Essaouira, the city where anything is possible

"With the power of soul, anything is possible" so sang Jimmy Hendrix in 1969 after spending one night that same year in Essaouira, inspiring a flood of hippies and beatniks from the four corners of the world to the region in search for inspiration. These days Essaouira's fame has spread considerably as well as kite and windsurfing enthusiasts itching to trip super sized waves and exploit the power of cross shore trade winds that blow practically all year round.


With its Vaubanesque ramparts and white medina built in 1764 by French architect Theodore Cornut under the orders of Sultan Mohammed Ben Abdallah, Essaouira is worlds apart from hustle and bustle of Marrakech. Earning UNESCO world heritage status in 2001, Essaouira or Mogador (as it was known under Portuguese rule during the XVth century) is from being stuck in a time warp. this city has preserved the panache of its unique trading post past whilst developing a host of other attractions, from the distinctive musical traditions originating from black Africa and feted in June during the Gnaoua Festival to the top class hotel accommodation and tourist facilities it has on offer. The city's wealth of craftsmanship skills, the buzz of it souks, its majestic hinterland and argan oil cooperatives (The argan tree being unique to this part of the world and boasting UNESCO world heritage listing) - all these factors have equal billing in endorsing Essaouira as a flagship destination within the kingdom.

No surprise then that a gaggle of artists, writers, musicians and film directors have flocked to Essaouira in the footstep of Orson Wells who filmed Othello here in 1952. Your turn now to step in their shoes as you discover the fishing harbour with its vibrantly colored boats, the Sqala with bronze canons aimed at the Atlantic, Thuya wood marquetry and cabinet-making workshops with their subtle woody smell wafting over the city.

The Medina with its straight roads and art galleries boasting Souiri exhibitions, Dane Frederic Damgard's gallery (the oldest) and espace Othello gallery housed in a former warehouse. En route you might even bump into a woman swathed in a heavy white cotton haïk for protection against the wind - a real yet strangely surreal sight. Follow the advice of Moroccan author Edmond Amran el-Maaleh: "Should your gaze fall in the city and its stunning union with the sea when strolling along the Skala ramparts, simply roll with the enigma of it all".

If you are lucky enough to be in Essaouira in June, you will be at the right place to enjoy the "Gnaoua and world music" Festival during 3 days in the last decade of June. During this Festival, Gnaoua and maalems and top ranking international musicians will do their thing to the haunting rhythms of karbabs (crotals), guembris (3-strings lutes) and gangas (drums). A mesmerising experience that draws an audience of thousands every year to a city that transforms into a huge open air concert for a couple of days.

Essaouira is also a place that beats to the rhythms of the sea. And water sports enthusiasts have 10 kms of beach with sweeping trade winds for surf related fun. The area's first golf course at Domaine de Mogador, a seaside resort currently under construction, opened last January. In a setting of argan groves with the dunes of Essaouira and the Atlantic coastline as a backdrop, this particular golf course has been created by Gary Player and designed to be in perfect harmony with the eco-system.

Essaouira is a city where everything is possible, where all desires, yearnings and expectations can be met. French author Paul Claudel understood this only too well when he wrote the following in the satin Slipper: "There is only one particular castle I know of where it would be a bonus to be locked up. Death would be preferable to giving back the keys. That castle is Mogador in Africa".