Look! Goats in a Tree!

For our second day trip, we went to the coastal city of Essaouira located a few hours outside of Marrakesh Along the way, we saw one of the sites that we were most excited to see in Morocco...GOATS IN A TREE! When we first saw a photo of it, we were amazed and humored at the same time but that was short lived as we were told that it was just a tourist trap - local herders put the goats in argan trees just so that tourists can pose for pictures. Argan trees are very important to Moroccans as they use the nut for cosmetic oils which are exported, the husks are fed to animals, and the nuts themselves can be toasted and found in a wide range of Moroccan delicacies.

Our driver stopped at the first goat tree we saw. As soon as we got out of the car, one of the herders put a 7 day old baby goat in Melissa's arms. After I took a few photos of her, he gave me a goat too. Their little hearts were beating SO fast. I was joking with Melissa that it was because they were so worried about getting put up in that tree!

Essaouira is an 18th century fortified town with old walls and cannon lined ocean facing exterior walls. Inside the walls it is so easy to get lost in the maze of small windy streets.

Our guide took us to an argan co-op where the ladies pick, sort, husk, roast, grind, and sell it in its various forms. We were treated to a sample of some of the items that contain argan -  including an argan bread spread, argan honey, argan nut powder and argan olive oil.

After the tour was over, we had lunch at one of the many fresh seafood stalls, where we had some freshly grilled fish, shrimp, and sardines. After finishing up we were soon back on the road headed back to Marrakesh.