from Asilah to Chefchaouen

I spent yesterday in Asilah again. Walked to the beach again and met some of the people I met the day before - One fellow kissed me on the cheeks. Besides that surprise, walking to the beach is always a relaxing activity.

Asilah is in the very north east corner of Africa. I can picture myself as a little stick figure on the corner of the continent. This image is helped - in my head - by memories of the video game Heart of Africa (and Seven Cities of Gold) which I used to play on the old Commodore 64. In Heart of Africa it would occasionally zoom in and out of the pixelly versions of Africa and African villages. As I was jumping into the Atlantic ocean (and bouncing back quickly because it is cold) I could just picture my video game equivalent doing the same.

But enough obscure video game references that maybe my brothers can relate to...

Along the trail to the beach (along the Atlantic Ocean) there are little military tents spaced out about every half kilometre. At first I thought they might be for people smuggling but a couple guys I ran into told me they were looking for hash trafficers. The couple guys I ran into were Morroccan and I walked with them for awhile, speaking Spanish because one guy did not know French.

Today I spent a couple hours speaking french with a guy named Abdazizi on the bus ride from Asilah to Tetuoan. He said he made the trip alot these days and invited me to visit him in Tetuoan if I returned there. Or in Casablanca which is where his mom lives. My french wasn't good enough to figure out what he does.

In Chefchaouen they do hashish. I am not going to mention touts anymore, but I will kinda mention that I ran into 4 very friendly people who were offering me only the best accommodations, grass and hashish. According to the Lonely Planet guide, Chefchaouen is marijuana country and it is therefore difficult to rent a donkey from August to October when the 'Kif' harvest comes around.

The cafes play Led Zeppelin and Bob Marley and the medina reminds me a bit of a typical mountain tourist town (like Whistler say). So I can see why it might be a place to have a good time.

Either way, I am not really interested in hash right now. I am thinking of either treking a bit in the mountains for a couple days or moving on. I have not decided. Chefchaouen has a really positive reputation for a place to visit - but so far I would rather be closer to the ocean. Though Chefchaouen also has a reputation for people coming for one day and staying a week...

There is a river somewhere nearby... maybe I should go find it.