Orson Welles made Essaouira world famous when he filmed Othello in this bleached white fortress that’s stood guard for centuries against possible invaders from the Atlantic. The entire town is punctuated by weathered wooden cobalt blue doors. It’s gorgeous.
Mustafa’s herd of camels is nine strong, all looked well-tended, and I rode on Lawrence of Arabia while he led on Forrest Gump. He talked about his dreams of starting a camel milk business in two years, as well as spoke of his fiancé, a French tourist he fell in love with three years ago. They’ve lived together in a romance that he fears will crumble because she doesn’t believe in God. He doesn’t want her to convert to Islam, really, but he told me that he just wants her to believe “in something!” His eyes looked down at the sand. I joked with him that I’d be sure to include that in my TripAdvisor review.
I left with a sunburn and a smile, hoping for Mustafa to convince his fiancé, but knowing you can’t make anyone believe something if they refuse. Otherwise, all of my friends would vote for the candidate who I believe would make a magnificent President.