Our last day in Tangier started off with a delicious breakfast of every carb under the sun while enjoying the view from Dar Jameel. After breakfast, we were promptly greeted by the one and only, Hassan. The previous day he had told us we would come back and see the Kasbah, the fortress that overlooked the city, at an earlier hour in order to see the snake charmers. Well, we showed but apparently, the snake charmers had other plans. None to be seen. I have to say I wasn’t too heartbroken about that as snakes freak me out more than maybe anything, EVER. I’m sure I’ve inherited this fear from my Grandma who can’t even look at a picture of one without squirming. I feel you Amah. Snakes aside, we toured the Kasbah while not enjoying the explanations on any of the signs because as I previously mentioned, they were written in 3 languages and well, English just didn’t make the cut.
Post Kasbah, we got our bit of typical guidance from Hassan. “What you want to do? You do what ever you want. Any man do whatever he want.” Jenny and I ultimately decided that we would take Hassan and a taxi to the seaside village of Assilah, which we both swear he said was 14 kilometers away. We came to figure out MUCH later and after the brief thought of being abducted and sold into slavery had finally slipped from my mind, that he must have said 40 kilometers away. On the way to Assilah, we stopped to take in some gorgeous cliff side views, saw the point where the Mediterranean meets the Atlantic, and wait for it….rode some camels! Along the drive men stand on the side of the road with their camels looking for takers and well obviously, that was a must. I’ve decided I will be purchasing a camel to bring home with me and her name will be Bara Bara Hutton.
Sidenote: The Story of Bara Bara Hutton.
The first day we were walking past a house near the Kasbah and Hassan turns to us and says…
Hassan: “This house of Bara Bara Hutton.”
Jenny and I: “Who?”
Hassan: “Bara Bara Hutton. You know, Bara Bara Hutton. Very famous American lady.”
Me: “Ohhhh Barbara Hutton. Is that what you mean?”
Hassan: “Yes, exactly. Bara Bara Hutton.”
(For the record, I had no idea who she was but upon wikipedia-ing found out that she was a very famous socialite who was married 7 times, once to Cary Grant, and spent many of her years in Tangier.)
After the driver gave my camel a whack on the neck to get him to lower me down, it was time to get moving. Our next stop on the way to Assilah was a place called Grottes
d’Hercules, the Caves of Hercules. Hassan quickly hooked us up with a guide who whisked us through those things like Wham Bam Thank You Ma’am! He was quick but efficient, telling us exactly where to stand to pose for pictures and making sure to tell us over and over that the cut out in the rock formation looks just like Africa as seen in a mirror. He was right and I was impressed. It was a brisk tour, but we got the idea. Hey, I get it. The man’s gotta make a living and he’s not gonna do it if we just stand there all day gawking.
Finally, we reached Assilah and I was again relieved to discover that such a place actually existed and we weren’t being sold off or dumped and left for dead. Assilah was a spectacular whitewashed town right on the sea. It wasn’t nearly as shabby as old town Tangier, which I have to say was a pleasant change.
Not that old town Tangier wasn’t incredibly interesting but it got a little dark in the tiny alleys and Assilah provided some much needed sun exposure. All and all it was another fabulous day spent somewhere I could have never dreamed of being so soon. Morocco, though so close to Spain, just feels a world away. Amazing how a mere 9 miles can make such an absolute difference. Old town Tangier is the type of place I think every American should have to visit once. It’s important to see how the other side lives. Completely simply, yet seemingly, perfectly happy.
And NowEuropeToDate...
No comments:
Post a Comment