Page 286 - (DK Eyewitness) Travel Guide - Morocco

284  MOROC C O REGION B Y REGION

Shop in Erfoud, selling fossils – a local speciality – and a range of craft items
a Erfoud The road is also bordered with Unfortunately, and despite
many small craters – the tops care, for a century the trees
Road Map E4. * 10,000. @ from
Fès, Er-Rachidia, Midelt, Rissani and of shafts down to khettaras. have suffered from Bayoud
Tinejdad, and grands taxis. ( daily. palm sickness – caused by a
_ Date Festival (Oct). Usine de Marmar microscopic fungus – and the
On road R702 to Tinejdad. effects of excessive drought,
Before the development of the Open 8am–noon & 2–4pm Mon–Sat. both of which can kill them.
town began in 1930, the French The October date harvest in
had set up a military post here s Tafilalt the palm grove is a spectacular
to watch over the Tafilalt valley. sight. Each owner climbs to
The Berber tribes put up a long Palm Grove the top of his tree and, as the
drawn-out resistance to the Road Map E4. South of Erfoud grove resonates to the sound
establishment of French rule, on road N13. of machetes, bunches of dates
and the valley was one of the crash to the ground, falling in
last parts of southern Morocco Stretching out along the bends large orange heaps (they turn
to surrender. of Wadi Rheris and Wadi Ziz, brown as they ripen).
Erfoud’s checkerboard layout which run from Erfoud, the Symbols of happiness and
is a vestige of this military past. Tafilalt oasis nestles in a stretch prosperity, dates figure in many
This peaceful town, with an of greenery, extending beyond rituals, and in birth, wedding
extensive palm grove, is the Rissani. The oasis was once and burial ceremonies.
base for tours of the dunes a welcome stopping-place
of the Erg Chebbi. From the top for caravans, as they arrived
of the eastern borj, a small exhausted after weeks in d Rissani
bastion 3 km (2 miles) the desert. Road Map E4. * 15,000. @ from
southeast of Erfoud, the view Today, the inhabitants Meknès, Erfoud and Er-Rachidia, and
takes in a wide swathe of of the Tafilalt rely on it for grands taxis. ( Tue, Thu & Sun.
desert and palm groves. their livelihood: the 800,000
In October, the souk at date palms that grow here This small town on the edge
Erfoud overflows with dates are renowned for their fruit. of the Sahara marks the end of
of every variety. This is also the metalled road and the start
when the three-day Date of tracks into the desert. To the
Festival, at the end of the date east is the Hammada du Guir,
harvest, takes place. Both a a stony desert notorious for its
religious and a secular event, violent sandstorms.
the festival attracts local tribes. Rissani, built close to the
It begins with prayers at the ruins of Sijilmassa, was once the
mausoleum of Moulay Ali capital of the Tafilalt. Sijilmassa
Cherif in Rissani, 17 km (11 miles) is said to have been founded
to the south, and continues in 757–8 as an independent
with processions of people kingdom, becoming a major
dressed in traditional costume stopping place on the trans-
and with folk dances. Saharan caravan routes. Over
Polished marble containing the centuries, it became
fossils is Erfoud’s other main prosperous from trade in gold,
source of income. The cutting slaves, salt, weapons, ivory and
workshops, the Usine de Date harvest in the Tafilalt spices, reaching its peak in the
Marmar, is open to visitors. Palm Grove 13th and 14th centuries.
For hotels and restaurants see pp312–13 and pp329–30

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Eyewitness Travel LAYERS PRINTED:
Catalogue template “UK” LAYER
(Source v2.7)
Date 1st October 2013
Size 125mm x 217mm