Postcard from Tetouan

"It's about to explode", says Maribel Jimenez of Blanco Riad in Tetouan, of tourism in the city. The View from Fez takes a look.

Tetouan's location close to the Mediterranean coast makes it a sure-fire winner when it comes to tourism potential. There are plenty of developments on the coast, especially at M'diq with its beautiful beach, just a short taxi-ride away. HM the King spends time there and has lavished attention on it and the surrounding area.

The city has a wonderful Andalusian heritage that is reflected in its Mauresque buildings. Moors and Jews escaped persecution in Spain, particularly Granada, from the 15th century onwards and took refuge here.

Bacturia Church (left) in Place Moulay el-Mehdi

Tetouan also has its own style of decor - it's well known for its furniture made of cedarwood inlaid with mother-of-pearl decoration, and Spanish-influenced, heavily decorated ceramic tiles with a bronze sheen. This form of tiling is best seen at the guesthouse El Reducto in the medina.

tiled column at El Reducto guesthouse

We made a special point of visiting the Archaeology Museum, set in pretty gardens. It features Roman mosaic floors all the way from Lixus, that we'd visited earlier in our trip (see the story here).

Best of all, perhaps, are the four quirky towers on Place Hassan II, outside the Royal Palace. No, they're not minarets; they're light towers, designed by a student of Gaudi.

light tower in Place Hassan II

The whitewashed medina is well worth a visit. We stayed at the new Blanco Riad, a wonderful blend of traditional architecture and furniture with a dash of modern Spain. The original zellij floors have been retained in some of the bedrooms, and are magnificent.

The ground floor has a hammam in one of the salons; another is a superb restaurant that's open to the public. Traditional Moroccan food is served, but with a modern twist - for example, pigeon pastilla with foie gras, or stuffed calamari tubes.

The dining room at Blanco Riad; Tetouan furniture (right)

Outside is a peaceful, Zen-like garden, shaded from the sun.

Interesting architecture, new places to stay, excellent restaurants, proximity to fabulous Mediterranean beaches - we think Maribel might just be right.

Blanco Riad: www.blancoriad.com. Tel: 0539 704 202

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Postcard from Sebta

Visiting the Spanish occupied city of Sebta is a weird experience. This piece of Morocco has been the subject of dispute for a long time and Morocco is not alone in calling on the Spanish to relinquish this remnant of colonialism. Former French President Chirac was a great supporter of Morocco's historical claim and even went to the point of applying pressure to the Spanish Foreign Minister to return the territory. Alas, so far it is still a stalemate.

Sebta - everything within walking distance.

Facts!

Length 9.41 km (6 mi), W-E

Width 5.92 km (4 mi), N-S

Area 18.5 km² (7 sq mi)

Crossing the border does not feel at all like leaving Morocco, but there is a strange atmosphere, intensified by the presence of dozens of young men trying to raise a little cash by selling immigration forms, which are available free at the passport windows. The distance from one side of the frontier to the other is not great and after a long car or bus trip the walk is welcome.

The Spanish border police are friendly and welcoming and taxis are waiting inside for the short drive into the city of Sebta (which the Spanish call Ceuta). The trip into the city cost just over 3 Euro.

The moat beside the "Royal" wall.
(click on any image to enlarge)

Any doubt about the original inhabitants is immediately dispelled by the discovery of an ancient 11th century hammam (sign posted as "Arabic Baths"). This has been beautifully restored and entry to it is free. Although there is a mosque in Sebta, the call to prayer is overpowered by the ringing of church bells. The churches are all interesting, ornate and worth a visit.

Sebta is dominated by Monte Hacho, a hill along its western frontier with Morocco which is guarded by a Spanish fort. Monte Hacho is one of the possible locations for the southern Pillars of Hercules, of Greek legend (the other possibility being Jebel Musa).

Fountains everywhere ! 

The city itself is clean, open and bustling. Tapas bars are everywhere and the general standard of food is superb. If you arrive late in the afternoon, be aware that most bars are not open until around 8.30 in the evening. However, an "Irish", Dublin Pub appears to be open most of the time! Down around the Marina, a fishermen's complex houses restaurants from Chinese to up-market haute cuisine.

Looking upwards has its rewards! 

Being such a small city, walking everywhere is possible. There is also a large pedestrian precinct with plenty of shops. At present Sebta is part of the territory of the European Union. The city was a free port before Spain joined the European Union in 1986. Now it has a low-tax system within the European Monetary System. The population is around 80,000. Despite the so-called low tax system, The View from Fez found prices for cameras and computers higher than mainland Europe.

