If you’re going to get food poisoning, you might as well do it on a weekend excursion instead of
during the week when you have to go to work. And you might as well do it when
you’re in a beautiful beach town like Asilah. And you might as well get it from
some really tasty seafood.
But even then it sure is not fun.
I wasn’t able to update over the weekend, so I’m putting
this excursion all in one post. But luckily I am able to cut Friday down pretty
short and sweet due to the fact that all I really did was have a really
delicious lunch that tried to kill me. We arrived in Asilah in the early afternoon,
had a short tour of the Medina, and then lunch next to the ocean. As it turns
out, even (really, really) fresh seafood can be bad! So the rest of my Friday was
spent on the floor of my hotel bathroom face-to-face with the toilet bowl.
But I lived to tell the tale and (eventually) eat shellfish another day.
Saturday I was very glad for the tranquil speed of this
weekend’s excursion. It was very much a beach vacation, so I got to spend the
day relaxing and enjoying my absolutely beautiful surroundings. The majority of our
group left early in the morning for a beach farther away, but I wasn’t feeling
quite up to it, so my morning and early afternoon were mine to spend in peace
and solitude. I took a long walk beside the water, listened to some music on
the sand, and took a nap in the courtyard of the hotel. It was a pretty perfect
way to recuperate and get some time by myself to reflect. And, to take some pretty great photos.
In the evening I was feeling back up to normal speed, so I
went with a group of friends to shop and explore the medina. We watched the
sunset from a high lookout, and while we were taken completely by surprise. A
few local Moroccan boys about our age stripped their shirts and shoes off and
dove from the wall into the ocean. I can assure you that with the abundance and
placement of rocks far below us, this was not a safe cliff dive for even the
most adventurous of people. I was so certain that I had just watched someone
die. My stomach still hurts just thinking about it. But, several minutes later
they came back dripping wet, ready to jump again, and way braver than I ever
will be.
Today we were able to drive the short distance north to
Tangier where Morocco is separated from Spain only by the Strait of Gibraltar.
So, I still haven’t been to Spain yet, but I’ve seen it from Africa! We got a
chance to explore the city a bit as well, which is pretty well-defined as a
modge-podge of Spanish, French, English, and Moroccan culture. You can
literally see the different influences divided into different parts of the
city. We ate fresh figs we bought from a market vendor and saw Gran Café de
Paris (apparently they shot a scene in Borne Ultimatum here?). Then we headed
back to Meknes and I took a long, hard nap on the four-hour bus ride home.
 |
| Spain - so close I could almost touch it! |
This weekend definitely had its ups and one major down, but
I’m so glad to have experienced Asilah and Tangier. Northern Morocco is full of
culturally eclectic and stunning locations that I will rave about forever.
Back to work tomorrow!
Buenas noches! (Because, you know, Spain.)
P.S. Happy birthday to my amazing Nana! I can't wait to see you when I get home!
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