Is Morocco worth the craze? Absolutely!
Feeling the warmth of the amazing landscape, culture & food
During the grey months of December in Germany, my friends and I were seeking something different from our previous trips in Europe. We wanted better weather, different architecture, landscapes, and food. At the same time, we didn’t want to break our banks with far-away destinations. Hence, Morocco came to the rescue offering multiple flights from/to different cities at an inexpensive cost. So, here we go …
Our journey starts in the southern city of Agadir. Flying from Karlshruhe on a 4-hour flight over the mountains of France, Spain, and last but not the least Atlas Mountains was a sight to appreciate from the window seat.
The small airport in Agadir didn’t take long to offboard and catch a bus to the city center of Agadir. There, we got our rental car and headed to our apartment for the night. But before calling it a day, we made sure to start our tour with some great Kabsah.
The next day, in the morning, we headed toward Agadir Oufella. The name Agadir means “Fort” which is exactly what this Kasbah is, situated on the hilltop overlooking the nearby landscape and the shore of Atlantic. At the bottom of this hill, there’s a very local but large fish market that offers fresh fish fries at a very inexpensive price. More authentic experience at a local price.
We are driving towards Casablanca today. The highway carved through the red sandy mountains is something to love on the way. When it was time to find a place for lunch, we took a bit of a detour from our route and found a gem of a place for lunch literally in a small village in the middle of the desert! No one spoke a word of English, and most of the people there seemed like locales. Seeing our struggles, one kind lady who is originally from Agadir and currently lives in France, came to our help with understanding the dishes and delivering our orders.
The place is in front of a meat shop, a hotel having both inside and outside dining, a place to pray, a barbershop, and fruit stalls, all under one roof! A tiny village market for the tiny Commune of Rurale Saidate.
The smocking clay pots with clay covers warmed by coals underneath, slowly cook meat and veggies together is a very common traditional dish in Morocco. This is our first taste of a raw local eating experience in Morocco. When I took the first bite of the meat Tajine, I closed my eyes for a moment to savor the taste! It wouldn’t be too much to say that my taste buds were having an orgasm at that moment. And to be honest, this small restaurant in the middle of nowhere was the very best restaurant among all the others we will taste later on. We even came back to this restaurant before ending the trip. But, more about that later. Now, we continue driving to our destination — Casablanca.
We reach our stay at Casablanca a bit late after a day-long drive, about 40 minutes away from the main city. It’s a beach resort, but now it is kind of off-season, and not many people are flocking here. After checking in we went to the nearest restaurant where we bought the meat first and then ordered them to be cooked over coals. Later we learned that most of these Tajine places have meat shops as well so that people can pick their choice of meat to be prepared by the restaurant.
After the Friday prayer, we started walking through the streets of the city. Passing locale streets, sometimes a bit dirty alleyways, we stopped in front of the tiny shop where two Women were working and invited us to sit inside to taste a kind of flat bread with some local soup. And as travelers who appreciate these small but very authentic experiences, we didn’t hesitate much. We couldn’t speak much because of the language barrier. But the kindness, eagerness to communicate and general warmth of the people made not only this interaction enjoyable, but also through the whole trip of Morocco.
We kept walking through the never-ending markets. The smells of the colorful spices in the stores, different kinds of nuts, sweets, fish markets, clothing stores, hecklers, bargaining, people, traffic — it’s a bustling place with all kinds of things happening all around the place.
After walking for quite a while we reached the Habbous area where some old marketplace is situated. Maze-like alleyways full of small businesses and shops, this place has been a center for tradesmen for a very long time here in Casablanca. Today, it’s full of clothing, leather, and carpet shops.
Before ending the trip we treated ourselves with a platter of seafood, some breads, and tasty soups. A good day indeed.
The next morning, we hit the road early. We have to drive a bit longer since we are gonna travel to Chefchaouen which is a mountain town at most at the very north of Morocco. The last few hours of the drive were on the mountainous roads offering great views on every turn. It’s a long yet, very scenic ride. When we reached Chefchaouen, the Sun was shining its last bit of golden rays for the day on the city before hiding behind the mountains.
In the evening, I got out and tried something new. I got a haircut in a saloon where we could hardly speak anything. I showed a photo and the guy brought in someone else to just say the price of the haircut. Despite the communication struggle, the haircut came out satisfactory!
We roamed around the center where there was probably a festival or something happening in a church with some VIPs attending. But we didn’t have much energy, so we needed to treat ourselves with some good minced meat Tajine with eggs and more bread. Yes, Tajines are great and we will have even more in the upcoming days.
