First Day In Essaouira

We got our stuff and escaped the throng. We weren't sure if there was space in our place, but this display was reassuring (to me at least). Elena wanted to take a taxi (we didn't exaclty know where we were on the map because there are multiple bus stations), but instead of taxis, there were old men with blue licensed push carts. So we hired a guy and piled our luggage into his cart. He slowly walked toward the exit off the bus station. A kid asked what hotel we were going to and I told him and showed him on the map. The kid told the old guy where we were going, but he didn't say anything that sounded like our hotel. Well, at least, we headed on and actually entered the medina. I liked it immediately. There was nice looking stuff and price tags (takes the pain out of negotiating). Also there were a lot of Westerners. The medina was clean and quiet. There was even a bunch of vans with stuff indicating they were filming a movie called "The Last Templar." I can see how a movie about the Knights Templar might have scenes in a nice clean medina like this. It was a nice medina. Most medinas are filled with men talking to each other in such a way that you can't tell if they are fighting or not. But, all of a sudden, Elena turned to me and said that she changed her mind about our first choice hotel and wanted to stay outside the medina. I tried to point out that the medina was nice compared to the other ones--quiet, nice stuff. But she didn't like the old looking buildings. Just then an old guy on a bike who had showed me his card at the bus station approached me again. He told me about the place he was representing--the Maison des Coleurs, a place owned by a German. We agreed to take a look if we didn't like the hotel and we was content to follow us. We passed by his place first and Elena took a look. She liked it enough, but we decided to go on and see the other place as well. The guy took us there. Except, it wasn't the right place. The kid had given him bad instructions. The owner of Georgio Armani Berber straightened things out and we got to the right place. But when Elena it from the street, she decided that the Maison des Coleurs was the place to stay. So we went back and got a room.

The Maison des Coleurs is an interesting place. It is painted all different colors and themes. The bedding is nice and colorful. The furniture is funky and colorful. It was about 4 floors wrapped around a central courtyard. Each room is glass with colorful curtains looking out to the courtyard. We got room 4, with a "private" shower and toilet. I put private in quotes because it's all a little exposed to the courtyard. People may be able to occasionally catch voyeuristic glimpses of exhibitionist shower takers if they know where to stand. It's the sexiest thing in this otherwise very unsexy country. If I ever make a return trip to Morocco, I would totally try to find it again. It's half romantic, half fun. It's a long way from Seattle, but otherwise, it would be a fun place to have a big gathering of friends who want to go to an exotic place.

The guy who led us to the Maison des Coleurs then told us about an apartment. Once we got settled in, we went to take a look. It was nice, so we decided to take it starting the next day. But first, we needed to get back and rest. The bus trip had taken a lot out of us.

I took a cold shower. Elena asked the guy about the hot water so he fixed it and she took a hot shower. (That's the difference between a guy who adapts himself to his environment and a woman who adapts her environment to suit her.) Then we rested a bit. Whew! Finally, we went out to a place that is evidently in both Routard and Lonely Planet. It was called Restaurant Les Alizés. You choose a fixed 950 dh menu with a choice of entrée, plat, and dessert. Elena had the house salad, chicken tagine, and flan. I had harira, goat tagine, and fruit cocktail. It was yummy. We also got a 90 dh bottle of wine. We were very happy. I joked that the reason Elena earned this dinner was that I made her ride the bus with the poor Moroccans. The staff all disappeared right at the end so it took us a while to get out, during which Elena yawned a dozen times. By the time we got home (right around the corner), we were both ready for a deep sleep. And we slept deep and long. After several days of not sleeping well and a bus ride on a non-tourist bus, it was the perfect conditions for sleeping. I heard some people come in briefly come in. But, other than that, it was dark, silent, cool, and comfortable. Not that it would be if there were other guests, but it was pretty quiet. They only have 7 rooms.