I stayed at the Hotel Asmaa, perched above town. The taxi ride from Ketama to Chefchaouen was accomplished in two stages, as the first driver didn’t have the police permit to allow him to drive all the way. So we went halfway to a smaller town and transferred to another taxi for the rest of the journey. Luckily, no police stopped us and we made good time. We reached Chefchaouen around 3 in the afternoon, and checked into the Hotel Asmaa. The hotel is perched high above the town on a hill, with a panoramic view of the valley and village below. At about 5,000 feet above sea level, the figure-eight shaped town is surrounded by ancient walls, and has at least seven minarets for the faithful. We got a good earful of the calling to prayers over the next week as the wailing (or Lafki) carried right up the hill into our room five times per day. High above the town are the twin peaks of Chaouen – the goat horns – Chefchaouen means “look to the horns” - which has been a landmark for the Berbers for thousands of years. So naturally, a Kasbah and town grew there as an important trading and government center for the Rif Mountains. The walls and gates of Chaouen are splendid, and the large Ras Alma Spring gushes out of the mountain inside the stone walls of the town. Not only is the town’s spring water pure and delicious right from the tap, the mountain air is so clean and crystalline that you can see forever, it seems, from up on the hill overlooking town. The view was so fabulous from our porch that we found the sipsi right away, and enjoyed a bowl of hash while gazing at the town below. Chefchaouen Street Walking through the ancient city of Chefchaouen was like stepping back in time a few hundred years… there was still a profusion of jellabah and burnoose wearing Berber men, and women in their traditional and very colorful costumes. The women’s hats are straw and decorated with brightly colored yarn balls like mini-pompoms, their dresses are striped and equally brilliant. Times are changing right in front of your eyes, however… most (if not ALL) of the younger generation are now dressed in western clothes, T-shirts, jeans and fancy running shoes. Chefchaouen is a relatively prosperous town, and the people love to show off their Western stuff. It seems every house in Chaouen has a satellite dish! The next morning we awoke, with the windows wide open and fresh air gushing through the room. Feeling refreshed by our deep sleep, we wandered downstairs for breakfast. Breakfast at the hotel that first morning was memorable, and the view from the verandah spectacular. It seems we were the hotel’s only guests, as it was still off-season. How lucky can you get? We decided to enjoy a day at the hotel, smoking on the verandah and writing in the diary. We had snacks; nuts and dates, bread and juice, and proceeded to get “tranquillo”. Listening to the radio, we were treated to an hour-long speech by King Hassan (in Arabic). It turns out that day was the King's birthday and the entire country would celebrate for a week! In fact, the speech was on EVERY radio station on the dial. Moroccans loved their King, and his photo smiled benignly at you in every public building.
