The next link of my journey was to Agadir. Big city with the tourist area, very popular, though not as well known as the Casablanca. And the city which is picked up the relay baton of Marrakesh in an effort to surprise me.
While still in Marrakech I got CouchSurfing invitation for a couple of nights buy a guy named Zakaria, or just Zak. Having agreed to meet him at a certain point of Agadir I moved out of Marrakech, as always, quite late. But I did not regret it for a second – closer to the end of the trip I was blessed with a beautiful sunset in the middle of the mountains of red.
When I arrived in Agadir it was already dark. I gradually progressed to the point of the meeting. Overtook the bus on an adjacent lane when suddenly it began to honking and blinking lights, obviously wanting to get my attention. At first I had thought that I had something fell from the motorcycle, but everything was in place. Then I slowed down and the bus caught up with me. The driver smiling leaned out the window and shouted: “You know Abdellatif from Berrechid?”. Confused about question I answered him in Russian:
– “Da”!
– “Well, I’m his brother.”
What a meeting! We stopped at the edge of the road and exchanged joyful greetings. Since Zak awaited me there was not too much time to talk, but we agreed to meet later in the next day. I drove on, inspired by an event. Well, Agadir greets me warmly. Soon I was on the point of the meeting, where I met with Zak and we got to his house. It was late so we made a little chat and fell asleep.
The next day, Zak invited me to get out of Agadir. We purchased alcohol and provisions and went into the house with a view of the ocean not far from Agadir. It was definitely a wonderful evening. We were visited by Zak’s friends, morrocan guy Said and russian-german girl Rimma. Rimma was able to talk in Russian (and switch back to russian was not always easy, hehe), and Said told a lot about the Berber culture, language and music. I got in a perfect mood. These moment are definitely worth of living.
About Zak I can say a lot. This wonderful man was the first of my friends in Agadir and we spent a lot of great moments with him and his friends. Getting into a bar, going onto the beach, partying in the guest house… One of the things that I will not forget – the headlights of his car showing twisted gray tongue of asphalt in the black night; cool air rushes through the open windows; and Pink Floyd at full volume. That precious moments of life. Zak also was my “lucky star” – with a strange coincidence every time he was around the good news began to arrive. Everytime. At first I did not attach any importance to this but then it became too obvious. Well, when he stayed near and the ATM spit out 200 dirhams instead of the requested 100 (and sms from the bank I got shows that withdrew one hundred) – I believed completely. Probably I should to go to the casino with him one day.
The following days, almost a week, I spent in the Yassin’s family house and met all his brothers and friends. Yassin, Abderrahman, Amin, Mustafa, Brahim, Rashid. Each of them was very kind and careful in everything, and I felt myself like at home. We walked with friends, riding on “tobis” (as they call buses), visited the markets, went to the beach, drank a huge amount of tea (“atey”, as it is called here), and I learn a little bit of Arabic and Berber words. Seniors of family could not communicate with me because of the lack of a common language of communication for me and them, but nevertheless I have always been accepted as a member of the family. Here, I soaked the local life like nowhere else Morocco.
At one point the guys from the Positive asked me to write a report about my adventures in Southern Europe. I sat down at the laptop, started to press the buttons … and suddenly lost my peace within. I was angry, I was damn angry, all was seething inside me and for a long time I could not understand the reasons for this state. I called one of the friends, Abderrahman, for a walk. We went out in the evening twilight and I tried to find the reasons for the huge waves of almost rage that overwhelmed me. In the end I was able to find an explanation. After two weeks in Morocco, I was able to see a completely different life, a different culture, but most importantly – absolutely different people. And Europe lost comparing them with a crushing score. Indifferent, empty, living in their own little world, closed – that’s how I now saw the majority of the people I met on the way in Europe. People living happily, but concerned only about not to loose their well-being, not noticing the life that comes around. I have no right to blame them (although I had already done so), but one thing I do know – that something is wrong with the world. Something is wrong with us.
I was not able to find peace inside that night, but after walking I felt myself little relieved. Help came unexpectedly – Amin, one of the friends, offered to get somewhere away from Agadir, on a wild beach, and have a camp there. It was exactly what I need. In the local alco-shop we bought bottle of Russian vodka, bought provisions and rolled out in the afternoon. After a few hours of the road we found a great place close to Ait Tamer. Wild beach, the minimum number of people, the ocean – a worthy place to stay.
We pitched a tent, made dinner, Moroccan tea, and in the end uncorked vodka. Amin did not refuse to drink, but in his words – the last three times when he tried to drink vodka were terrible. I taught him how to drink the right way, russian way. We chatted about everything, warmed our feet near open fire and laughed. After some time Amin went to sleep in a tent, and I finished off the remnants of bottle, sang a few songs, and being drunken finally felt peace in my soul. The next morning, a picture inside my mind reflects the outside one – clear skies, bright sun and lazy waves. I was at peace. We returned back to Agadir without incidents. At the end of the day there was a more good news – Zak invited me to stay at one of his family houses (he and his family lived in the other). It was very handy, as despite the absence of any problems in the Yassin’s home I did not want to somehow disturb these fine people with my too long presence.
My long staying in Agadir explained simply – Mauritania visa costs 50 euros, and I was waiting for money from my rented out apartment. It’s quite a bit of resources (especially given our exchange rate from roubles), but for a short time that should suffice. But the most important thing is not in that. One day in Agadir I wrote a post about my adventures on the way to Marrakech and people from the Internet caught it. What happened!!! The small and large sums of money began to come. As a result nearly $300! WOOOHOOOO!!! My friends, those who participated in this, who helps the people who helped with the dissemination of information – thank you very much. There are no words to express my gratitude to you. I felt that I was not alone in this world. I felt that no matter what – again I can continue to tell the story. I was strongly elated! And despite the slight poisoning (probably swallowed ocean water on an empty stomach), which made me lain for two days in a fever – I was happy. Now I can go on! And I plan to do this tomorrow. Stay in touch! There is a one and a half thousand kilometers till Mauritania ahead.
P.S. On May 1st of this year, the Government of Senegal in order to attract tourists abolished visa fees, as well as online registration for it. What gives me the chance to get a visa at the border! Great news!
P.P.S. Uwe, I finished reading the book. Thank you for it. And for help. You’re the one of the guiding stars of my journey.