mosaic road

Color My World

 

This might be tacky to some but to me its just a bit of fun..... wishing everyone a 2017 full of colour xx

A Whole Lot of Lattice

I like a bit of lattice work especially with jasmine or bougainvillea rambling all over it but I did think this resort hotel in Marrakech had gone a little into lattice overdrive !! The big patio and  terraced eating and lounging area is a mass of chequered dappled shadowing. Square shadows are cast over people, food, chairs, tables, everything !!

More Fishy Business

I love the beach and wandering about fishing ports and along piers but I am not a big fish or seafood eater. If someone else peels the prawns or gives me the lobster meat out of the shell, then yum, but I don't want to touch anything raw. No hands on fishy preparation for me, ever. I actually have been fishing and caught the odd fish but also been very seasick. So although I am not going to do any eating or cooking, a seafood market still interests me especially when the offerings are different depending which country I am in. All these stalls line the busy pier in Essaouira, selling whatever is freshly caught  straight off the boats. True heaven for both the seagulls and seafood lovers.

Fishy Business

I have, in the past, always associated Morocco with desert and camels not beaches and seafood. But Morocco has it all, I now know. Huge swathes of Atlantic coastline means there are big ports and that fishing is a big business in this country. If you visit Essaouira, you can see a very authentic and bustling  port and seafood market with stalls selling fish straight off boats. It is gritty, grubby, grimy, oily and smelly but the fish could not be fresher. Restaurant owners are arguing over fish prices, gulls are squawking and wheeling overhead, nets are being unravelled, families are sightseeing....all real and rustic. Definitely a wander through this mayhem is unmissable.

Under The Tree

Outside my gym is a token faux Xmas tree, some faux gifts and some faux cotton wool snow. That snow has provided a very soft warm bed for some very sweet street kitties. They are in cat bed heaven ! Also the hanging baubles have given them a lot of entertainment and I have seen the ginger one batting the ornaments gleefully. They will be be very sad and cold when the 12 days of Xmas is up and the tree goes back into its box.

More Mountain Magnificence

A-Hunting We Will Go

I have been involved in a mountain hunting project. I have been waiting it out to take a trip on a perfect day to see a perfect sunset outline the perfect snow capped Atlas peaks. A three pronged approach was set in place. Three people were placed on high alert. K would report on haze or lack of at mid morning. L would report on conditions at lunchtime and N, our driver, would make the final call mid afternoon. Day after day the reports were not optimal until today when the magic words " it's a yes from me" were heard in triplicate. So at four pm we headed off on the hunt for some beautiful mountain photography. Of course, in no way can I, a mere mortal wielding a small camera, do justice to the beauty I have been part of this evening. All I can do is share with you a mini taste of Moroccan mountain magnificence.

 

Anyone for a Dip ?

No way do I feel like swimming right now. Our Moroccan winter days are just hitting the high teens, celsius, by midday. But it is each to his own as for many tourists the high teens are way hotter, balmy in fact, compared to  their own currently snow covered countries. Most pools are not heated and the water feels Arctic to me. Despite the chilly season, the hotel and resort pools still look beautiful and alluring especially when lit up at night like this one at the Palais Es Saadi with its rainbow of rotating spotlights.

Delicious Dining

Morocco is full of cafes and restaurants to suit every budget and visitors can enjoy the simplicity of  eating tagines with locals or become ensconced like royalty in five star establishments. I have certainly been in many just beautiful eating places and often been surprised by the extremely reasonable prices on the menu. So when you get here there are terraces, salons, rooftops, poolside gazebos, courtyards, clubs and more waiting for your custom. My first choice is always to eat al fresco, with a view if possible, but when there is snow on the Atlas then a cosy lounge setting with a log fire is perfect. If anyone needs any eating suggestions I have a few ideas up my sleeve. 

Colonel Sanders

The aroma of roasting chickens is familiar to us all, alluring and tantalising and mouth watering. I was in the souk this week and followed my nose to a tiny shop with a charming shopkeeper brandishing poultry shears. He gave us a lesson in Berber and told us that in the past he had worked in the kitchens of the very big film studios in Ouarzazate. He cut a juicy golden chicken, straight from the rotisserie, into two halves and was very keen to have some photos taken with his wonderful local version of KFC.