Marrakech to Rabat to Essaouira

7 days.

Marrakech was as Marrakech is, hectic and busy and chaotic. We were hassled to buy, we were hassled to eat and we were certainly hassled to not go down that way because it is closed. It is never closed.

We then travelled by train to Rabat. The capital city. Fears of a dull and unpleasant capital proved groundless, calmer and friendlier and richer than Marrakech, it was a nice place. We had one aim for the city, to procure visas for Mauritania. This proved exceptionally easy, a mere few hours and a jump to the front of the queue for being a woman (not Ross) although we did have to commit a minor forgery on our visa application...we had to supply an address in Mauritania. We didn't have one. Nor did we have the guide book to look up a random hotel. Ross came up with the cunning plan of making up a hotel. Anneliese came up with the cunning plan of choosing one from the Morocco guidebook. Hotel Sahara. Turns out that is the first hotel listed in the Mauritanian guidebook. We are geniuses.

The visa collection meant we were in Rabat for the end of Ramadan and Eid on Friday. It was a little difficult to find places to eat for a few days.... there were a couple of sneaky bananas wolfed down behind the Medina walls (Ross is insisting this sounds sexual) and some guilty gulpings of water on the streets of the souk. With the arrival of Eid, every streetside cafe filled with men chain-smoking cigarettes and downing coffees, something they had clearly been desperate to do since Ramadan began. Towards the end of the afternoon the entire city seemed to descend on the seafront promenade. Some came to swagger in their best threads. Plenty came to stare at the swagger-ers. And even more were boys, who came to jump repeatedly off the rocks into the sea. One of whom made a fairly persistent attempt to chat me up (not Ross) culminating in some kissing on the cheek. A sign, I am sure, he thought me a woman of less than perfect morals....

And so, on to Essaouira. We arrived last night after 7 odd hours on a bus. A damp hotel but it does have the highest terrace in the town. Today, all day, on the beach. Some sunburn.

Signing off.
Anneliese & Ross