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call_me_rhia Says: Suuq Djemal is a very lively and interesting area in Laayoune, for two reasons. The first reason is its peculiar architecture - some constructions have eggshell-domed roofs; apparently they are designed this way to keep the houses a bit cool in summer.Everything that can be...
call_me_rhia Says: Place de la resistance is another beautiful square in Laayoune. It's very much different from place Mechouar, where everything is empty and quiet. This place is busy and right in the centre of town - but in the middle there's a area with some pleasant open air cafes and...
call_me_rhia Says: The artisan centre in Laayoune town is two places, not one - and both are located on the opposite sides of the mosque. On one side you can see the artisans at work in they workshops; as they don't see many tourists, they will likely be happy to answer any question you may...
call_me_rhia Says: The "new" mosque is also known as the Firday mosque - but it is still unclear to me as why it is called new... I have seen other mosques in town, and - while this was significantly larger and more beautiful than the others - it did not look one day younger than the...
call_me_rhia Says: If you (most likely) are coming from the airport, or from any point north, the first sight you'll catch of Laayoune is its three-arched entrance gate - a modern gate, like Laayoune itself. Actually, no - if getting to Laayoune by daylight, the first sight you'll catch will...
call_me_rhia Says: Place Mechouar is possibly the nicest place in Laayoune - it's one of the two large squares I have seen, but this is not in the central part of the city but rather towards the outskirts - it's a beautiful and peaceful square and it's made up of 4 towers and the papace of...
la madone: moroccan-style pizza
call_me_rhia Says: A small hole in the wall and not the best pizza in the world, but for sure the friendliest pizza place... The owner (and chef) was obviously excited about having two italian customers eat his pizzas... I thought I could not disappoint him by telling him only one of us was...
call_me_rhia Says: A small hole in the wall restaurant kinda place, which had these glorious roasted chickens cooking - and the most inviting smell. It was an easy decision to take, we would have chicken for dinner. It was a bad decision, too... The chicken was really tasteless... I would...
call_me_rhia Says: Unless you are heading into mauritania, maybe it's worth considering flying into western sahara... sometimes, if you book well in advance, royal air maroc has affordable tickets, there. I think we paid about 80 euros for our return trip from casablanca.However, we found that...
call_me_rhia Says: Getting out of Laayoune town for a bit of sightseeing did not prove very difficult, but for sure it was expensive. because of the lack of tourists, there's no competition - so only one hotel (the Parador) offers taylor-made day tours, which means that you get a (pink) 4x4...
call_me_rhia Says: There are two things that are defnitely not missing in laayoune... the first is pharmacies (there are dozens of them) the second - and most important - is patisseries... hudreds. Definitely people living there have a sweet tooth.There's plenty of cakes and sweets to be...
call_me_rhia Says: You may forget that you are in the middle of the desert, while in Laayoune town, but if you take a short stroll outside town, you will be remembered soon... occasionally you may see men walking their camels by the side of the road. I really don't know where this man was...
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Laayoune, as well as all the entire Western Sahara territory, is a bit politically sensitive (not only because of the polisario), so a little bit of caution won't hurt. I would say that it's very safe to visit Laayoune; there are plenty of UN peacekeeping soldiers all over townto guarantee your safety, but maybe it's better not to talk politics too much. Better not talk about it at all.
The other problem are mines , or better minefields. Whgile you are in town, there's really no risk, wheareas if you intend to leave it (and leave paved roads as well) it's important to know that mines and minefilds do exist... most - but not all - are marked (they are surrounded by barbed wire). It's better to leave the beaten path only with a local that you are sure that knows the area well.
Written Jan 12, 2008
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Clothing/Shoes/Weather Gear: Laayoune tends to be fairly windy, so even in winter, although it's not really cold, you may need a windbreaker of some sort.
Toiletries and Medical Supplies: Don't bring too many medicines - there's pharmacies all over Laayoune and are really well stocked-up. They are also significantly cheaper than at home, so consider buying some off-the-wall medicines, there. Yes, the sames that you'd buy at home. Occasionally (see photo) the same pharmacy sells "veterinary" medicines, too.
Miscellaneous: alcohol, if you are into drinking... in Laayoune town it's really hard to come by, except for a selection of whiskys and cognacs in the 4 stars hotels. The nearest place to buy some is in Laayoune Plage, some 25 or 30 kilometres away.
Written Jan 12, 2008
call_me_rhia Says: About 15 kilometres from laayoune, along the Smara road, and before the road starts climbing up towards Ad Cheira, there is a small oasis that can be visited, it's the Oasis L'Messeied. There are some traditional tents where tea will be served.If you are interested it is...
call_me_rhia Says: The Flaming lake is not called Flamingo lake at all - it is not called in any way... somehow people forgot to give this beautiful spot a name - and yet it's such a beautiful sight to behold. Sometimes it's a lake, sometimes it's a couple of small lakes - the most striking...
call_me_rhia Says: All around Laayoune... there's the mighty Sahara desert... endless views of sand dunes interspersed with some low bushes and rocky parts. Anywhere is a great place to vist - and it there for a while, looking at nothing (well, sand, actually), in silence and think about how...
call_me_rhia Says: Miles and miles untouched sand and blue waters which screams to be swum in - one should really go there in summer, not in winter - when it's a pleasant place to take a stroll but where you don't want to linger too long because of the wind.Laayoune beach is located in...
call_me_rhia Says: Seguiat al Hamraik is the name gives to the seasonal river flowing a few kilometres outside Laayoune town, not towards the coast but inland from the city. In december 2007 it was still possible to see it, even though in places it was only a little bit more than a stream.In...
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Favorite thing: Laayoune is the administrative capital of Western Sahara - it's only about 25 years young and it's quite a pleasant place to be. It has about 200'000 inhabitants, hundreds UN peacekeeping soldiers and no local postcard to buy. There are no real tourists in laayoune, only a handful of people driving by every day, heading to Mauritania. This means that everywhere we went, people knew we were the couple from Italy/Switzerland.
There are no real highlights or landmarks to see, but it's pleasant to stroll about... local people, especially Saharawit, are very hospitalble and friendly - chances that someone will invite you to their home, like it happened to us, is very high.
Fondest memory: My fondest memory is the wonderful people we met - they took us to their homes, made us tea Saharawit style (you really have to see it - it's a form of art) and cooked camel feet for us as a treat... make sure you have good teeth, there's a lot of chewing involved, in eating them. Oh, and when it was time to leave, they gave each of us a traditional dress as a souvenir, and some necklaces.
I also liked our little excursion in the "desert" - which starts just outside town. There are sand dunes everywhere and, occasionally, a little lake or river.
Written Jan 12, 2008
the administrative capital of Western Sahara . . For more photos see my travelogue THE WESTERN SAHARA DESERT NEAR LAAYOUNE . .
El Aaiun and Playa de El Aaiun
As I couldn't find the VT location of "El Aaiun" (Laayoune) I will build my page about this place in the "Playa de El Aaiun" (Laayoune Plage - Laayoune Beach) one. So I will talk about "El Aaiun...
Build your own Laayoune Plage page
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