The next day morning starts with a local bakery pastry with meat and olive feeling. After that, we started our walking in the Blue City. Yes, the city houses are mostly painted Blue, hence the title. The city was established in 1471 at a hilltop to defend it from the Spanish & Portuguese conquests. Back then it was mostly Muslim and Jewish people that took refuge here. Through the centuries the walled medina has been well preserved and is now one of the most touristy and photo-generic locations in Morocco. The houses, shops, small streets, everything looked very clean and calm especially because of this blue color. Selling products made by regional artisans is one of the key drivers of this region's economy, and this medina is the center of all of those works. From gorgeous ceramic products to handmade shawls or carpets, all can be found throughout the shops in the Medina. Apart from already beautiful photo spots, some locales decorated their corner of the street for the tourists for better photos in exchange for a tiny bit of money. After roaming in the medina for quite a while, we settled for lunch in a cozy restaurant and enjoyed a good lunch with some heart-warming tea which has been another consistent highlight of the trip. Tea and coffee culture is strong here in Morocco, to the level that there are more large coffee shops than restaurants within the same area!
The next day, we head out for our next destination — Fes. Today, we drive through the mountains and then through desert mountains. We took a break to catch some pictures of this amazing landscape. Also, there was a water reservoir in front of which we enjoyed talking to some local shop owners and tasting some freshly made pomegranate juice.
The next day, we head out for our next destination — Fes. Today, we drive through the mountains and then through desert mountains. We took a break to catch some pictures of this amazing landscape. Also, there was a water reservoir in front of which we enjoyed talking to some local shop owners and tasting some freshly made pomegranate juice.
Fes surprised us firstly with the accommodation. Entering into the Riad we were struck by the beauty of the place. Traditional Riad’s has been a big thing in Morocco for centuries. the walls, furniture even the bathroom sinks are something to look at. In the evening we went for a bit of roaming to find a place to have dinner. Navigating the slimmest of the alleyways in Fez Medina is no joke. An endless maze of streets and some small shops here and there. The restaurant we went to was Also a Riad, which from outside was pretty hard to guess if there was even a restaurant at all! But, it ended up being a good enough experience in a very traditional environment.
Next to the mosque, we visit the Al Attarine Madrasa. This is not free entry, but worth the small fee. It’s a multi-story 14th-century Islamic educational institute that is famous for its gorgeous tile artwork on the walls and dramatic architecture. From the upper floor, one can get a glimpse of the busy streets of the medina.
Next to the mosque, we visit the Al Attarine Madrasa. This is not free entry, but worth the small fee. It’s a multi-story 14th-century Islamic educational institute that is famous for its gorgeous tile artwork on the walls and dramatic architecture. From the upper floor, one can get a glimpse of the busy streets of the medina.
We couldn’t resist buying some of the sweets from an endless choice of sweet things sold along the streets. Then walked to the Place Seffarine. This place is mainly now a hub for metal works in Fes. Things made with iron, bronze, silver, or similar metals range from tiny showpieces to large pots and chandeliers. The expert artisans are busy making their things and all kinda noise makes this a loud yet pretty area.
Fes has been known for its leather goods for a while and nowadays, the tannery is a tourist attraction. Since there is still a small tannery where they process the leather and traditionally make products, it’s something most of the people coming from developed countries have never seen. But the smell was so strong, we didn’t last long there. Clicked some photos and then moved away.
Fes medina is so big that no matter which way one goes, there’s always something interesting to see and take a photo of. Some painted streets, some markets or busy small restaurants, spice shops, everything is there. We end the medina walk near the blue gate treating ourselves to some tasty couscous dish. Then we headed toward the Marinid Tombs where there is a great viewpoint to see the whole medina as well as a great sunset. There are a few large graveyards painted in white around the medina.
At night, we went a bit further from the Medina to find a local restaurant where we had quite some mouth-watering food that I don’t even remember the name, some sugarcane juice, etc. It was a content & fulfilling meal, to say the least.
The next two days were mostly drive days, driving through probably the most deserted roads on this trip, with a stopover in the town of Beni-Mellal, we reached the bustling city of Marrakesh. And we started this part of the trip with some delicious Tajine and Tangia.
We drove to the nearby Agafey desert from Marrakech in the morning, since we are not visiting the larger parts of the Sahara, this worked as a consolation prize. But, it was also a great scenic short ride through the rocky deserts and hilly landscape.
In the evening, we enjoyed some good views of the Jemaa el-Fnaa from a rooftop coffee shop and then also enjoyed some heart-filling food we found in a small restaurant during the day.
In the evening, we enjoyed some good views of the Jemaa el-Fnaa from a rooftop coffee shop and then also enjoyed some heart-filling food we found in a small restaurant during the day.
The next day, we made our journey back to Agadir, the city from where we started our trip. But, as mentioned earlier, we need to go back to that restaurant in the middle of nowhere. Ordered meat Tajine again. We were a bit doubtful about our high reviews of the place because this was kind of the first Tajine we tasted in Morocco, maybe it was just a beginner's opinion! But, all of our doubts were cleared the moment we tasted it. Yes, this was the best place we’ve eaten in this 10-day trip around Morocco. Here’s this gem if you are ever around the area.
