~ Ait Benhaddou to Essaouria ~
Surprisingly enough, given today was our longest drive, we were all looking forward to today after Mohamed’s lovely offer of lunch at his home. We certainly couldn’t complain about the view for our 6 h 2 min (373.1 km) drive. The start of our journey was truly stunning as we traversed the high Atlas Mountains. We made a small stop at an Argan oil cooperative where the women showed us how the make the oil and the different things it can be used for! We even got to taste a peanut butter and honey version – actually quite delicious! We made a quick stop at a supermarket and we wanted to bring something to Mohamed’s house – never show up empty handed! We chose a try of 36 little cakes! 

Let’s just say – lunch was amazing. Mohamed’s wife and sister-in-law greeted us at the door with huge, warm smiles. They welcomed us into their guest dining room where we were invited to sit, given drinks and had every offer of help refused! The food they put in front of us – wow! It more than filled the table and it was scrumptious. Easily the best meal we had enjoyed so far! And the best thing? This was the first meal that all of us actually ate in days! Success! After we had eaten as much as we possibly could fit (honestly there didn’t appear to be much of a dent but we were stuffed!!) they brought our dessert! But it was not the ones we had purchased! They had already made their own! At least they had a few (…36…) desserts to enjoy themselves later! 

Mohamed’s wife and sister-in-law then invited us girls into a separate room to draw henna on us. It was so lovely to sit and chat with them, about our lives and theirs – both teachers – and Mohamed came in halfway through bearing their wedding photo album for us to all look at! They were stunning! It felt very special to be invited so warmly into their home. We thanked them profusely as we said our fond farewells and continued on our journey. 

We made one final stop on our way to Essaouria for a beautiful panoramic view of the city. When we disembarked from the bus we were bombarded with offers for camel rides. We tried to politely decline and make our way to make some photos. Roisin however, decided not to wear shoes when we got out of the bus and there was glass all over the ground. In a show of selfless generosity, one of the camel spruikers have her his shoes to use while we took some photos! 

Essaouria itself is like a colourful fishing town. It is situated within 15th century Portuguese fortifications, with wide beaches and apparently great surf. After we had settled into our hotel we met downstairs for an evening stroll to explore the medina and have some dinner. We walked up and down the first few main streets which were littered with people and shops. Leather, woodcarvings, art, jewelry, spices, food, souvenirs – anything you could imagine. We were a little dizzy from all the noise and colour and headed back towards the hotel for dinner. We found a delicious Italian restaurant called Gusto (we all needed a little break from Moroccan food, and nothing would be able to top the lunch we had). We had live music, a delicious feed and great conversation.