Update

So yesterday was our return date from Agadir to Dublin. We knew the bridges had collapsed and we couldn't get to the airport. We still had wifi and spent most of the day studying Aer Lingus website for a phone number to ring them to no avail. Helen booked herself an Easyjet flight to London for Thursday. 

You've already seen the raging torrents. Today we went to look at the state of the bridge. Lots of people were standing on each side shouting across to each other. We can get 3G by the bridge so I was able to phone the Embassy in Rabat and report our details just to keep them informed that we are trapped. The embassy was shut so the phone went through to the Foreign Office in London. I spoke to Paul Huggins and he said he would pass our information on to the embassy. We reported that Ann's medication was low.

As we stood by the bridge we heard reports that the airports had closed including Marrakech, Agadir and Casablanca; that the whole of Morocco was going to be declared a disaster zone in an hour; that only Girl in in the south was a disaster zone.. There is a gap in the bridge of 15 feet where the river crashed through.. The water had even flowed over the bridge and twisted the railings. Some young men confidently predicted that it would be mended within an hour but we bought supplies for a few days because it would take at least a week to repair it back home.

People arrived with a bread, candles, plastic bottles with motorbike fuel and threw them across the chasm. Helen spoke to a man who had received such a sack from his friend and asked her if she wanted bread. He gave her three loaves!

The only way I can post this is to connect to 3G beside the damaged bridge.. 

If any of You can find out if the Agadir airport is open and whether Aer Lingus are resuming flights we would be grateful. We can't seem to get in touch with any Aer Lingus person. 

Our Moroccan mobile phone number is 0641301808 however we can only get a signal at the bridge 4 km away from the house. 

Electricity intermittent

What an adventure! We drove down against all advice to the local village. Warnings about stones and rocks and mud on the road. We covered the 3km carefully and stopped before the junction where the road was covered in mud and sand. The supermarket car park had sand burying two cars to their wheel arches. 

The supermarket was empty of bread and milk and eggs. Below is a local road turned torrent. We can't get to Tiznit because a bridge has collapsed and Tiznit is probably flooded anyway. A new bridge in agadir is also down. Couldn't get to the airport...next flight is in a weeks time.

Rain and gales

Facing the Atlantic isn't so good in a powerful storm. The houses aren't really waterproof and rain is seeping under the windows and doors. 

Here's a link to a video of the floods in nearby Old Aglou village 

Ouadi in full spate

Thursday in morocco

Helen found a link to chameleon rescue in Morocco. chameleons

I had a lovely walk on the beach today dodging the waves rushing up the sand and admiring the beautiful stones of pink granite, conglomerate, marble, quartz and pebbles of all colours. Bought a few small souvenirs at the pottery shop but I think the stones I shall load into my suitcase will be a more permanent reminder!

Hoopoe

The feathers are used for magic potions....oh dear.

Helen's observations from today

We were due to visit Peter in Sidi Ifni today but abandoned that plan in favour of another trip to the walled Souk in Tiznit. Unfortunately we were unable to contact Peter on the number he gave us, but we left him a message informing him of our change of plan. Sidi Ifni suffered quite badly in the recent floods and several people were killed and injured.

So, off to the Souk, where Bill & Ernie split away from us and went to walk the ramparts. Our 'friend' from our previous visit appeared out of nowhere and engaged Norma in conversation. Once again he accompanied us down the narrow streets, passing many small cobblers shops en route to the main market area.

We went to an Internet cafe where Helen's  boarding card was printed without any difficulties. They held up a bundle of boarding card photocopies to show us, so it must be a regular request.

Afterwards we paid a return visit to the traditional Berber medicine shop to have a further examination of the magical ingredients. This time the owner reached into a round woven straw basket and brought out the most beautiful little green chameleon which we were able to hold and admire. A chameleon brings good luck.

There were more items in his darkened room this time. A dead raven in full plumage, good for warding away the Devil. A dried fox, dried chameleons hanging from a string, a lizard with its ribs stretched open with a cut of wood. A hoopoe, seen above beside the shopkeepers hand and a sheet of newspaper on which he was preparing a potion for a waiting customer. This shop is one of the busiest on the street and it is mainly frequented by cloaked women.

