“Ohmigod, Madam, What is the problem?! Three times I ask you [to come smoke hash] and three times you say ‘no thank you!’”
“I said, ‘no thank you!’”
“Ah, okay, I see you tomorrow morning.”
I knew two things before I went to Chefchaouen: the first—that hash was readily available; the second—that it was blue-walled.
A few weeks before I left for my trip, a friend of mine told me a story about his time in Morocco. He showed up in Chefchaouen with his friends and a ball of hash strung around his neck, and a pack of Ewoks descended upon him. Of course, he was ridiculously high, and the “Ewoks” were really just the men in the typical brown jellabas that men wear in that region. But in any case, by mid-afternoon on my second day in Chefchaouen, I was a bit offended that I hadn’t been offered hash even once! Not that I wanted to buy and/or smoke any, but I just thought, do I look like such a prude that people won’t even offer it to me? And then it happened—three times, in one day, by one guy. Sadly for him, he never made a sale off of me.
Chefchaouen was a welcome break from the chaos that was Tangier. It was so lazy and lovely, and teeming with kind people (even the hash peddler)—people who wanted to teach me about Morocco and Islam, and how to say things in Arabic. I was excited to be there—to slow down and really see the Morocco I’d dreamed of before landing in the country. And dreamland it was. The blue-washed buildings and staircases were unlike anything I’d ever seen before. The medina was mazelike, but small enough that even when I was lost, I could still catch my bearings. Two days there was probably enough time to have seen everything in the town (certainly not enough to do some of the hikes in the mountains though), but I wished I’d stayed for longer. I felt such inspiration there, and didn’t want to put my camera down for even a second for fear of missing something spectacular.
This blue town in the mountains was exactly the place that I needed to change my feelings about Morocco, and thankfully so early on in the trip. When I left Tangier, I wasn’t sure that I was going to be able to make it for the next two weeks traveling around the country. But Chefchaouen gave me a quick reprieve and the opportunity to regroup so that I was ready to move on and tackle more of the elusive country. Of all the cities I visited, this ranked second highest for me (Marrakech being one), and I look forward to the day I return and get to spend a more lengthy stay there.
I love the walls. Why do they paint it with blue? Why not pink or any other color? Just curious. :D
Synz | From Sea to Summit recently posted..WEEKEND ADVENTURE | Rock Climbing at Cantabaco
Good question! The blue is supposed to keep mosquitoes away–apparently they hate the color blue. Who knew?
It’s lovely to read this positive post about Morocco and Chefchaouen looks really beautiful. I have always wanted to travel to Morocco but haven’t had the chance as yet. A few people have recently been fairly negative to me about their experiences there but you have confirmed that it is definitely somewhere I intend to visit :)
Lisa – Wee Wanders recently posted..15 Wee Facts About Me – Boring, Future and Random
I’m not going to lie and say that it was all sunshine and rainbows when I was in Morocco. But I don’t think the bad overshadows the good–I had maybe two bad days out of my two-week trip. Hope you have a great time when you make it there, Lisa!
I’m going to be there in two months. I’m so excited :) These photos are amazing. My favorite is the one of the two boys
stef recently posted..Guest Post: 10 Unseen Amazing Swimming Holes in North America
Thanks, Stef! I hope you have an amazing time! And get some great photos. :)
I love the blue walls! It looks like a beautiful city, hash or no.
Jess recently posted..New England Spring
It’s definitely a beautiful city! Glad you liked the photos of the blue walls! :)
That’s absolutely stunning place and the blue color just brightens up the whole city. Amazing pictures and I would definitely fall in love with Morocco!
Agness recently posted..A Beginner’s Guide To The Singapore Hawker Center
Thanks, Agness! Morocco is a very interesting countries! You can’t help but both love and kind of hate it (or at least be frustrated with it). It’s certainly unique in that respect. :)
Amazing pictures! I love the blue walls, it gives the place such a nice look!
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Thanks so much, Rianne! It’s a beautiful little town! :)
Absolutly beautiful photos. You are very clever. Are you going to Fez?
Thanks! And yes, I went to Fes just after Chefchaouen. I’ll be posting about that soon! :)
Many people in the Southern U.S. paint the ceilings of their large porches blue. They say it confuses flying insects. Probably not true, but it’s kinda cool looking. Hanging water in clear plastic bags or glass does ‘they’ believe) confuse flies into thinking they will fly into spider webs…
Interesting! I had no idea, Jesse!
I’m going there tomorrow morning and I’m so excited…
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How was it, Zof?!