Suddenly there was a new community, close to the beach of course
Lunch break in a small town
A shish-kebab stand for the bus customers
A bread cart. Why didn't I include their heads??
First view of green grass in this dry country
Typical countryside south of Essaourira
RV park along the coast. Europeans escaping winter.
I sneaked a pic of my seat-mate
As I travelled further south I noticed the women often wore African print fabric
Taken from my bus window but when I saw her response (covering her mouth) I felt bad
I believe those are banana plants in the valley
A new development in progress, just north of Agadir. Agadir is a wealthy area!
Agadir was destroyed in a 1960 earthquake and is now a boomtown
Everything is modern in Agadir
This city is in stark contrast to the rest of Morocco
My $9 room in the Hotel Tiznit. The blanket is typical. Weighs a ton!
The window opens to the hall. There is a large rock under the chair. I wondered why. The window opens to the hall.
The bathroom. The sink was out in the hall. That's a Turkish toilet.
View out the window from the hall. Note the Grand Taxis. These are only available to go south. They wait for 6 passengers and then depart. I had to go to another place to find Grand Taxis going east.
Typical garment of Moroccan men, though the head piece is not common
Garbage is a real problem and shrubs are good at catching bags
an interesting rock wall
Hotel Salmaa in Tafraoute. My favourite hotel. Only $22 a night!
It had a TV and a heater/air conditioner next to it. I watched BBC World here.
View from the terrace (roof-top eating area). That's a dry riverbed the RV is passing over.
A store next to the Hotel
It was almond blossom time in Tafraoute
Peppercorns
Hotel Tafraoute looked very interesting! If I hadn't found Hotel Salmaa first I would have checked out this place.
Interesting window grates
I was fascinated by the window grates. Most buildings in Tafraoute were salmon-coloured
Buildings were decorated here much more so than anywhere else I saw in Morocco
A carpet vendor
An adorable man in a shoe stall.
I bought a pair of sandals here
What an interesting selection of footwear! The raised heel part is pushed down onto the soul, so the shoe becomes a slip-on. The leather one were very soft and looked very comfortable.
There is vegetation in the seemingly bare hills
The rock formations around Tafraoute were fascinating!!
View of Tafraoute
Natural garbage collectors
Might as well use the rocks to your advantage...
These were much too large to have been purposely arranged like this.
The symbols on the building are probably Berber. The Berber people are mountain people and make up half the population of Morocco.
alleyway and outdoor oven
a gorgeous flower on a succulent, growing in someone's garden
An almond tree in bloom
The RV crowd seemed to like the Tafraoute area
I was told that Moroccan style interior design is very popular in Europe. I can see why
I met Jean-Pierre and Liliane at my hotel restaurant and travelled north with them in their rented car
This hotel worker did not mind having her picture taken, but most women in Tafraoute hid their faces most of the time
I couldn't just take a pic of the women...
Can you see her hiding her face?
A village in the Alemn Valley, very near Tafraoute
On the road north to Taroudant. Note the terraced hilside.
We stopped to take a pic and the kids demanded bonbons (candy)
The original ancient Berber homes are in the background and blend into the landscape. The new ones are...should we say, very pink?
I expect that this area will green up somewhat as spring moves along, but it is very dry here. So many terraces on this route.
Women collect a scented plant to sell
They wanted us to stop, but we didn't. My guess is that they wanted us to take their pics and give them a tip
It is a very barren area, particularly in the winter
We are a bit lower here, so spring has sprung. It was nice to see some green.
I caught this group of young women as we drove by in the car. The one on the left must cover her face all the time.
More interesting rock fomations
A rare flower!
Another pic taken out the front window of the car. The garment on the right was very shiny.
A large healthy argan tree
Argan fruit is made into Argan Oil
At the Taitmatine Cooperative in Tiout. I was invited to crack some argan nuts. It was hard with the tools they had (a stone).
They didn't mind having their picture taken, but can you see any faces?
Note the lady on the left, in yellow. She has covered her face. You will see her later.
Argan nuts look similar to hazelnuts (but are related to olives). In this pic they are breaking the shell.
It seems to be important to not break the meat inside the shell (like I had done). The light coloured meats are in the smaller baskets.
Some of the ladies in the back section didn't mind their faces showing.
This cooperative is government sponsored and is run by women.
The oil that is produced is used for cooking and beauty products.
I was told by my French friends that the chefs in France will only use Argan oil (pictured on top on the right). It costs about $13 for half a liter.
A poster describing the process of making Argan oil, and pictures of the king on both the right and the left.
See the lady in yellow again? She is a wonderful character. Unlike earlier, she is not concerned about having her pic taken without her face covered.
Jean-Pierre mentioned something about thinking he may have promised to marry a number of the ladies...
Donkeys are still common in Morocco
A nomad tent in this tiny town. The inhabitants have probably moved on by the time you read this.
Nature's clothes-lines
Running water! She is using it to do her laundry. Notice the young lady on the left checking out the pic on J-P's camera.
She obviously loved having her pic taken! And it is so much fun to show it to them after.
Rare greenery. This common plant was in bloom in much of Morocco.
If you research south-western Morocco before you go, you hear about goats climbing trees. We were so pleased to be able to see it!! Course the shepherd wanted money from us.
Gorgeous gear on a fake horse. Later in the trip I saw such gear on real horses.
vegie stalls
egg cart
dinner with Jean-Pierre and Liliane in our hotel
the wine was excellent!
he seemed to be describing a moose
Liliane was describing a coyote or a wolf, by howling like one. Europeans seem to be fascinated with our wild animals.
the hotel room in Taroudant, with a bathroom that had walls that didn't go up to the ceiling
the hotel had a central courtyard
we ate breakfast on a terrace
looking down on the lower level, which had been a bar the evening before. Alcohol is not common in Morocco, so this was unusual.
a drooping palm in the courtyard
breakfast was okay except terrible water was used for the coffee
Taroudant had many shops with fabulous items for interior decor
tajine pot factory
an empty area in Taroudant
delivering some sort of greenery to market
almond trees near Marrakech