Leaving there to make space for the waiting customers we moved on a few shops to the fishmongers where we bought a kilo of fresh sardines for 18 dirhams (£1.20) and then back to the potter to buy a clay barbecue and charcoal for 20 dirhams.

We just love the Souk at Tiznit with all its antiquity- the people in traditional dress, the colourful fruit and vegetable sellers, the tiny narrow alleyways with scuttling women and chattering schoolchildren, the men in their djellabas of many colours and the golden brown high turreted city walls.

Back home to sit by the pool whilst the sun shone and later to feast of sardines from the barbecue.

Bon appetite

Trip up country

Three of us left at 8:15 this morning to drive East into the Anti-Atlas mountains. Along the route were signs of the terrible flash floods that Elsewhere killed  at least 32 people over the previous two days. We have seen wadis turned into fierce and surging clay-coloured rivers sometimes brimming up to road level and sometimes cutting off the road. ...Rivers of mud. Today most of the waters had disappeared leaving pools and puddles and mud streaks on the roads. 

The stony ground sometimes hosting euphorbia plants and prickly pear gradually changed as we drove higher into the mountains.

We finally arrived at Tafraoute which gives the appearance of a frontier town. Not many tourists at the moment but it caters for seasonal visitors in hotels and camping grounds.

I found a Berber rug which took my fancy and we also bought a picnic lunch at the market stalls. Delicious oranges for 14p per kilo.

Back home for a delicious supper of beetroot hummus, potatoes cooked in garlic and spices, and tomatoes.

We've stepped out at last

We welcomed friends from Ireland last night after a full day of solid rain. They arrived at Agadir in horizontal rain and came to the house by taxi rather drenched. This is the first proper rain since 2009 and the farmers are delighted. The wadis that were empty when we arrived are filled with rushing clay-filled rivers sometimes flowing dangerously across the road. Driving is hazardous in this weather.  

We've had a day stuck inside but took a quick trip to Tiznit to look at the pottery and visit the supermarket. 

Today we've had a lunch stop in Mirleft At The 3 O'S (3 olive trees) Restaurant run by a Frenchman. with Richard, Sally and Peter. Dromedary for main course and then tarte au citron. Delicious. 

Offline due to powercuts

We have no phone line due to storms. I'm using the 3G mobile system to access web. Rain has cooled down the air, people are walking about in their overcoats yet the temp is about 18. 

We are in darkness

Today we visited Tiznit. The silver market by the butchers held various jewels and silver work. We had intended eating but couldn't really find a restaurant selling light food.  Met a man inside the walls of the old town who said beware of touts and guides. Then he took us to his shop!  On the way he showed us the Blue Source which is the old water tank of the town being restored to beautiful public gardens. 

On the way back to the car we met another man (Tai-eeb) as Helen wanted to find some pottery. All the tagines are too big for a suitcase on the plane. He took us on a walking tour to another's silver/carpets/pottery/ shop. We discovered that all Moroccans believe in the power of magic. He explained the shops we had seen selling traditional Berber medicines. There were gazelle heads, skins, hedgehog, baleen whale vertebrae, dried animals, an Egyptian vulture (dead). All these treatments help to make people stronger and work alongside western medicine. You can get sick if someone gives you the evil eye and you might need medicine to make you better. It's a different mentality. We say "we'll come back tomorrow" they say "we'll come back tomorrow, Inshallah" which qualifies everything  they talk about in the future. We have everything in our grasp, they only have it if Allah permits it. 

The Jetstream  forecast since last week brought  a storm to Africa and this afternoon it arrived with dark clouds and thunder. Eventually the rain and lightning hit the house. One of the sockets was wet with streaming water! Two hours ago the power went off. Luckily we had already bought candles so we played Scrabble in the gloom. 

Bed at 9:15 pm since we can no longer connect to the Internet. We are plunged back to ancient times with only candles to light our way....

Another good day.

