Essaouira: and a watery tale

Once upon a time, there was a girl who lived in a city called Marrakech with no ocean.  She tried to make due by holding a large seashell to her ear and closing her eyes.  But let's face it, such fakery is only good for so long.

Seeing the sad look in her eyes, her husband went searching far and wide for a solution.  After, ahem, many months of travel on his trusty steed, he found a place 2.5 hours away called Essaouira.   The walls were white and the doors were blue, but most importantly, Essaouira had cleverly settled itself along the sea.  The husband knew without a moment's doubt that this place might be just the thing to put a spring back in his wife's step.  He hurried home, and after packing bathing suits, towels and his wife and children in the car, he headed south. 

Now in a fit of madness, this family had spent almost all their money buying olive trees and cement in Marrakech.  But they managed to find a few extra Moroccan dirhams to rent a shack in Essaouira.  Unfortunately, just about everything turned out to be wrong with this shack -- the water was unreliable, the furniture shabby, and the landlord mean, very mean.  The shack was even next to a graveyard -- can you imagine that?  But there was a pretty garden, and the beach and the town center were only minutes away. And so they stayed.

The family spent their weekends walking on the sand, listening to the waves, and eating fish.  They also roamed through Essaouira's blue and white streets, and found much to their delight that everywhere they looked, there were hippies, surfers, artists, fisherman and others who sported odd clothing. In short, it was perfect, and they managed to blend right in with the rest of the flip flop wearers.    

The days turned to weeks and the weeks into months.  And with almost no warning, the summer ended. The day finally came when they had to pack their bathing suits and towels for the very last time.  As they drove away from the shack back towards Marrakech, the girl tapped on her husband's shoulder and made him stop the car.  She then ran back and took an extra large shell - twice the size of the one that she had in Marrakech.  And with that clasped in one hand, she said goodbye to Essaouira...until next Summer, that was.

The end.

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PS Make sure to visit the fun blog, Toast and Tables for Moroccan-inspired wedding ideas and Marrakech-chic table settings.

PPS The blog, Le Petit Cabinet de Curiosites has a blog entry on Alberto Pinto's new Moroccan-inspired fabrics.  Take a peek.

PPPPS And do check out Tara's great peacock.

Comments

[Candid Cool/Prêt-à-Porter Prostitute]

Reading this gives me travel envy.
One day...one day...
-h of Candid Cool

[cote de texas]

I know how you feel, I can't stand that summer is leaving, the sun is setting down sooner. I spend the other 3 seasons waiting out summer. So, fall will be here, then winter. But spring will then come soon and then summer again!

[flutter]

This was lovely, Maryam. You took me on a little vacation in my armchair

[jessica]

so dreamy. so lovely.
so nice the man was so nice to the family, the hunter they are, always wanting to please.

[maddie]

A true prince of the flip flop
tribes - and she has the shell to prove it:)

Loverly....

[Jacqueline]

Oooh, I'm so jealous. Even with all the housing issues, Essaouira is just magically soothing, peaceful, and beautiful, isn't it? No wonder so many hippy and artistic types have settled there.

[Lalla Lydia]

Maryam, what a lovely fairy tale for all to enjoy. I hope we'll hear more of your tales from the family's adventure by the sea in the future.

[Letitia]

I wanna hear about that mean landlord!
I'm feeling indignant on your behalf.
What did he do to you?

[sassy]

Mean landlords are a bummer, but I do admit, the ones we've had make for interesting stories later on...

[Britt-Arnhild]

This girls husband must be someone to die for:-)
Nothing is like the sea, is there. I am glad you had a great time.

[cream]

In one short afternoon, I fell in love with Essaouira, its easy, hippy life, its people, the ocean, the cool temperature compared to Marrakesh...
The drive back by night was hair-raising, though, with unlit carts, bicycles and invisible pedestrians hogging the road...
The end of Summer is always a sad thing but the experience remains one of the best!

[Paris Parfait]

Such a lovely story; my French friends Gabrielle and Olivier recently were telling me a story about a mad taxi driver taking them from Marrakech to Essaouira. He kept falling asleep at the wheel and Olivier periodically had to shout at him to wake him up. Needless to say, they were relieved to finally arrive intact.

[carolyn]

Loving those images and yes I want those flip flops and those bags!

[Sarah Dennis]

Hi Maryam, welcome home, I hope your travels back to Morocco went well. I hear this "beach town" is one of Morocco's best kept secrets so I thank you for taking me on a visual holiday to Essaouira. Such a beautiful story and what I took away from your story is that it doesn't matter if you're staying in a shack or a suite, it's the company of family and friends that really matters.

Thanks for the mention! It's such a honor to be exposed to your wonderful readers.

[Amelia A beautiful living]

This is just the most beautiful pictures! Hope you are having the best time, and thanks for your very sweet comments... Amelia.

[somepinkflowers]

oh,
oh,
what a wonderful end-of-summer tale!

i am enchanted, completely so.

:-)

that shell in the girl's possession now
will take her back to essaouira
over and over again.
what a wise husband the girl did have,
to know when *enough-is-enough!*
and ~~~a holiday is in order~~~
even when attempting to Reach A Goal!

going to google essaouira now....
a place containing all the vowels,
except the illusive sometimes-y,
must be a place to see...

[Mélanie]

Thank you for talking about my post . And I'm so happy it is near by a post about Essaouira , my favorite town in Morocco !!!
I love Mogador , and eating fish with my fingers on the front of the boats !!!

[Elizabeth]

Wonderful!
You capture both the good and the bad aspects of the maison bizarre. Yes, it's sad summer is over
I miss the 3 little tribbles.......

[hel]

You are the voice of poetry and beauty.

For sure.

[Gillian @ Indigo Blue]

Oh my god, I just read the history of it that you linked in this post. Fantastic!!! What a charming, historic destination. I am always intrigued by any place that has hosted both people I adore, AND pirates!!!
xo
Blue

[nicki]

What, pray tell, is so bad about being next to a graveyard? We have a perfectly lovely one here which my partner looks after with loving care. It is a perfect place to play hide and seek in, and not even scary at night time with all the little flickering candles!

[Liisa]

thanks for taking us on a virtual hide-away! It was nice to dream away for a while! :)

[Nora]

I'm glad the girl went back for a new shell. Til next year...

[Intisar]

Maryam, must you make me long for the Moroccan coast? ;) I love the thought toooooooo much. I'm glad you enjoyed your time in Essaouira. Thank you for sharing your wonderful story

[barbara]

I've heard this is a delightful seaside town with some very good fish. It sounds like a blissful summer.