Nice set of threads! 

What strikes one while wandering the streets is the profusion of street sculpture which features everything from sheep wearing hats to a statue of Ghandi.

Accommodation is plentiful and the small pensions are clean and reasonably priced. For those on a bigger budget the Parador Hotel is perfectly located.

Summing up, a visit to Sebta is interesting but unless you are a tapas addict, returning to Morocco is a welcome experience. Back at the border, The View from Fez team sighed with relief when the first of the Moroccan police welcomed us, smiled and waved us through.

Photographs: Sandy McCutcheon (Click images to enlarge)

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Postcard from Tangier

The View from Fez continues its virtual tour of Morocco with a revelation and a warning: Tangier is fast becoming the culinary capital and restaurants in Fez have been left behind!

For years Tangier got very bad press ~ it was "dangerous", "louche", "full of hassles" and hardly worth visiting! Over the last few years, The View from Fez has been visiting Tangier and doing our best to correct the wrong impressions about this wonderful city.

On our last few trips we have discovered wonderful restaurants such as Restaurant Le Nabab (above) in the Kasbah and Les Passagers de Tangier, (below) overlooking the Grand Socco.

Now we can reveal another stunning addition to the stable of Tangier's fine restaurants.

Situated almost beside the American Legation, is Riad Tanja. Although it is a very pleasant place to stay, its restaurant is open to the public and most definitely worth a visit.

With fixed price menus from 250 dirhams or a la carte, the food on the menu looked as if it would be simply more of the usual Moroccan cuisine.

Mosaique de Petites Salades Marocaines

Far from it. The Mosaique de Petites Salades Marocaines was extraordinary. Each of the small offerings was an explosion of tastes - each unique. The main courses of Poulet en croute d'herbes et d'amandes was as stunning as their deliciously slow-cooked Tanjia. The desserts were all wonderful, although the stand out was Galettes de dattes a la réglisse. This was food with flare and creativity.

Service was extremely good, wine reasonably priced, the décor perfect and all this accompanied by a suitably subtle oud player.

For those of us that live in Fez, there is a challenge. Our notions about what is Moroccan food, need a real shake up. The days of "nine salads" or chicken with preserved lemon, or lamb with prunes are long gone and one day Fez chefs will wake up to the fact that there is a new Moroccan cuisine. That day can't come soon enough.

INFO:
Riad Tanja, Rue du Portugal Escalier Américain, Tanger Médina
Ph +212 539333538

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POSTCARD FROM LARACHE

The View from Fez Postcard Series Continues as our intrepid team heads to... 

LARACHE

Today we're in a town little visited by tourists outside the holiday season. Larache is situated on the southern banks of the Loukkos river estuary and has a long history of Portuguese and then Spanish occupation before the French.

The central square, Place de la Libération (also known as Plaza d'Espana) is large and planted with palm trees. Main roads fan out from it, full of early 1920 Mauresque buildings. The town retains a strong Spanish influence and many people speak Spanish as a second language.

Ruins of Portuguese fortifications (see above) can be found along the seafront, and you can sit at a pavement café on the square and see the sea.

Spanish investment in the town has meant that many of the beautiful old buildings are disappearing in favour of bright shiny apartment blocks. The Spanish influence is also found in the food - sardines and paella compete with the preponderance of pizza joints. Restaurants close around 10pm, but in season stay open much later.

LIXUS

We stopped off at Lixus on our way from Asilah to Larache.  Phoenician  settlement of this area dates back more than 2000 BCE. Much older than Volubilis.  Lixus sees fewer visitors, has been less well-researched and is quite overgrown. The resident guide, El Mokhtar El Hannache, will point out the later Carthaginian buildings, and the much later Roman constructions on top of them. Lixus was a maritime city, but these days the sea is 4km away.

There are the remains of a temple to Neptune on the site as well as an amphitheatre (the only one in Morocco), baths, houses, Carthaginian rainwater collection pits (the Romans abandoned these), other temples and a forum. The inhabitants made olive oil and a preserved fish paste much revered in Rome. Today the few olives are wild and only for the birds.

The views of the serpentine Loukkos river are superb from the top of the site. Salt beds, a view of distant Larache and fishing vessels at sea complete the scene.

On the northern side of the estuary, a beautiful beach stretches for miles. There's a large modern development, Port Lixus, with hotels; apartments and even a  marina, that's fortunately not visible from Larache. For now; the town relies on fishing and seasonal tourism and seems a world away from both squeaky-clean Asilah and the major cities of Tangier and Rabat.

