Our second day in Essaouira was just as mellow and lazy as our first. Just more wandering and eating. Ahhh, vacation.

This is the pretty little sign outside our hotel, Dar Liouba.

The lobby serves as the living room and dining room.

Looking up to the sunroof

Gorgeous rooftop, I’m sure it’s amazing in the summer months.

View from the rooftop

Our second breakfast at Dar Liouba started with something that reminded me of Indian rice pudding with rosewater. This version had some sliced almonds and pieces of orange in it.

We also had warmed thin crepes, which we ate with honey.

There wasn’t much to do in Essa, so we returned to the port to explore more. This sign has a lot going on. The illustration in the center reminded me of this sign I saw in Split, Croatia. But I have no idea what it’s saying.

Jewelry souks

Beautiful powders for paint

Time for lunch! Chez Sam is at the end of the pier.

We had pan-fried John Dory, which was moist and tender.

Grilled fresh sardines were delicious, but lots of work.

While some of the bones were soft enough to eat, some definitely were not, so we had to perform major deboning surgery on every sardine.

We continued our lazy day with coffee and desserts at Patisserie Maalem Driss.

This cat was either looking for her babies or needed some attention. She walked through the patisserie into the courtyard and gave out quite a sad meow every 20 minutes. When we were leaving, she hopped into my chair.

Back at Dar Liouba, we went up to the roof to watch the sunset. We saw seagulls pecking at these sheep skins (from the Eid) drying on a nearby rooftop.

Our previous night’s dinner was not good, in fact, I might call it gross. So our last night in Essa, we went to a restaurant listed in my Loney Planet book, Restaurant El-Minzah. I had the seafood pastilla, which is a filo-type of pastry, stuffed with seafood and glass noodles and fried. Not the healthiest thing, but certainly tasty.

Nicole had the chicken pastilla, which is stuffed with chicken, cinnamon and nuts, and topped with confectioners sugar. Kind of an odd flavor combination, but it works!

After a nice couple of relaxing days in Essaouira, we hopped on a bus back to Marrakech for the last leg of our Moroccan adventure. We were sad to leave this quiet little seaside town, but excited to do some shopping and see our Marakchi family again!

After celebrating the Eid al Kabir with our Marakchi family, we were overwhelmed and suffering from cultural overload. I’d also been sick all week, so our trip to the little coastal town of Essaouira was a welcome break. We arrived early evening, and found that a lot of things were closed for the holiday. We had two days to do very little, and that’s just the way we planned it. Essaouira is a little fishing town, so we wandered around the port, ate grilled fish from one of the many fish hawkers, and toured the little alleys and shops. It was a great way to wind down and gear up before heading back to the city of Marrakech.

Our first breakfast at Dar Liouba started with a yummy flan-like custard. This was followed with toasted breads, tea, coffee and tangerine juice.

Place Orson Wells

Fishing off the rocks

Seagulls and cats were the main residents of the town.

The cat on the right is huge. I called him Mr. Bigs.

Lots of people were strolling and sitting along the water.  The first day was so slow and peaceful, coming off the holiday.

Shops selling goods made from wood from endangered thuya trees were plentiful.

The ramparts

One of the main gates into the medina

Fish prices are regulated, so all the vendors near the port sell at the same prices. Choosing which one to eat at is kind of a coin toss.

Grill stands selling fresh fish

I got this hairy crab, which was tough to eat once it was grilled. The hair became needle sharp from the heat!

Kite surfing is a popular activity in the coastal towns of Morocco.

These babouche souqs were everywhere in the cities.

“Natural viagra turbo for more love pleasure and satisfaction.”

Chicken cart

Dried dates and figs

Nuts and dried fruits

Snoozing on the job

Spice market

Snake potion

Tiniest of kitties, sitting on a sardine box.