Taroudant to Sidi Ifni- Wednesday

We took a taxi to town and then caught a grand taxi to Agadir about an hour and a quarter away.  Because we had a 2 1/2 hour wait for our bus to Tiznit, we decided to catch a petit taxi to the seaside.  We went to a cafe to have lunch - a hamburger, fries, and a beer!  Yes, a hamburger because this is the only cafe that they know of in Morocco that serves a fabulous burger.  We sat watching the waves roll in, basking in the sun.  Agadir is a tourist destination for Europeans and there were lots of them strolling the promenade.

Reluctantly, we took a petit taxi to the CTM bus station to board our bus for Tiznit.  Several hours later we arrived and caught a grand taxi for Sidi Ifni.  We went directly to our hotel.  We were not directly on the sea, but had a lovely balcony with a beautiful full sea view.  That evening we were in the Moroccan salon at the Hotel and had a very good fish dinner.  There was an interesting group from France also staying at the hotel. They were a group of about ten, all around 70 years old.  They were on their way to Mali (Timbuctou, fame) to take medical supplies. A happy, friendly group they were and such an inspiration.  This is the fourth year for them to make this trek.  

We slept with the balcony door open and the sound of the waves crashing sent us off to sleep.

In the morning we walked around town to view the architecture and look in the shops.  Ifni is a quiet town and very pleasurable to spend time in as it is completely stress free.

At about 11:00 we took a bus a little north to a place called Legezira to see the natural stone arches at the sea.  Well, the bus let us off on the road and when I looked down I almost died.  It was a loooong walk down to the beach .  I made it, but all the while wondering how I would ever get back up to the road, seriously.  There are three or four rustic cafes right on the beach and we happily lazed there for the afternoon.

A young man came in and I eventually began to talk to him.  His name was Laurent and was from Normandy.  Hours later we all began the ascent to the road.  About half way up (I was near death) a car stopped and gave me a ride to the summit.  I thank God for that lovely retired couple from Britain.  We were waiting some time on the road for a ride - bus, taxi, stranger???  Eventually a car stopped and the two locals told us to pile in.  Yes, Linda, Donna, Gail, and Laurent did and we were driven back to Sidi Ifni. Laurent asked us what we were doing for dinner and suggested the Nomad restaurant so we made reservations and put our dinner orders in for 7:30pm.

It was around happy hour when we returned to our hotel and went to the upper terrace/bar and ordered a drink.  Shortly after a gentleman came over to talk to us.  Mohamed, a native Morocaan from Ifni living in Sweden, sat down with us and we all spent a few hours talking.  When we said we had to excuse ourselves to go to dinner he asked to go, too.  So, after HE paid our bar bill, we all walked the two blocks to the Nomad.  What a fine place at night.  It was small and intimate with seating for only about 25 inside and about 20 out on the terrace.  Laurent joined us and after some wine our dinners arrived.  I had camel brochettes.  We really enjoyed our candlelit dinner and our two new companions.  Mohamed, we found out owns a cafe and lodging establishment at Legazira. He invited us there for the next day, but told him we had been there all afternoon.  He treated us ladies to our dinner and excused himself to go home, saying that he had a busy day coming up.

Back to our hotel, tired and ready for sleep.