Jamming in Morocco

DAY 252: Legendary international superstar Bob Marley has had a long lasting effect on the people in Essaouira. Long after his departure not only were people big fans of his reggae music, they also tried to look like Rastafarians with kitschy woolen hats with dreads knitted into them. But the Moroccan affection for Bob Marley epitomized at the Festival d'Essaouira's big finale act: The Wailers, Bob Marley's former band.

Even with The Wailers in town, Sebastian and I almost didn't see their performance. As much as we wanted to that morning while eating homemade olive sandwiches in our hotel room (a favorite sandwich of my creation), we planned on doing the smart thing of making headway northbound towards Spain because we both only had limited time in Morocco and need to be in Europe in three days.

But when we tried to get an afternoon bus out of Essaouira, they were booked solid -- we had no choice but to take an overnight bus to Rabat, leaving us to stay until nighttime to see The Wailers perform. (Oh, poor us.)

THE SUN BLARED DOWN FROM ABOVE, baking the mostly blue- and white-painted seaside city with a beach to temperatures too hot for me to wear my galabiyya. It was a shame I didn't have it one when we stumbled upon the open liquor store, so that we could have done the experiment we wanted to try the day before. However, even without the Muslim attire on, I was stopped by the clerk guarding the back of the store where the wines and hard stuff were.

"[Oh, you're with him?]" he said, seeing Sebastian call to me from behind.

"Oui." He let me and my foreigner ways pass.

We killed the early afternoon on the roof terrace with ice-cold beers until show time. We managed to snag a really good vantage point as The Wailers took to the stage. The band members started playing reggae instrumentals until the lead singer showed up to singing classic Bob Marley tunes (picture above).

"Lots of the Moroccans are wearing these hats [with the wool dreads knitted into them.] That's because they want to be like us! Rastafari!"

The sounds of the trumpet, saxophone, bass, keyboard, guitar and drums wailed through the air from the same group I'd heard time and time again on my Legend CD, only live. I found it funny that I was listening to world-renowned Jamaican music in Morocco of all places, which was sort of like when I had really good Vietnamese food at Tony's in Tanzania. The lead singer ad libbed a bit for the occasion, changing the lyrics of some of the songs. "We'll be forever loving Ja" became "We'll be forever loving Allah," and "We're jamming" became "We're jamming in Morocco."

After about an hour of playing, the band quietly left the stage without a band, the way most bands do in a concert pretending like the audience won't ask for an encore, but knowing damn sure they will. The Moroccan encore call was full of chants that were reminiscent of those in a Brazilian soccer match, with raised hands and waving fingers. It wasn't long until the band came back, this time led by a guy who played with The Wailers of Moroccan descent who had never been to Morocco before, but enjoyed the hero's welcome. He led a whole bunch of more songs, adlibbing as well.

"I remember... when we used to sit... in the government yard in Morocco..."

The encores ran until dusk with more Bob Marley classics like "One Love," "Get Up, Stand Up," and appropriately, "Exodus" when the band was about finished with their set. There were more encore calls, but a festival organizer took the mic and explained that the festival was over, thanking the performers and the sponsors.

Before our own exodus, Sebastian and I killed some time at the beach and at a sidewalk cafe drinking mint tea (where yet another guy mistook me for Moroccan) until we got our bags and walked over to the bus terminal. Inside our bus, the festival was still going strong with most passengers apparently of the Moroccan college crowd going back home after partying all weekend in Essaouira -- complete with their clouds of hash smoke. Singing continued with rhythmic clapping and drumming on the backs of seats, and it was a pretty rowdy time. The 2004 Festival d'Essaouira may have been officially over, but it didn't prevent people from jamming in Morocco.

If you enjoy this daily travel blog, please post a comment! Give me suggestions, send me on missions, let me know how things are going back home in the USA. Knowing that I have an audience will only force me to make this blog more entertaining as the days go by. Don´t forget to bookmark it and let a friend know!