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Postcard from Salé

The character Robinson Crusoe in Daniel Defoe's novel escaped from the pirates and sailed off to liberty from the mouth of the Bou Regreg river

If it were a fairy story or folk tale, then Salé would probably be the ugly sister or maybe the ugly duckling. Sitting next to Rabat, Salé has been seen as the twin sister. Nice to look at from the train on the way to Fez, maybe, but certainly not a place high on the list of those "must visit" places. But now the team from The View from Fez can report that the "ugly duckling" is a myth - a beautiful swan beside the Bou Regreg river, is a more appropriate image.

Salé is a fascinating place. Its history is full of mystery and mayhem, of piracy, slavery and a journey from riches to rags. And the history goes a long way back.

In Pirate Utopias, Peter Lamborn Wilson says: Salé dates back at least to Carthaginian times (around 7th century BC). The Romans called the place Sala Colonia, part of their province of Mauritania Tingitane. Pliny the Elder mentions it (as a desert town infested with elephants!). The Vandals captured the area in the 5th century AD and left behind a number of blonde, blue-eyed Berbers. The Arabs (7th century) kept the old name and believed it derived from "Sala" (sic., his name is actually Salah), son of Ham, son of Noah; they said that Salé was the first city ever built by the Berbers.

In the 17th century, Salé became a haven for Moriscos-turned-Barbary pirates. The Salé pirates (the well-known "Sally Rovers") roamed the seas as far as the shores of the Americas, bringing back loot and slaves. They formed the Republic of Salé.

These days the city is a large "dormitory town" with its critics claiming it has little community life and is devoid of a "centre" of its own. Most of its influential and wealthy inhabitants have departed to live in Rabat on the other side of the river.

However, things are changing rapidly and Salé has a lot of potential that will make this an important and interesting place to visit. Recent developments, including a new bridge for the Sale-Rabat tram system, marina and coastal development, all show that this is changing with the government and private development companies pouring money into the area.

When visiting Salé, take a pleasant stroll along the walls (pictured above) until you come to the view of the old cemetery (pictured below). It is fair to say that in Salé, the dead have the best real estate, right on the foreshore.


After enjoying the views, cross the road behind you and go into the old medina. While not as spectacular as that in Fez, or as tourist-oriented as Marrakech, it does have a charm of its own and some wonderful hidden treasures.

Locally made grass matting

Relaxed shopping in the souqs

...and when you need a rest, the park.

There is a peaceful central park, a Mellah, or old Jewish quarter and several interesting souqs. One of the specialities of the city is the production of grass matting designed for mosques, but now sought-after for other interior design functions.

The Great Mosque

Look out for the Great Mosque which was completed in 1333. Situated at the top of a small incline, it has the Medersa of Abu al-Hassan on the left with an exquisite gate and carved balcony. The madrasa admission is 10dh, open daily 9.00-12.00 and 14.30-18.00. Do check out the view of Rabat from the roof.

Through an alley on the left of the mosque you can make your way to the orange/yellow door surrounds of the Tijani Zaouia on a corner to the right. Keep on along the alley and you will eventually come to the Sidi Abdullah ibn Hassoun Zaouia. Just in front of the zaouia is a short lane that takes you back to the road and the sea wall. It is a lovely circuit to walk in the early evening.

The mosque interior

Finding good accommodation in Salé used to be a problem. Thankfully this too is changing and there are a growing number of places to stay. One that we checked out was The Repose. With an easily accessible address in the Medina, it is stylish without being over the top.

The Repose - a haven in the Medina

The peaceful atmosphere is enhanced by superb staff and very hospitable owners who speak a variety of languages including English. The food is vegetarian, but not of the bland variety. Stuffed peppers, delightful salads and wicked chocolate desserts are the order of the day and reasonably priced.

All in all, we regretted that it took so long for us to "discover" Salé. With all the improvements that are in train, we suggest it is a tranquil and interesting place to stay. And, of course, if you are after more high octane nightlife, well, Rabat is merely a bridge away. Of course, if the weather is good and you are in a romantic mood, forget about bridges and taxis and after making your way down to the marina, haggle over the price to be rowed across the river in one of the splendid little blue boats.

