Now it's Essaouira not Mogador... not so catchy

The gang at sunset - the cannons in Essaouira

Okay so post Spring Camp Extravaganza Marrakech 2010, I was (easily) convinced to head towards the coast with about a kabillion other PCVs in search of some serious R&R after a week of teenage camper insanity.

First on deck was El Jadida, which is a pretty sweet port city just south of Casablanca. It was run by the Portuguese for about 250 years, so there is a beautiful area which is completely dominated by Portuguese architecture. The 'Portuguese Fortified city of Mazagan' is a UNESCO world heritage site and even includes a cistern which is available for viewing. Didn't get a chance to see that on this trip, but apparently it's the scheduled field trip for summer camps in El Jadida, so really looking forward to it. The Cistern in Istanbul is one of my favourite places on earth, so this one has got a lot to live up to.

After staying in El Jadida for one night we made an impromptu decision to move the convoy south to Essaouira, a beautiful city along the coast, three hours south of El Jadida and three hours west of Marrakech. This city was orginally called Mogador (or Mordor depending on level of interpretation and imagination) and was run by Portuguese, Spanish, English, and Dutch throughout the 16th century. Apparently the name means 'the beautifully designed', which is totally appropriate as the medina is truly stunning. This place is officially my favourite city in all of Morocco.

There's a gorgeous beach with warm water (though the boys may argue with me on this one), soft sand (which we definitely had a sand fight with), and sea-side seafood huts (can I get three cheers for fried fish, please?). I not only got to swim for the first time in seven months, but I freaking got to boogie board too. Blew my mind. I was euphoric. God, I missed the beach. Among the other highlights: shopping, gelato, schwarma, more fried fish, sangria, tanning, sunset watching, exploring, not to mention the naturally obvious dance party that concluded our trip. (Which immediately followed a highly competitive Easter Egg Hunt I mandated we do.) We stayed in a phenomenal riad, which was 4 stories and could easily house triple the 12 people that had stayed in it this past weekend. Which is why it's perfect for renting during the Gnaoua Festival in June. Apparently, word on the street is it's pretty much 'Morocco's Woodstock'. Like half a million people descend upon Essaouira for a long weekend of rock, jazz, reggae, and gnaoua music. I'm more excited for this than you know.

Sunset along the beach in Essaouira

A few of the ladies striking a pose from the cannons

The interior of our gorgeous house

The boogie boards that helped make my pipe dream come true