Travellive 4 - 2018

VISA
ñ You can apply for a visa at the
Embassy of Morocco at 9 Chu
Van An, Ba Dinh District, Hanoi.
The Embassy will issue a single
entry visa for your intended
travel dates to Morocco. The
visa application fee is 508,000
VND per person.
GET THERE
ñ From Vietnam, you can fly to
Morocco on Turkish Airlines,
Qatar Airways, or Emirates
Airways at a price ranging from
800 - 1,300 USD for a return
trip. Flights often transit in
Istanbul, Doha, or Abu Dhabi
before landing in Casablanca,
Morocco's largest city. From
here, you can take a bus or train
to Essaouira.
RELIGION
ñ Morocco is a Muslim country,
so keep that in mind when
traveling to Morocco. You
should not use your left hand to
do anything in public because
it is offensive to local people
since the left hand is considered
unclean. Moroccans do not like
their pictures taken, especially
women and older people,
so permission is required
before you take any pictures
of them. Most of the mosques
in Morocco prohibit foreign
tourists from entering, so stand
outside.
THE WORLD'S FIRST
SARDINES PORT
Essaouira was one of the world's
first sardine ports discovered in the
16 th century by the Portugese, and
is formerly known as Mogador.
Since its opening, Essaouira rapidly
became a major international
seaport, linking Morocco and the
Sahara with Europe and the rest of
the world. Once a fishing village,
Essaouira was later built into the
city we know today by Emperor
Mohammed III in the 18 th century
and featured a large harbor, making
it an important commercial hub
connecting the nation to the then
powerful European countries.
You could easily catch a glimpse of
the fish market's bustling scene,
and hear the sound of boats making
their way in the early morning. When
dawn breaks, groups of large boats
arrive at the port, and are full of
freshly caught sardines. A fish market
is set up right on the stretch of the
sandy beach next to the harbor. It was
exciting to join in with the locals for
such an amazing experience.
The higher the sun is, the more
crowded the port gets. Hundreds of
people were spotted around piles of
fresh fish of all kinds, whose jobs
were to identify, weigh, preliminarily
process, and load them onto the
trucks that carry them to wholesale
markets across the city, just in time
for the locals' morning markets.
Many seagulls could be spotted in
the sky flying around the harbor,
creating a truly picturesque sight for
visitors. Be careful when holding a
sardine in your hands since these
aggressive birds can quickly snatch
them from you!
LOST STEP IN THE
“LABYRINTH” MEDINA
Medina is what the old quarters in
Morocco and other north African
nations are called, and Essaouira's
Medina is a truly spectacular world
full of colors. The Medina here, like
most, is surrounded by a long wall,
though this one is made of red desert
stone, and is a striking characteristic
of Medinas in Essaoiura.
To explore the "maze" of local
Medinas, I enjoyed my slow walks
around town to admire the ancient
architecture of Essaouira. From
narrow streets with no names
to street signs with long Arabic
characters, Essaouira's beauty is
so captivating that the more you
explore, the longer you want to stay.
After wandering the streets, I visited
a number of colorful stalls that sell
handmade items. Sometimes you
can catch the probing glances of the
locals as they watch tourists.
TRAVELLIVE