Ait Benhaddou is a historic ksar or fortified village. Yesterday we parked up in the modern part of the village at the hotel but had a panoramic view over the ksar and the Ounila River. Unlike most rivers we have come across this one actually had some water flowing through it.
We walked down the road and took a right turn where it said to the kasbah or ksar and was a bit sceptical that it was just a way of luring people into a restaurant or cafe. There were cafes down there but no one lured us in just the usual polite hellos. We struggled a bit to find our way down to the river but eventually made it. There is a footbridge built in 2011 apparently to lure locals back from the modern village but the river is that low you can cross over on raised bolders, and what looked like old broken tiled floors laid out across the river.
We crossed the river and went up to the ksar entrance,one of many I think. Despite reading you should not get charged to enter we soon came across someone asking for 20mad, about £1.60, to enter to help with restoration so we coughed up and in we went.
The walls are made from clay and straw by the looks of it, all cracked from where they dry out. It’s probably the most touristy place with been and there are lots of locals selling Moroccan artifacts. It wasn’t a hard sell as such but they were keen for us to go in their little shops “free of charge” as they would say. It’s easy to dismiss their beckoning and walk on but you can gain a lot from entering and talking to them. One guy selling artwork similar to the one we bought yesterday, invited us in and he told us about the films that had been made here. That his shop shuts and he works on the film, the locals can sometimes be extras and tradesmen in the area help with building the sets.
The ksar is built up on like a huge hill and the very top has the most dilapidated building but the views were worth the trek up.
We walked back down and had lunch in this little restaurant. No one else was in there but we had the most amazing, what they called, Berber omelette, cooked in a small tagine, that was bubbling hot when it arrived and never seemed to cool down. Served with the bread they had made with mint tea.
A walk back to the van and a sit in the sun until it clouded over. We might try the restaurant out tonight at the hotel here.
