So here are just two little thoughts I wanted to share with you:
Seeing the country
If you are planning to go to Morocco, plan in some time for travelling around. The country is incredibly diverse and we encountered very different atmospheres. Travelling can be relatively cheap. There are more comfortable buses that drive you pretty much everywhere and there are local buses. At the bus station in Marrakech we got done. Never pay more than a euro for luggage, probably 5 dirham is the most common amount.
Marrakech was incredibly hectic, and that’s its charm. You walk through the souqs were the narrow roads all seem to look the same. You get approached in English, French, German, Spanish – depending on where a vendor guesses you are from!
Essaouira
Then we went to Essaouira, which for us seemed to be a place for the wealthier tourists. Very nice food, a more relaxed atmosphere with a huge beach with kitesurfers amazing you with their tricks. We also felt that souvenirs (scarves, dishes, jewellery etc) were cheaper as fewer vendors were open for haggling.
Finally we also stayed just outside Taghazout, just 200m from a great surfing spot. It didn’t really feel like Morocco during the day when the beach was invaded by long-haired surfers speaking German or English. In the evening, however, couples from the village came to watch the sunset, many of the women wearing niqabs or hijabs. Quite the contrast from the bikinis we had seen during the day!
So definitely travel around and discover different parts of this wonderful country!
Ourika
Moroccan Food
One thing that definitely attracts visitors to Morocco is food. Without a doubt you will be served delicious couscous and tagine within the first few days – who am I kidding the first few hours!
There are a few things I would definitely recommend. For drinks there is verbena with milk, which I found strangely delicious, as well as all sorts of milk-based and orange based drinks, even some sort of almond milk, which seemed to be some mixture of chopped almonds and milk (and possibly something else?). Lastly try the tea sold at night on Jamaa el Fna in Marrakech. Each stall has there own specific mixture of tea including cloves, cinnamon, nutmeg. The tea is really strong and burns like strong liquor. You should definitely try it!
Food-wise, we found great dishes such as saffa and pastille, which involve a lot of cinnamon and taste more like desserts. Desserts with chicken that is. They were particularly good in Essaouira. We were less smitten with the sardine balls – which was a bit like Bolognese but sardine instead of beef. But hey, it’s all part of the discovery!
Also, to come back to Marrakech, there are loads of stalls that pop up in the early evening on Jamaa El Fna. Loads of men will definitely try to convince you to eat at a specific stall – they are all numbered and there are tables around each stall. We ate twice at the stalls at Jemaa El Fna. The first time round we went to a more touristy stall that sold tagine and couscous. We had quite a nice meal for 100 dirhams. However, on a subsequent night, we decided to join the locals. Some stalls were really busy, but the signs were mostly in Arabic and nobody was employed to get you to eat there. Clearly the reputation of the stall spoke for itself. We had some delicious fish and calamari, which tasted a lot more genuine, especially as we were surrounded by locals, families, couples, friends, some men sitting on their own. I would definitely recommend it!
Jamaa El Fna
As for final thoughts, Morocco is definitely a country that should appear on your 'to visit' list. It's great for a budget holiday, but you can also find some luxurious spas and hotels if that's what you are after. There is plenty to see and we actually met a lot of people who had come to Morocco for the second or third time, just to see more of the place! So, book your flights and go visit Morocco!
