We heard from other students that Agadir was a trip worth making and that we should visit the city. We decided to take the opportunity from this past long weekend to make the 12-hour plus trip. Three of us decided to go on the long adventure, and it was definitely an adventure.
We had to take a Grand Taxi to Fes so that we could catch a bus from Fes to Agadir. We discovered that three other girls were also planning on going to Fes at the same time. This was perfect because you need six people to fill a Grand Taxi. I sat in the front seat and attempted to begin reading material for my upcoming presentation. I was about ten minutes into the book when I realized that I would not be able to continue if I wanted to keep my stomach through the windy mountain roads. So I stopped reading and talked to the driver, by talk I mean a conversation that I could conduct with very simple baby classical Arabic. Apparently, the driver thought that I knew more Arabic than I did. We made two stops in small villages; he had an errand to run. He turned to me and told me he would return, and I think he said he had to deliver something. I really only understood the gist of what he was telling me but that was all I really needed. He was picking up bags of cement dust for a friend, or family, in another village. I was completely onboard with being able to see the architecture and beautiful sights of another village. This, my friends, is one of the many reasons that if you have a specific deadline that you cannot miss, you should leave add about three or more hours onto the time you THINK that it will take you to get somewhere. We were not in a hurry because we left with this type of situation in mind. Instead of it being stressful, it was a pleasant surprise. Once we got to Fes, we only had a couple of hours before our bus would depart. We decided to find a cafe or restaurant to buy tea and wait. The restaurant we chose looked very expensive and fancy from the outside, but the prices were very reasonable. My friends ordered hot chocolate and tea with milk; I ordered a black coffee. In a lot of places, it is normal to receive a small bottle of water with your espresso, it had been a long time since I experienced that, so I was inclined to take a picture.
We took our time consuming our beverages and conversing. After we finished our drinks, we still had quite a bit of time, so we ordered food in order to maintain our welcomeness. We talked to the waiter and soon the entire staff was intrigued by us. The restaurant wasn't busy so they had time to all talk to us and hear our background. Come to think of it, we are a pretty diverse looking group; in addition, we look relatively young. They were extremely nice and wished us a good trip and luck with our studies. We left for the bus station and soon started our 12-hour journey. Since the bus ride wasn't interesting, and I don't want to relive that miserable experience, I won't waste your time writing about it. (One thing, if you get motion sick easily, bring medicine if you plan to travel by bus or taxi in Morocco).
12 hours later
It is 6:00 in the morning, we are tired, in need of showers, and hungry. Here we are, in a new city, cold, and trying to navigate the transportation with the little Arabic skill that we have because no one speaks English. We finally come to the conclusion that the 'hotel', really a hostel, that we booked is in fact not in Agadir, but in a city 30 minutes away by car. For some reason, we had it in our minds that we could just walk around the city and explore until our 3:00pm check-in.
Becuase who would be tired after a 12-hour bus ride? Crazy thought, right? Well, we were tired and still under the impression that we were staying at a hotel. This would mean we could approach the desk and ask for an early check-in. So we obtained a Grand taxi ride to the actual city that we were staying in, Taghazout, and went to the doorstep of the place were had booked. Upon arriving we discovered that it was not a hotel and that there was no way inside due to the earliness. So we sat on a bench outside overlooking the ocean, ate the bread that my roommate's parents had given me the day before and contemplated our next move. We watched the sunrise and then decided to make the trek to the beach.
The beach was decently close, but we took a shortcut through the brush and sand, then walked on the side of the road. Miserable, but also laughing at the situation, we walked along.
We arrived at the beach, took off our shoes and walked around. As we walked I noticed one dog following us. I have this, good or bad habit (it's up for debate) of looking anything or anyone in the eye that is in my zone. It is my way of nonverbally saying "I see you, we can be friends, but if you are a threat, I see you". Well, one dog became two dogs and before I knew it, we had five dogs following us. Turns out they were friendly and they became our buddies; as we walked around the beach, they played and I played with them a little.
My friends laugh and say that I became queen of the dogs because everywhere that I went, they were a step behind. I love the beach and how it puts my heart and soul in a peaceful state. I was very pleased to be on the beach. In fact, I think after a while we all were. We ended up practically living on the beach for that day.
We saw giant seagulls and people at work taking something off of the rocks during the low tide.
Soon we realized that the three loafs of bread that we shared at 6:30 am would not hold us over for long, so we decided to find a cafe for breakfast. We saw a fancy cafe, which we drank tea and coffee, but upon looking at the prices for food decided that we needed to find a different location. I saw a little fenced-in plot of beach with a shack on it. There was a sign that said "Snack Shack". I looked like just the place that I wanted to eat. We were on an adventure, so why not go for the place that looks adventurous. We set our backpacks down. I realized we look like true broke, college-student, travelers. All that we had with us was on our backs and we looked, or at least felt, a little rough. We were still trying to make a final decision as a group when the owners called down to us, "do you want breakfast?" That was our final deciding factor, they spotted us so we couldn't just walk away.
