Weekend in Asilah

Asilah is a small, quiet, beautiful but unpretentious town along the Atlantic coast of Morocco. T and I went there once about a year ago for just a couple of hours and were wanting to return ever since.


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This weekend, we got our chance. I went on the trip with three goals, all of which I accomplished. First, eat a vegetable tagine at Al Kasabah. Second, drink wine under the stars on the rooftop terrace of our guesthouse. Third (and most importantly), go to the beach.

I had read a lot about Paradise Beach and intended to go there, but our hostess suggested we go to a less-well-known but even more beautiful part of the beach, which involved driving on unmarked, winding, rutted, and rocky one-lane roads.

She told us to walk two kilometers south once we arrived at the beach, which we did. This brought us to Mounir's place, a clean and simple bamboo structure overlooking the water. We ate lunch there, sat in the shade, sat in the sun, got in the water, and enjoyed having a gorgeous, clean beach practically all to ourselves.

Virtually no people and no garbage--a true rarity!

Here is T sitting on the beach, with Mounir's place in the background.

Last year, I wrote that this is my favorite Moroccan town, and it remains so, not just because of the beach (although that in itself would probably be enough to make me love Asilah), but also because of the medina, which is open and airy. Each year there is an art festival in Asilah, and new artwork in a variety of styles is painted throughout the medina.

Our friend Sara. She and her husband Brian (below) went with us to Asilah and were nice enough to drive.

 

I'm already plotting my return to Asilah...