I have finally managed to make it to my sixth continent, Africa. After almost a year of attempts and four different booked flights I was able to travel to Morocco. (I first had planned to visit this summer from Portugal, but travel was restricted due to COVID.) My second attempt to visit was to fly from London to Morocco, but then that was restricted as well. The third attempt, my friend Jamie and I had to travel from the U.K. to Paris, then from Paris to Marrakesh, Morocco. Our flight home to the United States was out of the U.K. so a day before returning home to Chicago we would have to do the three-country trip again, but we decided it would be worth it. HOWEVER. Even though the Moroccan embassy website states that vaccinated U.S. citizens do not need to provide a negative PCR test for travel, our airline EasyJet, denied us boarding.
So, it was with the fourth attempt, we booked a last minute flight from Paris to Marrakesh, for 174$ with Royal Air Maroc. Which is MUCH more than the original few flights, but it was booked twelve hours before we were supposed to leave…. so yep.
Royal Air Maroc was certainly one of the more interesting flights I have been on. They served breakfast on the three hour flight, which was really good for airplane food! They even had a cigarette cart, which one individual decided made it completely appropriate to light up on the plane.
As i sit here writing this entry I have the one and only role model and muse I have ever known, the Great Anthony Bourdain, playing on the television in the background as i type. He is in Tangier, Morocco, it’s the closest I could find to Essaouira, but it is providing my writers block with the slight push i seem to need. Well, that and this glass of wine I’m nursing. Two of the things I have loved most in life are travel and writing, unfortunately though, the past few years have weighed heavy on my soul – and I am not sure if its COVID, age, or ADHD but writing has seemed to distort from something i once enjoyed to now a bit of a struggle. So if I still have your attention at this point, struggle with me through some recommendations in Essaouira, Morocco.
Marrakesh Airport (RAK) to Essaouira
When we landed at RAK we did have to pass through customs/border control, which DID check our passports, vaccine cards, and the PCR test. Once outside the airport, which was pretty small, we met our driver who would be taking us on the two hour and forty-five minute ride from Marrakesh to Essaouira. We napped a majority of the ride, stopping for coffee once along the way. When we reached Essaouira a man with a wheelbarrow helped us bring our bags to where we would be staying. Essaouira is a port city and UNESCO world heritage site.
Accommodation
We stayed at the Riad Dar Maya, a luxury boutique hotel. The Riad is located inside of the walls of the Medina. The staff was next-level accommodating, bringing tea to our room, recommending delicious restaurants and going as far as to pick up our COVID tests from the nearby testing center for us. The riad has five rooms, ranging from 120-140 euro a night. A delicious and filling breakfast of eggs, fruit, yogurt, croissants and tea and juices was included and they helped us bring our bags to the hotel from the drivers trunk. Next level service. I seemed to only have taken a photo of the shower… but look how amazing it was.
Food!
Umia
Our Riad recommended this restaurant to us for dinner. We did have to put in a reservation and since we did not know, we ended up eating dinner a bit later than normal (around 9ish) but after a glass of wine (or two.. three maybe?) It was perfect. The food and service were unbelievable. We ordered mussels and hummus for the appetizers, then monkfish and a clam risotto for dinner, it was all SO GOOD. We may have drunkenly ordered dessert, which i never do because i normally don’t enjoy sweets, but it was also so good. Like mouth having an orgasm good. 10/10, definitely go here.
Khmissa
We randomly stumbled into this place and had one of the most delicious warm home-made meals I have had in probably my entire life. The restaurant is found down a small side street close to the Sidi Mohammed Ben Abdellah Museum. The restaurant is extremely small and the food does take a minute because it is no joke being cooked only feet away by a lone woman, but i promise the price and deliciousness is well worth it. We had soup and vegetable tajin, which was seasoned so incredibly, and loads of bread. We washed it down with some mint tea. Once again the service was better than any service I have experienced in Chicago in the last year. I totally recommend, Jeez I wish i could have the Tajin right now.