Sous Massa park 2

Rachid brought us through his village and down a very sandy track past his house. He brought us in to have green tea with fresh absinthe herbs. 

Souss Massa national park

This morning sis and I left at 7:30 am to drive to souss massa park along the valley of. The river (Oued ) Masse. This is a lush well watered  valley where Lucerne is grown for  cattle. People cut the lucerne and carry it to the cattle housed at the back of their houses.

We hired a Guide who Climbed in and directed us to the seaward entrance of the park. We saw osprey, pink flamingos, dunlin, common sandpiper, moussiers redstart, Moroccan cormorant, Mauritania magpie, little owl, southern grey shirke, Kentish plover.

Then Rachid took us to the top of the hill for a panoramic view of the valley from the Atlantic to the anti Atlas Mountains. 

 Looking out to the Atlantic.  That's euphorbia in the foreground.

Tuesday

The view was hidden by sea mist on Sunday but today it seemed a clear and glorious day.. As we drove back to Mirleft a single swallow flew past. This was our day for the Hallam at Mina's. We were handed paper thongs and invited to strip off  and lie on the hot slab. A firm abrasive mitt is used to peel off the top layer of dead  skin. Our masseuse was also shipped down to bikini bottoms so we didn't mind seeing her body, like ours, with rolls of fat. After about an hour in the Hammam we are wrapped in a towel and invited to cool off in the sitting area with peach tea. Another woman did the massage ...lots of pummeling and prodding! It was a very good two hours and I highly recommend Mina's. 

On the way home we saw an osprey feeding on a fish on the top of a pylon.

.

Later I walked along the beach.

Birds of the day

This morning about twenty spoonbills flew south past the window. Photo below belongs to Gibraltar ornithologist http://gonhsoutings.blogspot.com/2011_05_01_archive.html

we spotted about eight trumpeter finch sitting on a telegraph wire.  Any time I've gone to look for these birds it's been a hard slog up a mountain!

Monday 17th Nov

Leave no food or crumbs or you will be surrounded by ants as we discovered in the Lamb tagine that DID have a lid! 

The fridge is the  fortress protecting us from these little beasties.

Guess what? It is sunny again! Drove 33km south to Mirleft along the coast because it is Market day. Mostly men selling fruit and veg plus a few trinket sellers. Kathryn bought some bangles and we bought beetroot and bread!

Lunch at the Restaurant Tayrought (wave). They are attracting surfers. Barbequed fresh fish and chicken tagine plus freshly squeezed orange juice. 

View from the terrace

That's the Atlantic out there.

This is a cluster of new build villas built about ten years ago each with their own swimming pool. Today we met Linda who also has a house here and she invited us for lunch outside. 

We made a quick visit to Tiznit to get meat and vegetables. The carcasses were were being butchered in front of the customers - no chill cabinets. Live poultry in cages waiting to meet their maker. 

Bought executive lounge access

And enjoyed slurping home made tomato and pepper soup with Wheaten bread. Couldn't resist the free access to drinks etc. So we started the journey in comfort and then flew on a half full Aer Lingua plane to Agadir. There was our driver holding up a  plaque with our name. First I had to sign the car hire forms in the car park under the street light! I hired the car Local to the Villa, 100 km from the airport so it's all a bit haphazard. Hafid drove us to such an enormous supermarket that even has brand new motorbikes for sale beside the clothes aisles!

We were in a hurry but longing to study the range of fruit and vegetables  and spices attractively arranged. It's about a two hour drive to Val d'Aglou near Tiznit. We are facing the thundering Atlantic which is just a few yards from the balcony. Can't wait to see it all in daylight.

Leaving home again

I'm on the bus to Dublin. Booked online for £8 instead of £13.50 and qualify for priority boarding. This coach is competently Full. The sun is shining after days of heavy rain. En route to Dublin airport for flight to Morocco. And then the garda stopped us... Uh oh! Was the driver speeding? Two officers stepped out of a twelve year old Toyota Yaris and entered the coach. They asked everyone for ID. Apparently they do occasional spot checks.