I am never surprised by finding the best food and hospitality in the smallest 'hole-in-the-wall' places. The people who owned the little area were extremely sweet. In fact, they set up the table, chairs, and umbrella upon our arrival because they weren't open yet. They asked us what we wanted and, not seeing a menu, I asked what they had. They listed some foods, but omelet caught our attention. I dumbly asked, 'do you also have bread, houbz?' (Arabic for bread). He laughed and said, of course, we have bread. When they brought out the 'omelet' it was not at all what we were expecting; it was even better. It was like a breakfast tajine. The only way to eat such a dish is with your hands. You use the bread to scoop up the contents of the plate. It was the best omelet that I have ever had and quite possibly the best breakfast that I've had in Morocco. We sat and told them of our travels and listened to their stories of the beach. Then we paid and walked some more.
We climbed what is known as Devil's rock and after taking pictures, we sat at the top and did homework.
Soon I realized that the tide had come in. We couldn't see the crossing point from where we were so we went to the other side. The tide had definitely come in. the spot that we had crossed was now under a little more than two feet of water. We had our backpacks with all of our stuff, including laptops and library books. I observed our situation and concluded that the tide was not at its highest point. Not knowing how long it would take for the tide to reseede, I decided that we needed to cross now or possibly wait for a very long time.
We held our backpacks over our heads and crossed over. We made it over with our bags unscathed, but we were quite wet. I convinced them to go into the water since we were already halfway wet. We put our bags in the shack of one of our new friends (one of the men that served us breakfast and we talked with for a long time). After our things were safe and secure, we ran into the water. It's like we were children again, running around, body surfing the waves. I was in my sports bra, a tank top, and spandex because I didn't think to bring a swimsuit to what I had been told was a very conservative country. Yes, the clothing attire is generally very conservative in Morocco, but some cities--like the beach towns--are less conservative and women wear bikinis. My friends, on the other hand, didn't bring swimsuits or workout clothes, so they entered in their dresses. It was really amazing and fun. After we had our fair share of messing around in the water we laid out my travel towel and all sat on it to dry off. As we were sitting there, our friend Hassan (the snack shack and surf shack owner) sent his friend over with tea. He sat down with us and we shared tea and convesed and pet the dogs that came back for a visit.
It was finally time past time for checkin. We made the trek back to the hostel and checked- in and promptly went for showers. Most of the restaurants and cafes closed at sunset, which was at 6:30pm. The hostel offered dinner for 70 dirhams (7 dollars). We thought that was pretty expensive, but the food that was served was all you can eat and consist of diverse, amazing tasting foods. There was a salad with fresh vegetables (the first that I've had since being in Morocco), a giant Chicken and Vegetable Couscous, fruit, and bread. I think it was definitely worth the price.
Our room had a small view of the ocean and was on the third floor. I was a very small, cute neighborhood.
Our room was definitely styled like a camp, bunk beds and all. It was comfortable and suited us for the night that we spent there. Honestly, by the time we went to sleep we were so tire that we could have slept almost anywhere.
What's better is the view of the sunset from the common balcony. This place was probably one of the coolest places that I've stayed. There was a pool table, people having jam sessions and playing instruments, and a perfect view of the amazing sunset.
The next day, as we ate breakfast, I was convinced to take surf lessons and join the beach hopping journey.
The people at this hostel were so nice. They helped me pick out a surf board and a wet suit (which we found later was slightly too big for me). Then we packed into two vehicles and set out for our first beach.
It was really interesting to see how they chose their beaches. We stopped at a couple of beaches, perched on the edge of a cliff, and sat there for a few minutes. They filmed the waves and looked out into the deeper ocean. Unsatisfied with the wave and current patterns, we went to the next beach. Eventually, we found a beach with good waves and brought all of the stuff down. I wasn't sure what to expect from this surf lesson, but I definitely wasn't expecting to be able to surf real-sized waves. We started on the sand, he spend about five minutes telling me the basics of surfing and the background, then about five minutes was allocated to teaching me the proper way to stand up. Before I knew it he was having me catch my own waves; he would count down and then I was supposed to go. These were just the little white waves by the beach. I practiced for an hour or so, then we ate the lunch they had packed for us. After lunch we went to another beach. At this beach he took me out to the big waves, where all of the actual surfers were. I was intimidated but he kept reminding me to relax and feel the waves. After a few comical fails I finally caught my first wave and successfully road it for a little bit. It was such an amazing feeling to be riding a wave; somehow it was also relaxing. A full day of learning to surf ended with two really successful waves and a lot of 'almost' successful waves. Either way, it was really amazing. I plan to surf again when the opportunity arises and I highly recommend it to everyone.
Morocco never ceases to amaze me. I never, in a million years, would have thought that I would learn how to surf in Morocco--let alone be in my make-shift swim suit on a Moroccan beach. I've learned that one should never make empty assumptions about a place until you have seen it first hand. And always be open to new experiences!
Do not be alarmed, this is not a box on fire. This is a box filled with delicious macaroons. She is blowing out the three candles that we were able to secure. 
Moroccan Tea is a must when watching a soccer match.
I didn't actually take this picture because I would find it very odd if I saw someone taking a picture of a toilet, but this is generally what one will see around Morocco. Luckily, because I am used to 'western' style toilets, one can usually find a 'western' style toilet in most places. 
The hostel owners found an abandoned kitten, they named him Mishmish and took him in. I think he was a wonderful addition to the beautiful terrace. He was super small, delicate and loving.