Information: You can reach Salé by train, by car or Grand Taxi from Rabat.
For more information on The Repose, email info@therepose.com

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Postcard from Rabat

On our trip up the coast of Morocco in search of new stories for The View from Fez, the team is now in Rabat, the capital.

the new train station in Rabat

The first thing to strike you if you're arriving in Rabat by train, is the newly refurbished station. The lovely old building has been retained, but inside it's all black marble and chrome, and very smart indeed. Upstairs is a food court with a number of different outlets serving anything from paninis to tagines to pizzas. On the ground level is a Budget rental car agency, a post office, foreign exchange bureau, Venezia icecream parlour, coffee shop, and a newspapers and magazines outlet. Wifi is free everywhere, as in Fez. There are lifts and escalators to take you to each floor.

RABAT-SALE TRAMWAY

The greatest innovation that is changing the face of Rabat is the tramway, due for completion later this year.

With two lines, the tramway will link Sale to Rabat much more than just the road. It will be a boon for the local population, and will also open Sale up to more tourism as it will be more easily accessible. At present, petits taxis cannot take passengers from Rabat to Sale; only the grands taxis can ply that route.


Traffic congestion and parking problems will be eased, and of course a tram is much more ecologically sensitive than cars and buses. The fare is likely to be about Dh7 per trip. This is on a par with a short taxi ride around town, but slightly more expensive than a bus.

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Postcard from Azemmour

EL JADIDA

As regular readers will have observed, The View from Fez team are making a whistlestop tour of some of the less frequently mentioned destinations in Morocco. Today our journey continues northward, with a stop in El Jadida.

The World Heritage Site of the Cite Portugaise is set within ochre walls and contains various gems such as the Church of the Assumption and the synagogue, as well as the eerily tranquil Citerne (cistern), lit by a single shaft of light. The church is being turned into an upmarket hotel and restaurant by M Leymarie, owner of the Beldi country club in Marrakech.

The Cistern at El Jadida, an entry in The View from Fez photography competition

Just inside the Cite gate is a pleasant restaurant, La Portugaise. It's good to know this, as El Jadida has a serious lack of decent restaurants. The town itself is pretty tacky.

AZEMMOUR

Azemmour was our next stop - a pretty medina set above the Oum Errabia river. Again, few decent restaurants though lots of hole-in-the-wall places serving good sandwiches and rotisserie chicken. These are just outside the walled medina, around the leafy square.

Azemmour (pictured above) has featured recently in several magazines as THE place to buy property. It's probably about 20 years behind the much more upmarket (and cleaner) Assilah, near Tangier. One senses that within a few years, Azemmour will look like Assilah (given a similarly forward-thinking governor). At present it's subject to upgrading but makes no concessions to tourists. There are, however, a couple of good places to stay. An advantage is that it's on the trainline and only 1 1/2 hours from Casablanca.

We stopped off, too, at Mazagan, the mega-resort opened late last year (see our story here). It looks like any other Kerzner resort with a few concessions to being located in Morocco (eg ochre walls with crenellations, doormen in fancy burnous and babouche outfits, and a show of Moroccan artisans in the foyer). But in amongst the golf course, casino, spa and several restaurants, you could easily forget which country you're in. It has brought jobs to the area, speeded up the construction of the highway (but closed the picturesque coastal road). It's not alone - there's a Pullman hotel and golf course next door, too. One wonders about the water needed for all these golf courses - not such a problem here as in Marrakech, perhaps, but nonetheless unsustainable use of a precious resource.

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Postcard from Oualidia

SAFI
It's ironic that 'saafi' in Darija means 'enough'. One night in the industrial port of Safi, north of Essaouira, was quite enough. Approaching from the south, we passed the enormous phosphates plant, belching out sulphorous white smoke from its labyrinthine tubes.

Safi does not delight the visitor

Next came the huge sardine works that also don't produce much in the way of pleasant smells. The other big industry in Safi is pottery - much of the ceramics found across Morocco come from this town and the potteries dominate it. There's absolutely nothing for the tourist here apart from the potteries. We were glad to move on.

A hair-raising ride to Oualidia followed. The taxi was older than us, about the same vintage as the elderly driver. But appearances can hide all sorts of things - here was Mad Max himself. In a car that rattled and bucked, where the instrument panel had long given up and there were no seatbelts (not necessary in taxis in Morocco, of course, though we wonder why), this driver got up to knuckle-biting speeds on the poor coastal road between Safi and Oualidia. Thank goodness there's a white line in the middle of the road to guide the driver - for most of the ride this old bucket straddled it, when it wasn't on the wrong side of the road overtaking huge trucks on blind corners.