Posted by Erik on July 1, 2004 10:10 AM
TrackBack | Category: Morocco

Erik – as per your request (ugh, so corporate America), I am breaking my silence….

hello all Blog Hogs, i’ve been a SBR for the past 2 months or so. i got wind of this blog from a friend of a friend of a friend - friendster anyone?

in answer to some of your question(s):
favorite color (i know this is so many entries behind, but i was a bit shy and didn't want to quite post just yet): all shades of blue.

this blog's question: yes, you have opened my eyes to so many places in the world i've either never heard of or never even thought about visiting (thank you television for all the fabricated advertising / news / updates / etc). i haven't planned anything yet b/c i am stuck in corporate america and have limited vacation days. plus, i don't think i'm gutsy enough to actually do a trip around the world. top places that i have added to my "must see" list b/c of your blog are: buenos aires, salt flats, zanzibar, egypt. i would love to see other places, but i need to do things one a time b/c of work. i'm thinking that by the time i'm 40 - i'll hit at least a quarter of the places you've been to – if I’m lucky! hahaha...

seriously, you truly are an inspiration and all of your hard work in keeping up with this blog with stories of all of your "(mis)adventures" are greatly appreciated. everyday that i've been reading, i really have been learning something new - from places i've never heard of, to history lessons, to how to handle scams and went to go on a guided tour vs. not, etc. i’m even thinking of starting to scuba dive now…i can't even begin to imagine how rough it is on you w/having to do all your traveling and writing it all up for all of us here stuck in our cubicles so that we can live vicariously through you...i can't even finish my photo journal from my philippines trip in april and that was only 3 weeks!

i'll keep you posted on my abs/cbn contact. hopefully they've gotten a chance to check this out
already...keep your fingers crossed.

Blog Hogs - you guys are hilarious!!!

Posted by: stephanie on July 2, 2004 12:09 PM

GREETINGS FROM BARCELONA! Hey there, I'm still behind, but I'm getting there... Sorry if the new entries seemed rush or if there are spelling/grammar errors.

To make the long story short, I went from Essaouira to Fez to Tetouan to Ceuta to Algeciras to Madrid to Barcelona, all in a matter of three days.

More to come as it become available!

THANK YOU ALL FOR YOUR SUPPORT!

Posted by: Erik on July 1, 2004 04:48 AM

QUESTION: Is there anyone out there (SBRs included) that has used this Blog as a reference guide for planning their own trip? Post a comment or e-mail me... Thanks!

Posted by: Erik on July 1, 2004 05:02 AM

Erick:

I'm with Alyson on this one. Although I don't have any actual travel plans at the moment, your trip has really opened my eyes to some places that previously I knew next to nothing about (i.e. Ethiopia) but now definately want to visit.

I caught a Wailers performance as they passed through Costa Rica a couple of years ago. It made for a really fun show, especially because as the mostly collage-aged Costa Ricans really got into it. If my memory serves me, they also made local referances such as "We're Jammin in Costa Rica". I guess its a crowd pleaser in any part of the world.

Great post and I'm looking forward to reading about your upcoming travels in Europe.

Posted by: James on July 1, 2004 09:22 AM

definitely is a good reference guide...now i know what beer to drink, what cool things to do, and what to expect from all the places you have visited...

ummm...kek

Posted by: markyt on July 1, 2004 09:22 AM

oh and i must add....it's a good for indie travelling on a budget for any sized duration of travel and not just RTWs....

umm and since it's a blog with comments, the readers do bring more references to the table...umm i mean forum...

Posted by: markyt on July 1, 2004 09:43 AM

Erik -

I don't know when I am going on my RTW trip (hopefully next year) but I am keeping a journal with all the places you have been, what tours you liked and didn't like, amazing places you have been and not-so amazing places. Basically all the way down places you stayed and even the guy on the 13th floor in Rio.

Thanks for all the wisdom and isight.

Posted by: Casey on July 1, 2004 10:47 AM

Erik - definitely using your insights in my RTW planning. I already know what my route is, in terms of countries, but your blog has convinced me to give some places a bit more time - and there are several places I want to add still :) Not enough time or money though LOL

Pics in this entry were great btw. The olives were just so unfair - I'm living in a country where olives mean the jarred things with pimento stuck in them *cry* I'd kill for some decent olives.

Posted by: Liz on July 1, 2004 11:25 AM

dude, I may end up tracing your steps here next year ! BTW, as being being mistaken for being Morrocan, well it could be worst you could be in the Phillipines & be mistaken for a Filipino errr what a minute ?!?

Posted by: sim on July 1, 2004 01:15 PM

screw paypal. We'll be in barcelona on Tuesday, will you still be there? If so, I'll give you the $50 in person. Where are you staying? We'll be at Hotel Nouvel, rooms under the name of Tim O'Connor (good Italian boy).

