I had reserved a car (and did not experience any hassles in picking it up), and Hafid and Jamal had reserved a room at the Hotel de Foucauld, so I was already feeling at home and relaxed. I have stayed at the “Fookoo” many times, and I was happy to see everyone again.

After several days at the Foucauld I began to feel human again. And on the third day we traveled to Essaouira. Essaouira is in danger of “being discovered.” It is already the windsurfing capital of Morocco, and according to legend Jimi Hendrix spent some time here. We stayed at the Hotel Beau Rivage for three nights, one night longer than originally planned because our friend Egregy invited us for dinner. At Jack's newsstand I taught Hafid how to send email. He was amazed that I could type without looking at the keyboard. Hafid has since sent me several email messages, and I can now more easily contact him.

We were finally able to exchange some $100 bills for dirhams. Not every bank accepts the “old" Franklin notes because of fear of counterfeiting. Previously I had had difficulty cashing traveler's checks because I did not have “le bon” (the purchase record). It seems that every year the rules change. And not everywhere accepts “plastic.”

On to Agadir. L'Houssaine (Hafid and Jamal's brother) really loves Agadir; I however, really do not like Agadir at all. Perhaps, because one year I was very ill there (spent one week at another brother's (Mohammed's) place). But, really, Agadir is not typically Moroccan, but more Mediterranean in nature. I was approached by someone who asked me whether I was looking for something special. (He had not noticed that I was with two Moroccans.) We stayed at the Hotel Atlantic.

I was happy to be on the road again, headed for Ouarzazate by way of Tazenakht. We decided to visit Ait Benhaddou, but ended up at another kasbah instead. We had an excellent lunch at a restaurant at the turnoff to Ait Benhaddou, and then stayed the night in Tazenakht at the Hotel Zenaga. Tazenakht is not the best place for vegetarians. Hafid went to the market to buy tomatoes and onions, and potatoes for French Fries. Otherwise, I would have had to eat kebabs of lamb's hearts, or the ever-present tagine (meat stew). I bought three carpets here, two traditional throw rugs at the co-operative, and one kilim (flat-weave carpet).

We spent much of the day singing “Guten Abend, gut' nacht, mit Rosen bedacht” because of the similarity of “nacht” (German for “night”) and the “nakht” of Tazenakht.

The next day we arrived in Ourzazate. I searched for Habib, who sold me a carpet several years ago, but it seems that his shop has closed. We immediately traveled to Skoura, stopped at the Kasbah de Ben Moro, and met Mohammed Sabir, who showed us around the Skoura oasis, and invited us for tea. He showed us the Kasbah Amerhidl, which is depicted on the 50 dirham note.

We spent the night at El Kelâa des Mgouna at the Hotel Les Roses de Dadès. We were virtually the only ones at the hotel (it was the off-season). The swimming pool was great, as was the shower in the room. Traveling in the desert in June and July, we really appreciate some creature comforts.

I had wanted to spend the night in Boumalne de Dadès because I had stayed at a very pleasant hotel there. However, the hotel has since closed. We immediately headed to the Dadès Gorge, and spent the night at the Hotel La Vallée. The proprieter was very accommodating, and despite a power outage, we enjoyed our stay immensely. Can you imagine looking out the window and seeing the towering mountains?

On to Tenerhir. We spent the night at the Todra Gorge (at the Hotel Berbère de la Montagne). I was surprised that Hafid and Jamal immediately wanted to stay here, after all, there were no discos or nightclubs! In fact, this experience was the highlight of our trip. The room was basic, but the restaurant was magnificant. I want to decorate a room in my house in the same style. We had excellent brochette and tagine and couscous. I bought five “hands of Fatma,” said to ward against evil spirits, specifically “the evil eye.”

By this time, we had accomplished most of our goals of our trip. We were now headed toward Beni Mellal and Afourar. We spent the night at Midelt at the Kasbah Hotel Restaurant Asmâa. Again, we were virtually the only ones staying at the hotel. And the swimming pool was also great! I was impressed by the attentiveness of the hotel staff. We had dinner in our room, and when I requested some wine, one of the employees went to the town to purchase it, and did not accept any tip. When we left, the staff came out to bid us adieu.

The next day Hafid and I stayed in Beni Mellal in the Hotel Chems. Jamal went home to Afourar. I was a bit disappointed with the quality of the hotel, but the swimming pool was a welcome relief.

The next day Hafid and I traveled to Afourar, and we visited with relatives and friends. We did not stay in Afourar this time (I usually spend a lot of time in Afourar), but stayed the night in Marrakech. We stayed at the Residences of Hotel de Foucauld. By chance, we found this hotel by someone on a motorcycle who approached us as we entered Marrakech. We enjoyed this hotel much more than the Hotel de Foucauld. It was situated in a much quieter location, and had a swimming pool!