Caravan Cafe
We went here after a tiring day of horse back riding, and the food was absolutely delicious. It seemed to be a bit higher end, with live music and a show later that night, which we were too exhausted to stick around for. We had ordered some samosas, a beet and goat cheese salad, hummus and appetizer plates and some brie cheese. We had ordered several dishes we split, while we enjoyed some wine. I unfortunately did not photograph everything at this meal because we were starving.
Taros
This was a rooftop restaurant and bar that had great views. The drinks were okay, the food was pretty good. In my opinion I would go here for the view over everything else.
Cafe Jimi Hendrix
Okay, so let me first address that there are two cafes with the same name next to one another. We went to the less known one and an adorable man cooked us some salads and a tajin (fish) which was okay, we weren’t really trying to eat meat but the salads were great! It was also so kind of him to feed us, and support a small business.
Things to Do/Explore
The Medina
I would definitely keep some cash on hand if you feel like haggling for some souvenirs! A lot of items you may see i would pass on BUT there are a few shops with local gems like spices, Moroccan oils, perfumes and donkey soaps.
HORSES
My friend Jamie is an equestrian, and found this awesome and different (for me) experience where you are taken by horseback to sand dunes and along the ocean. We rode for three hours, our guide was very kind and they took loads of photos for us. For me it was a very interesting experience since I have not ridden a horse in YEARS. I believe there are tons of horse tours if you are interested, the one we used was essaouira_horseride (Instagram).
Hammam
Our last day in Essaouira, and our second to last day of our entire trip we decided to treat ourselves to a traditional Moroccan Hammam and massage. Our Riad booked us an appointment at Azur Art & Spa. We arrived for our appointment and they had us change into comfy robes and immediately served us mint tea. We then went into the Hammam which is like a huge beautiful steam room where the woman poured water on us. After, we were lead into separate rooms where our hair was washed for us then after we were served more tea before our massage. This was SUCH a relaxing experience. As someone who not only suffers from anxiety issues, back issues, and an overall lack of ability to relax I would recommend this experience to anyone and everyone. Oh, and did i mention it’s like 1/3 of the cost it would be in the U.S.
The Port/ Fish Market
We walked around exploring the outdoor fish market near the port. You can purchase fish here and I believe they will even cook it for you! We had already eaten so we did not eat anything from the market but it was really different and fun to explore. There are a bunch of boats and fishermen – it’s a really cool thing to see.
We only had a few days in Morocco due being denied entry to our flight on EasyJet.
Long story short: No matter what you read, or believe the rules to be: Get a covid test. A PCR one and bring your vaccine card.
If you want the long story:
We are both fully vaccinated U.S. citizens, and the Moroccan embassy website said we would be allowed entry – well, EasyJet had different rules and we were denied boarding because we only had an antigen test with our vax cards. So we had to lose $ on a flight, lose a night in Morocco, and $ for a new flight, hotel in Paris, and transport.
Unfortunately, COVID is still around, and on top of ruining our health its throwing every wrench into travel plans that it possibly can. So, if you do choose to travel during this time, be prepared for setbacks, you can be the most organized and amazing planner and I guarantee that COVID will find a way to disrupt your plans/trip. Learn to go with the flow… or at least quickly develop a sense of humor like Jamie and I did. Our trip was so well planned out and COVID managed to fuck it up, we handled it with a bunch of jokes and laughs because we realized things were going to go wrong and there was nothing we could do in our control to prevent that. BUT, that’s travel, as my dude Tony B put it “it isn’t always pretty and isn’t always comfortable (TRUST US WE KNOW, we spent an entire 16 hours traveling from Morocco to France to London UK) The journey will change you and it should change you. And if I can say anything with the utmost honesty about my life is that each and every trip I have made in my life is that I have learned something from it and I have grown as a person. At least one major lesson stands out from every country I have been to and I wish that you, reader, get to experience the same. Thank you for taking the time to read.
Runaway Blond 