Agadir, Morroco
We left Gibraltar fast behind us with
an overground speed of 9 knots, but as the wind didn't keep up, it
took us three and a half days to cover some 450 miles to Agadir. We
stepped for the first time on the African soil and yet here we feel
as if we had never left Europe. This is not as one would imagine real
Morocco, but a typical tourist town with real McDonald's and Pizza Hut, as well as their local versions. Hotel
after hotel, restaurant after restaurant border the endless beach,
including an old Club Med resort. The marina facility is pretty good,
situated as if in a courtyard surrounded by expensive boutiques and
restaurants, this is a place where Moroccans come for promenade, to
shop, to feed the fish or just to admire this setup. Unfortunately,
the marina sanitary facility needs a good scrubbing and renovation,
this is the only item ignored by otherwise very helpful manager and
staff of this otherwise attractive marina. As we wanted to see a bit
beyond this tourist town, we visited the mystique town of Marrakesh.
We think even with a detailed map, wandering through the haphazardly
laid out streets of the medina and the souk is a real challenge, a
city within a city, we would never find our way without a guide!
Every nicknack produced in Morocco (or China?) can be found and the
competition is fierce with alley after alley full of shops.
Motorcycles, vendors, trade workers, tourists fill the place and
produce an incredible chaos, mixed with smell of fumes, spices,
herbs, also music and motorcycle noise - what a show! - but well
worth the visit. The great Jamaa el-Fna, the main popular square is
the scene of feverish activity as night begins to fall, outdoor
food-stalls get installed in a snap, air gets smoky as everyone
starts to cook at the same time and street dancers, monkeys and snake
charmers get in action and animate this place which is completely
filled with tourists and locals who try to sell you anything and
everything. And as the weather in Agadir is always pleasant and
mostly sunny (24 to 26°C
during the day), besides wandering around, we continued with the
improvements to Vanille and tried our hand with the
installation of some new lining (not a very fun job, especially the
fumes of the glue get our heads spinning round and round!). And so
now the new standing rigging is re-tuned, the cockpit is polished to
perfection and we are keeping our eye on the weather to grab the next
window to head to Cape Verde.