Pages from the Grand Atlas women’s cooperative (embroidery and rugs)
President
Maried, one daughter
A new cooperative is joining our shop: the women of the Grand Atlas cooperative in Agouim, between Ouarzazate and Marrakesh. For half a century they have been making traditional Berber rugs, or mergoums (which we call kilims), and broderies au point de Fez, of excellent quality. You can visit them easily, an hour’s drive from Ouarzazate, and they’ll be happy to show you their manufacturing secrets, their crafts, and the stocks in their little, well-hidden shop.
Our blog is growing
More entries in our blog, including the start of a serie on Arabic words that have found their way into various European languages. Depending on the era and the mode of contact, the nature of the words varies.
Words of science and philosophy, which came in the Middle Ages with the exchanges between the caliphates of Spain and the great monasteries; words of the caravans, spices, precious fabrics, which came with the Arab merchants who went as far as China to bring back satin; words of war with the confrontations, crusades, Spanish reconquest, maritime disputes; slang words too over the last few years, a chronicle that will gradually be fleshed out, with the help of Pierre-Olivier, a Hispanicist, and Herbert Braun, a German linguist.
And then there’s the occasional piece of news about the weather, what’s happening in Morocco, at the Oasis, the Paris-Dakar has passed by not far from where we live…
Low-cost airlines in Morocco: a difficult start but real opportunities
In the wake of Ryanair’s failure, which borders on swindling, we might well ask whether it is really possible to take a low-cost airline to Morocco.
Ryanair set up in Marseille and advertised – and sold – a number of flights to Morocco at very competitive prices (between €50 and €100). But the authorisations had not yet been granted, and Ryanair had to cancel all its flights. Many tourists found themselves stranded in France, with prices on other airlines having risen sharply in the meantime, and only partially reimbursed by Ryanair… in the name of what logic? Moreover, the Moroccan government has lodged a complaint against the airline.
In the meantime, however, other low-cost carriers are flying to Morocco, starting with jet4you, a Moroccan company and subsidiary of Royal Air Maroc. The flights are co-chartered with Corsair (and therefore TUI) and on the same flight there are Nouvelles Frontières passengers (with a free meal) and Jet4You passengers who have to pay for everything, including their drinks. But that’s the law of low-cost airlines, and it’s possible to travel on jet4you for less than €200 return, in off-peak periods, and if you plan ahead.
Other low-cost carriers also fly to Morocco, but these are more confidential, or do not depart from France. But with just a few hours’ research on the internet, you can save over €200 on a ticket… or around two extra days’ holiday!
The Gorges trail, and the Todra gorges after the autumn floods
Heavy rainfall in the autumn caused the Todra to flood, and the road leading to the gorge was cut off. Tourists were even stranded for a day or two… Everything has now been restored, the road was quickly repaired, even if the bridges still need to be rebuilt, fords have been thrown over the wadi, and you can get to the end of the tarmac without any problems!
The landscape of the Tineghir palm grove and the Todra gorges is splendid… make the most of it.
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