The jessant dust purls from the heat and chaos of Marrakech. It is only May--barely even summer--yet the hot, muggy air is stifling my every breath.
For most Marrakchis, a passage to the nearby water, where it is cooler, proves to be the solution. So, we follow the dust trail out of the city and into the coast.
180 kilometers west of Marrakech, away from the desert and towards the Atlantic ocean, is the former Portuguese stronghold of Essaouira.
At this laid back town with a hippie vibe, lies Villa de l'O--the ultimate getaway guesthouse on the coast.
Now, I know I said in my previous post that Riad Dar One is the best place we've stayed at so far, but Villa de l'O definitely shares the spot.
For 150 Euros per night in their voyage-themed suites and 190 Euros for their grand suite, it is almost a steal!
The fashionable owner, Céline Colliere, is a master curator of antiquarian travel artifacts. The entire guesthouse drips in precious objets d'art that come from a grand bygone era. You half expect explorers, archaeologists, and adventurers to plonk down beside you in this Gatsby-esque manse.
Every detail has been thought of, from the welcome mint tea...
...to the attentive turndown service.
From the carved wooden mouldings and glass skylights...
...to the wrought-iron banisters.
From the gauzy linen with silk tassels...
...to the luscious animal pelts.
Villa de l'O manages to charm the daylights out of anyone. Let these images take you on a ride through this amazing refurbished Moroccan villa with a strong Colonial past.
Here I am, relaxing in L'Oxalis room--just one of the many themed suites in the tradition of grand voyages. Notice the ceiling to be of canvas tent?
And on the rooftop, the expansive view of the plage invites a happy feeling to linger on...
31 comments:
Jen, I loved the way you told this story in pictures, from the stifling city to the fresh breeze blowing by the sea. Your hotel is the icing on the cake!
What beautiful photos, as always! I wish I had experienced Morocco Jen-style. Ours was, erm, much more on a budget and problem-ridden...
Oh, perfect!!! =D So intriguing, and you're right, it definitely looks like great explorers are going to wander in. ;)
Wow. WOW! Now that just shot to the top of my "must see" list. How absolutely fantabulous.
I've never been to Morocco, but my imaginings rely heavily on the life of my great-aunt, my grandmother's eldest sister, who lived there for the bulk of her adult life. She never married, but raised a daughter alone in Casablanca during an era when women didn't typically raise children out of wedlock, much less in Moroccan cities, much less by their own volition. She was also an intrepid anthropologist and world traveler. A fearless woman, a non-conformist, and an avid hiker...which she is still, well into her 90s and living back in her native France these days. I love that I have such unique and pioneering women in my family.
This is a marvelous post with a well documented and told story...I love those pictures ans the antique books and all. Next stop: Morocco. Thanks for sharing this with us.
Just beautiful and wonderfully written. You have such an eye for all the details - little and big! You brought me right back to Essaouira with you - I was there 2 years ago, but with your photos, feels like just this morning. Thanks!
Oh, and I love the turndown service -- and the dominoes! ;)
I was so captivated by your post. I spent the next 2 hours read all your archives. You are such an amazing story teller and photographer. I can't wait to hear more on your Euro trip. We would love to take our kids there in the next couple years.
-Amy @ The Q Family
Hello dear! How are you doing?
Great post, loved the pics!!!
Have a great weekend :)
I love Essaouira! Enjoying your Morocco posts.
Oh I am jealous... this is a place that is high on my list of mustsee travel destinations for when I get back to Europe... They have a wonderful world music festival there... could you find out what time of year it is held???
Great photos!!
toujours en français...pour que tu progresses !
Tes photos me font voyager...Je suis allée en Tunisie mais pas au Maroc.Tout est wonderfull !
Alors je veux s'il te plait: un tapis, et des patisseries ! ;)))))
Nice pic of you Jen. Can you teach me to use my camera before I go to Greece! Mel
Beautiful post, Jen! I found Essaouira to be truly magical when I visited about seven years ago. I still remember taking a night walk along the sea, and the wind coming from the ocean... Very powerful place.
Hi Jen, Adorable photos! As Kerrin said, you do have an eye for details. This post makes me want to travel to Essaouira.
Fong, you and G are so cute on the roofdeck...really loving your pictures!!! i see you are having a blast! just started my blog last night so hope you can contribute some posts soon...i'll email you. check out mymomfriday :)-Lee
hi!
the old blog was having some problems so I finally decided to move there http://discoverflorence.blogspot.com (just take off a "Y" from the old url!)
please update you kinks and bookmarks!
thanks :-)
ps this place is just wonderful!!!
I'm reliving my Moroccan trip through you this time. What a riad - very saucy! Hope you didn't miss the fresh seafood near the fishing port. Are you guys going to the desert?
I do believe a trip to Morocco is in order. However, mine will not be spent in such pretty hotels but rather hostels & street corners. (expect for the street corners)
great photographs. very informative.
Morocco is one of my favorites. Beautiful photos. Looks like you picked some oustanding places to stay.
I love the alternative to turn down service.
All great photos. Beautiful!
This was lovely. I loved the bright carpets and the table with the top cover.the antique books was something real interesting.
Excellent !!!
OMG, the villa is amazing.
I have never heard of it before and now, I want to go visit.
Thanks for sharing the photos.
ok, i have got to go there! i always wanted to go to moroccoo. seems like such a mysterious and fascinating place. my husband's family is jewish-moroccan, but his parents moved to israel back in the 60s as children. some israelies go to morocco to see their country of origin, but it's a bit of a hassle. morocco have not officially recognized the state of israel, so you need to do some paper work. maybe i should just go alone one day with my european passport. i certainly wouldn't mind a solo trip with lots of good books to that stunning place by the sea.
I almost feel like I'm there with these wonderful photos. Oh man, now I really really want to be on vacation somewhere exotic instead of sitting at my work desk!
must. go....playing catch up on your blog is very dangerous for me ;)
anne
Absolutely amazing! I wish I was there right now!
I went backpacking in morocco last summer. Dont go on your own, its too dangerous!! and be careful about how much you pay for things, as they will rip you off as much as they can! the market square in marakesh is really nice at night, but you have to pay if you even want to take a photo! be careful if you go to Tangier, we had a guy who offered to show us around, and then demanded we each pay him £10 at the end!! when we first got off the ferry in Tangier, we had a guy follow us around for ages, trying to take us to a hotel he was blatantly getting paid commision from. we tried to say no to him, but it didnt work! the toilets are mostly of the hole in the ground variety!! nice! also, at tangier train station, we asked for train tickets to marrakesh for the next evening, but they gave them to us for that evening, and refused to give us a refund! they also cost us alot more fron tangier to marrakesh than from marrakesh to tangier!! personally i couldnt wait to leave the place, but good luck!! actually one good thing i did do there, was go on a sahara desert trip! that was great fun actually, we got to ride a camel and camp on the desert. but again all the locals tried to rip us off when we wanted to buy things. i once got told a can of coke was the equivalent of 60p which is more expensive than England!
The pictures of this post (A Passage to Essaouira and a Great Villa ) are very good, I really liked this pictures!
I have to say this look like a lovely place to spend some long deserved vacations.
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