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Tangier and the Horns of the Mountains

Published: 25.03.2019

From Rabat, I took the train (or rather two trains) back to Tangier. The city was not originally on my itinerary, but I had heard good things about it and decided to make a little detour. Unfortunately, I was very disappointed, so I continued my journey to Chefchaouen after just one day.

The train ride to Tangier went smoothly again, but as soon as I arrived, I got a bad impression of the city. I had decided to take a taxi to my hostel and as soon as I approached the taxi stand, I was besieged by at least ten men who wanted to drive me. When I finally picked a driver, he demanded a way too high price, which he revised when I said it was too much and turned to leave. In the end, he dropped me off at the wrong end of the Medina, so I had a longer walk to the hostel.

In the Medina, it continued in the same way. I was constantly besieged by men who wanted to show me the way to my hostel or help me in some other way. I ignored them all and luckily found my hostel right away. Later, I wanted to explore the city on my own. After a while, I ran into an older Moroccan man who looked quite trustworthy. In the end, he gave me a short city tour (which I did not ask for) and asked for money afterwards. But I was lucky and he quickly settled for the small change I handed him. However, I took an honorary round to my hostel to make sure he didn't follow me.

Since I had no intention of spending much more time in the Medina (which, by the way, is already quite pretty and offers a nice view of the Strait of Gibraltar from its fortress), I was glad to be able to join my roommate the next day. She is Canadian and wanted to go to a park and caves outside the city. First, we treated ourselves to a great breakfast at the 'Cremerie Hollanda' (which has nothing to do with Holland, but is named after the street). I had a Moroccan pancake with almond butter and fruit - super delicious! Then we set off. We didn't do everything we had planned, but we enjoyed the nature in Perdicaris Park, great views, and interesting conversations. We also met a very nice group of young Moroccans who kindly showed us the way and offered to join them. At the end of the day, we took a walk with our Chinese roommate, who spoke only broken English, but had a very cheerful disposition.

The next morning, I took the bus to Chefchaouen. By the way, Chefchaouen does not actually mean 'blue city', as you might assume after reading some travel reports, but 'Horns of the Mountains'. I had never heard of this city in the mountains before arriving in Morocco, but almost everyone I met there talked about it.

The city has only been really known among travelers for a few years, but now it is flooded with tourists (there are even several Chinese restaurants, which is never a good sign). But no wonder! The city, which looks like it was dipped in a blue paint pot, is simply beautiful and you want to take a photo at every corner.

I spent my two days drifting through the narrow streets and discovering new corners. Or I hiked to the hills around the city to admire it from above. I also drank a lot of Moroccan tea, ate sweet pastries and tajine in a tiny restaurant in the marketplace, and watched the colorful hustle and bustle. The days in Chefchaouen were definitely among the highlights of my trip!


Answer (1)

Johanna
Aufregend und eindrucksvoll, dein Bericht

Morocco
Travel reports Morocco