Category: architecture
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Riads and Dars, part 3
This is the last of a series of posts which document our experiences in several traditional moroccan hotels, known as riads or dars. The earlier posts are here and here. In Fes, we tried to stay in Riad Fes but it was fully booked. The riad is situated in the medina and guests are expected…
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Kasbah at Telouet, Home of the Pasha of Marrakech
On our way to Essaouira from Ouarzazate, we took a detour on P1506 to see Telouet Kasbah, but passing Ait Benhaddou (a United Nations Word Heritage site which regrettably we did not stop to explore). To accompany your reading, highly recommended is Stephen Micus’s quiet contemplative Nomad Songs published by ECM. We arrived at Telouet…
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Riads and Dars, part 2
Continuing with a tour of riads and dars … I think Astrakan Cafe by Anouar Brahem on ECM suits the mood of this dar, especially Track 14 Astrakan Cafe – 2 and Track 8 Parfum de gitane. Part 1 of this post is here. spotify:album:11AANoNamBHA1GwL2naAQb On our return to Marrakech in the second week, we…
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Riads and Dars, part 1
Staying at a riad (or dar) is part of the Moroccan experience. For our two weeks in Marrakech, Fes, Ouazazate and Essaouira, we stayed at 2 riads, 3 dars and had a dinner in a riad where we were too late to make a room booking. I selected a few songs for this post. spotify:playlist:2598JDKueapiRWCVTwlHU6…
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Volubilis, an archaeological gem
While we were staying in Fes, we took a day trip to Meknes and Volubilis. Meknes, one of the imperial cities of old Morocco, did not make much of an impression on us but Volubilis is a gem. First, let’s put on some Morocco traditional music made with an Oud – a type of lute.…
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Roaming around the desert – part 2
Continuing with the drive around the desert area near our camp, accompanied by some lively traditional Gnawa music. spotify:playlist:37i9dQZF1DWYCFWZy4Gz9M … along the way, we stopped to see a herd of donkeys that gathered around a well in the middle of a featureless flat desert. The well was built by funds from the charity – Coeur…