We emerged from the desert into the village of Boutgharar, the last town on the road high up in the Valley of Roses.
We crossed the Asif M’Goun River, where a group of women washed clothes in the traditional way, and then entered the village, passing by the ruins of an ancient kasbah.
Boutgharar is the family home of our wonderful guide Hicham, who works for Morocco Expert Tours. Though his English was quite good, he didn’t learn it in Boutgharar. His family are farmers, and so he had to support himself at the university in Marrakech, where he completed two years, majoring in math. He dreamed of becoming a math teacher, but such jobs are hard to come by in Morocco. Meanwhile, Hicham learned and practiced English by hosting a Web site visited by people all over the world. Now he’s found he really likes being a guide.
Hicham had arranged for us to have lunch at a riad owned by his uncle. Herewith, an unusual architectural element and the panoramic view from the rooftop terrace.
Our lunch was served in a traditional dining room, where, it being low season in the Valley of Roses (December–not a rosebud to be seen), we were the only guests. And it was delicious.
Other sights around the village include a typical street, the wall of a butcher shop (fresh goat meat tonight, I’d bet), the well-ornamented Chez la famille Moulay, and a stork’s nest upon the tower of a nearby kasbah. Storks, we were told, bring good luck to the place where they nest.
