We’ve spent two days driving along the coast, first from Agadir to Essaouira, and then from Essaouira to Oualidia, our outpost for this week.

On the leg north from Agadir, we were surprised to see how much the landscape looked like versions of other places.

Black Mesa, AZ, moved to the edge of the Atlantic.

Northern California is an easier comparison.

We saw people surfing. A lighthouse

There are lots of coastal archaeological sites, too. Most are former living areas, with marine shell, pottery and stone tool fragments, and some walls of rock remaining. There’s a site in the foreground here, under our feet.

Beyond Essaouira, the argan trees disappear and the ground becomes rocky. Incredibly rocky. Walls of rock are constructed around fields, piles of rock (pirca) are built, and finally there is more rock in the fields than there is land. Sheep graze among the rocks, but planting looks impossible.

We reach the coast and down the hill we see the lagoon that is Oualidia.

We are here for a week. Aaaahhhhhh.