Imouzzer Ida Ou Tanane, Souss-Massa, Morocco
Yesterday we had booked a
trip along with Jill & John, another English couple in our hotel, using the Tui rep linked to the French
guests at the hotel - €68 each as opposed to the Thomson trip for the English at €84. Well done
us! Today we had a private 4x4 to the High Atlas Mountains with an English-speaking Berber driver/guide
It was wonderful, with
great views as we drove higher and higher into the mountains. All around us
were different varieties & colours of rocks interspersed with argan, olive,
pomegranate & fig trees, beehives, herds of goats & many varieties of
cactus. The highest we reached was 5500 ft but the mountains go up to nearly
14000ft.
They haven’t had
rain up where we were for 3 years, but there are various oases with villages
clustered round. Even the poorest villages have electricity, a mosque and a
primary school (insisted upon by the king) but quite a lot of the housing is
still traditional Berber - small windows, mud roof laid over wood slats &
walls like drystone ones filled with daub.
Roads snake up
& down in hairpins, all with magnificent scenery & the occasional nomad
herding his goats, old ladies shaking olive trees to harvest the fruit or
carrying huge bundles of grass, and olive-skinned children shouting “Bonjour!” at our white
faces.
Lunch was in Tiskji
at a family’s house, a huge place over 400 years old and once the home of the
local pasha. We had the ritual hand washing with the host pouring a kettle of
water (fortunately not boiling) on us, then mint tea to drink, which was served
with great ceremony by our guide.
The starter was
bread dipped in argan oil, olive oil or 2 types of honey, then a plate of
home-grown vegetable salad, followed by a chicken tajine again with home
produce & green clementines. Absolutely delicious & so lovely to be in
a family home where even the children welcomed us with kisses on both cheeks!
Next stop was the
souk in the village of Imouzzer - the weekly market was SO different to the
daily one of Agadir. The was a car park plus a donkey park as the surrounding
villagers trot in, park the donkeys, fill their panniers then return home with
the week’s supplies. The vast majority were men wearing traditional Berber
robes, but I didn’t manage to capture one actually riding.
We walked through
the souk as the only white faces but it wasn’t a problem. Fruit & veg were
spread out on the floor, chickens were there for the choosing, goats &
sheep were tethered at the sides & the narrow paths contained shacks with
barbers, all manner of household goods, fish mongers & tailors, and a stall
selling donkey panniers...everything a Berber could ever need.
The break on the
way back down the valley was at a cafe where the enterprising owner had used
the small river full of little fish to house his chairs & tables – a
“natural fish spa,” where the fish nibbled your toes as you partook of drinks &
snacks!! We didn’t partake (the water was FAR too cold as it came straight from
the mountains) but instead visited a lovely botanic garden where they prepare
cosmetics & culinary oils.
I learned such a
lot from our Berber guide: the fact that Berbers make up 70% of the population
of Morocco, mostly farmers in the higher regions, that their written language
is very square in comparison to the swirls & curves of Arabic, and that many
Berbers are trilingual today, speaking Berber, Arabic & French. It was a
great day & so interesting.
2025-05-22