TWH

Posted by: tom on July 1, 2004 06:09 PM

Erik - it's made me live vicariously. I want to go to places that originally I didn't really have much interest in going - meaning that certain places weren't high on my list. For example - Zanzibar. I've heard that it's warm, but who knew that the diving there would be so awesome or the water so purty? It's good to get tips on specifics.

Oh, and the first picture on ths page comes up as "Not Found on this server".

Have fun drinking - the Casablanca beer is CLASSIC!

Posted by: Noelle on July 1, 2004 10:35 PM

Erik,
Long-time SBR from Edmonton, Canada here. I started reading shortly before you left, and have nearly caught up on the two months I missed while I was in Europe. I just have the entire month of May left.

Anyway, your blog has provided inspiration to visit many parts of the world, and now that I'm planning a trip to Peru, and possibly Bolivia, for next summer, I'm looking back at those entries for things that look cool to do, and to help determine what it's reasonable to accomplish in just over a month.

Keep up the writing. It's both amazing and inspiring.

Posted by: Neil on July 1, 2004 11:24 PM

Hey Erik,

I'd have to say the -main- place that I never thought about, but now am because of your blog, is also Ethiopia. -Oh, and of course that pillow hang lounge overlooking the red sea...hhmm...yea, I think I could deal with that for a while too;)

Posted by: Harry on July 2, 2004 04:19 AM

TOM (TWH): Hey... I think I might be in Valencia on Tuesday... what´s the name of your hotel in Pamplona? Is it possible for me and my friend to leave our bags in your room if we can't find a place ourselves? (Most likely we'll be camping out in the park where all the stragglers stay.)

Posted by: Erik on July 2, 2004 04:23 PM

ALL: Thanks for your replies! Anyone else there with a response to the QUESTION? It's semi-important... I'll explain later...

Right now I'm in Barcelona, a little buzzed... Stay tuned for more entries... I know I'm behind, but it's sort of been non-stop activity for the past couple of days with no real time to write the blog... don't fret, it will be posted as it become available!

Posted by: Erik on July 2, 2004 04:33 PM

The blog has given me some good ideas. Africa, especially. It's definitely moved up way higher on my "must go to" list. I've gotten ideas on HOW you travel - how you meet people, the attitude you have to adopt when you are on the move - like having a positive and open outlook on things. Dealing with long bus rides, having transportation break down, etc. The best example I can think of was somewhere in South America when your boat wouldn't leave for over a day - the Amazon, I think. The cook was hitting on you, etc - it turned into a funny story. If it were me, I might have wanted to throw a temper tantrum but when I read it, it was just funny. When you go off the beaten path you have to take things in stride. That's something I'm learning as I travel more. To be more laid back when things don't go as planned!

Posted by: sara on July 2, 2004 04:37 PM

ERIK: Plenty of travel ideas have come up as a result of the Blog. And if those ideas never come to fruition, i and everyone else can live vicariously through you and the show (re-runs and new). we be jammin.

Barcelona = beeyo

Posted by: Paul on July 2, 2004 05:22 PM

I too am an SBR! You've definately planted some ideas in my head for future adventures that's for sure. While guidebooks are helpful, it's sure nice to hear (read) things firsthand. You've done some great PR for a lot of places, Erik! I'll be in Europe in the coming months and have now added Egypt and Morocco to my itinerary. Move over Rick Steves, we've got Erik Trinidad. Thanks a bunch!

Posted by: Alysha on July 3, 2004 04:04 AM

WoW!! I'm gone for 2 days and the whole Internet speaks up!

Erik: I HAVE to see the salt flats and go sand boarding! And, as I'm reading your Morrocan entries, I've definatly added the country to my MITS List (MIST = Must Indepentant Travel Soon)!

Posted by: Td0t on July 3, 2004 07:46 PM

Sorry it took so long for me to catch up. So many SBRs finally speak out--this is awesome!

You've clinched Egypt for me, DEFINITELY. I'd love to catch a couple of days on the pillows at the Red Sea--that place was a total surprise. Zanzibar sounds cool, but with the corporate vacation thing, not so easy to work in. Otherwise, the Galapagos--can't get enough of land iguanas, sea lions and blue-footed boobies!

Posted by: Christy on July 6, 2004 06:10 PM

July 01, 2004