OUALIDIA
Arriving in Oualidia meant a fight with Mad Max - we wanted to be taken to our hotel, he would go no further than the taxi rank. In the end he couldn't anyway, as the car died there and then. We were secretly quite pleased about that. So we hiked the kilometre or so down to the beach to find our hotel. There are no taxis in Oualidia, and no signposts to hotels, strangely enough.

an aerial view of the lagoon at Oualidia

Oualidia is truly beautiful, set on a peaceful lagoon. The town is split between the usual Moroccan conurbation up on the bluff, and the string of hotels, restaurants and holiday homes along the beach about a kilometre down the cliffside. Around the lagoon there are plenty of sea sports - a surf school run by Morocco's champion surfer, Noureddine Joubir, quads, scooters, windsurfers and kayaks for hire, or you can just laze in a beachside restaurant savouring fresh fish. This week there's a red tide (a form of algae ingested by molluscs making them inedible), so no oysters or mussels. The oysters are farmed in the lagoon - you can visit one of the factories to see how it's done, and then taste them in the restaurants.

The lagoon in Oualidia

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Postcard from Sidi Kaouki - surfer's paradise

The View from Fez has just visited Sidi Kaouki, a small village some 25km south of Essaouira, on a 5km-long sandy beach.

If you like long walks on the beach, horseriding or camel riding, this is a great place for a few days. The exposed beach gets plenty of wind, though - there's even a wind farm a couple of kilometres north of the village.

Sidi Kaouki himself, after whom the village is named, is buried in a marabout on the rocks (pictured above). He was a saint who lived in the late 19th century and was known for his healing powers. Pilgrims like to visit his shrine. Behind the village are forests of argane, mimosa and juniper.

Surfing, windsurfing and kitesurfing are all hugely popular. There's an exposed beach break that has quite reliable surf and can work at any time of the year. Offshore winds blow from the south. It tends to receive a mix of groundswells and windswells and the ideal swell direction is from the northwest. The beach breaks offer lefts and rights. The quality of the surf isn't affected by the tide. Even when there are waves, it's not likely to be crowded and it's good for experienced surfers as well as beginners, though you should watch out for rocks.

The Auberge de la Plage was recommended as a good place to stay, and that it certainly was. Delightfully rustic with a terrace ideal for watching the sun set as well as a shady garden, it was perfect as a quiet getaway. Fishermen bring their catch to the door, so the fish is always fresh and well-cooked. At the nearby Surfcenter, you can rent boards and equipment, and opt for lessons from qualified instructors. There's also a restaurant and bar.

Now we're so laid back, we're in danger of falling off our surfboards.

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Postcard from Essaouira: Teredo 'worm' threatens boats

The livelihood of the fishermen in Essaouira is being threatened by a mollusc that is eating away at their boats.

The teredo or 'shipworm' is a type of saltwater bivalve mollusc known to bore into and eventually destroy wooden structures immersed in sea water. More and more of the blue fishing boats in Essaouira are being put into dry dock, taken apart, repaired and being put back together. The problem has increased over the last four months. There have always been attacks of the teredo, but it's getting worse - probably because of global warming producing warmer waters.

the teredo mollusc

When shipworms bore into submerged wood, bacteria in a special organ called the gland of Deshayes allow them to digest cellulose. The excavated burrow is usually lined with a calcareous tube. Shipworms have slender worm-like forms, but nonetheless possess the characteristic structures of bivalves. The valves of the shell of shipworms are small separate parts located at the anterior end of the worm, used for excavating the burrow.

damage caused by the teredo

They're pretty hardy, too. Mooring boats in fresh water or putting them in dry dock for weeks at a time doesn't always get rid of the borers. Since ancient times, fishermen have been daubing the hulls of their boats with tar or special paint to prevent an attack. However, this is an expensive process and the fishermen in Essaouira simply can't afford it.

The artisanal fishing fleet is very important in Morocco. There are over 20 000 wooden boats along the coast and most of them are built in Essaouira. They are usually 5,40m long with a width of 2m and a draught of 0,45m. They can face the heavy seas of the Atlantic and have exceptional sailing qualities.

Boats made of modern materials such as glass fibre and polyester resin to the same design are also manufactured in Morocco, for export mostly to France. As they're much lighter than the original wooden boats, 100kg of ballast has to be added to the keel to give them the same stability and unsinkability. These boats, of course, would not be subject to attacks by the teredo. But again, Essaouira's fisherman can't afford modern versions of their ancient craft.

Essaouira photos: Kirsty McArdle

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