Morocco is fascinating. First stop was Casablanca. After being ripped off by the taxi driver, who to his defense gave us a bit of a tour while driving us to the hotel, we arrived at the hotel which is situated by the gorgeous Atlantic ocean. We went for a stroll along the boulevard and observed the people in the new environment. Already at this point the contrasts appeared foremost in the way people dressed; some use djillaba, others jeans and a top; some use a hijab, some do not. The other observation made was the way men and women behaved in public; according to our guide book one should not show affection in public which many times was the case, but on the other hand it was not uncommon to see (young) women putting their arm under their partners arm while the men kept their hands in their pockets. It was a sunny humid afternoon and it was refreshing with the cool breeze. We decided to try one of the national dishes; tajin. There are different versions but this particular one was with pieces of very tender meat (cow) in a sauce made of olive and argan oil (nutty flavoured oil, sometimes called the new olive oil), tomato sauce, plums, onions, garlic and who-knows-what-spices. Delicious. There are also versions with chicken or fish. Meat tajin became my favourite, especially the one with plums and almonds. Yum! The next morning we were served a nice breakfast (including freshly squeezed orange juice, yey!) on the terrace overlooking the Atlantic ocean, not a bad way at all to start the day... and which gave us a lot of energy for the train journey north, heading for a small place up in the mountains called Moulay Idriss.
After an amusing train ride of about three hours, including chats with a Moroccan woman living in Canada and a bunch of farmers who had a party on the train and invited us for a Coca Cola, we arrived in Meknes which is the fourth largest city in Morocco. From there we took a shared taxi, that is four people squeezed into the back seat and three in the front seat of a silver couloured Mercedes, to this magical place called Moulay Idriss. It is hard to pinpoint what makes this small village situated in the mountains special, but it is. Small streets. Food stalls. Plenty of donkeys carrying various things, including their owner. I figured out why donkeys are said to be stubborn while sitting looking out over the village one afternoon. The most staggering about this place, even though the landscape and the views from the hills are breathtaking, is the mosque. Unfortunately it is not allowed for non-muslims to visit this place, even if i respect this rule, but when entering the medina (old town) there are two places where one can get a glimpse of its glory; bright white walls, mosaic and fantastic architecture... A true pleasure for the eyes. We strolled around in the small medina, it is easy to get lost in them, we finally found a spot where we had a good view over this small town in the mountains. After taking photos and drank some water it was time for my cooking course; tajin with chicken was on the menu! The woman who prepared the meal did not speak any French so i simply had to observe, smell the spices, touch some of the ingredients and take notes! When the tajin was simmering, we were invited for an afternoon tea including the mandatory mint tea with four different cakes! Delicious. We were a bit concerned though that after stuffing ourselves, would there be space for the tajin? No worries, the tajin simmered for about three or four hours... Yes that chicken was teeeender... The next morning we were served breakfast on the terrace outside our room, from where we the previous day had experienced a celebration to a newly born baby in form of a traditional musical performance. After the breakfast we strolled around the town a bit, when Carles fell ill due to the heat. While he was resting i all of a sudden heard men singing what to me sounded like a mantra while walking across the mountain, it was a funeral. Amazing. When i turned around i saw the owner of the B&B splashing some liquid on Carles forehead which turned out to be orange blossom mixed with water which is said to be good for headaches. I got some too, just to try it, i smelled good afterwards! She was worried and kept speaking to him in French and all he wanted was to sleep. However, the owner was very kind and she let us stay about an hour or so on the terrace until Carles got better. When he had recovered a bit we packed our bag and got into a shared taxi heading for Meknes. What is the matter with the taxi drivers in Morocco? There are no words to describe their driving skills! Skills is perhaps not the right choice of word here though. Anyway let me just say we were VERY happy when we arrived in Meknes!
To be continued...
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