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Albany Western Australia - A seaside holiday destination for all
Albany Western Australia is a city of approximately 30,000 people in the south-west corner of Western Australia, approximately 409km from Perth . The city is nestled between three large hills, Mount Clarence, Mount Melville and Mount Adelaide,...
Meeting Les Sables d'Olonne
Les Sables d'Olone is located within the region of Charentes, on the Atlantic Ocean coast side of France, towards the western side of the country. This town is a sous prefecture of the French department of Vendee, and is one of the most attractive...
The Selous And The Rest Of The Animals
So what about the rest of the animals in the Selous, Africa’s biggest game reserve? Other wildlife it is usually delegated, at best, to a footnote at the end of a travel guide. Lumped together as also ran but didn’t quite make the grade. The safari...
Tourist Attractions in Sweden - A Personal Top-10
Ask Sweden fans what's their favourite spot in Sweden and most will say there are too many to mention. On one thing they will agree: besides the beautiful capital Stockholm, the country’s main attraction is its landscape. But there's more. Sweden...
Travel in Albufeira Portugal
Albufeira is quite simply Portugal's version of Spain's
Benidorm, a town dedicated to supplying the downmarket British
punter with everything he might want, from eggs and bacon for
breakfast to big-screen football with fish and chips for...
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Castles in the Sand
Jimi Hendrix wrote his song, "Castles in the Sand" in 1967,and
that was two years before he actually visited Morocco. The site
of "Castles in the Sand" was the then small town and fishing
village of Essaouira on Morocco's Atlantic Coast. The town has
grown a lot in the intervening 35 years. It is relatively close
to the capital Casablanca, built around a busy fishing port.
Ironically Essaouira was one of only two ports in Morocco that
were entitled to trade with Europe, and so in the past it had
held a much more important role in Moroccan affairs than it does
today. As a trading port founded by the Portuguese in the
eighteenth century it lured business and business people to come
and work within its confines. In fact the British held an
important foothold there. However, with the growth of the French
protectorate, Casablanca was favored and in the early twentieth
century, and Essaouira fell into disrepair.
Today the fishing port is surrounded by whitewashed two storied
buildings with traditional blue shutters. Its sandy beaches are
uncluttered and for the most part empty of high-density
tourist traffic. Beyond the beaches are row upon row of rolling
dunes. These dunes provide ideal shelter because Essaouira is a
windy place and that is part of its charm! Because this town,
which the Portuguese named Mogador is a wind surfer's
paradise,
so much so that I plays host to several international
windsurfing competitions. But there's more, if there's wind
there is generally surf as well. Yes, Essaouira is also a
surfer's heaven, and they come from all around and even further
afield to catch rides on some big breakers. Another feature of
this remarkable Moroccan town is the Gnawas Festival, which is
probably the event that attracted Jimi Hendrix to the region.
The Gnawas comprise a traditional group of singers and
musicians. They are black because they come from a slave
heritage and this has greatly influenced their music that has a
heavy trance-inducing beat. The Gnawas Festival takes place in
June each year and draws people from all over the world.
Essaouira offers a grand selection of hotels and guest houses to
cater for all pockets and tastes. For example for something
rather different, "Dar Liouba" is a gem of a place. This small
guest house is a former Imam's residence which has been
re-designed by a Russian Furnisher and a French Chinese Jewelry
designer to be come a sophisticated hostelry filled with lush
green plants and traditional carved cedar wood, but if that's
not to your taste there is a lot more accommodation to choose
from.
Interested in this subject? Try this link for more of the same
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