Our truck was overdue for an oil change. There was a MAN dealership in Errachidea – the home town of Hassan who had helped us many times in the past. When we first took delivery of the truck it was Hassan who guided us on a memorable trip out into the Sahara dessert.
We had asked Hassan to set up an appointment with the garage to do the oil change and also to order in some spare parts we needed. When we arrived Hassan was already there and (surprisingly for Morocco) the parts had arrived too. The work didn’t take long to complete and, after a café lunch with Hassan, we left Errachidea clutching a box of beautiful Medjul dates, a gift from Hassan.
Later that day we stopped at Sources de Lalla Mimouna, a museum and gardens created in the desert by Zaid Tinejdad, an artist, calligrapher and a fierce conservationist. He had spent many years clearing decades of accumulated rubbish from an underground water source. Zaid had created a garden with four beautiful pools where the clear spring water gurgled up to to the surface. The pools never dried out even during times of drought. The museum was a collection of artefacts showing 150 years of Berber culture. Zaid funded his work by charging a small entry fee and by selling his art.
We first came across Sources Mimouna 13 years ago and, since then, we have visited several times and we were always amazed by what Zaid had achieved. In 2023 the area had suffered a catastrophic rain storm. The deluge had flooded the gardens which were under a foot of water for several days. Many of the walls, constructed from earth and straw, had collapsed.
