Essaouira 索維拉

January 1, 2019
000 - collage Happy New Year - Tuesday January 1, 2019; day 8 of our Morocco tour - Marrakech to Essaouira - driving distance from Marrakech to Essaouira, approx 120 miles 2...
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001 - P1160577 1/1/19 11:54am Look! Goats on tree, what's happening?
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002 - P1160586 ... it's said that goats in Morocco do climb trees naturally, and help to create argan oil in the process - they eat the trees' fruit, and then release nuts...
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003 - P1160588 ... these days, the animals are lured by some local farmers into tall trees to attract tourists who are often charged to take photos of the animals...
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004 - P1160597 ... this is a hoax - see the built platforms in the tree?
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005 - P1160596 ... little boy and the black/white goatie...
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006 - P1160598 ... poor goaties high up in the tree...
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007 - P1160604 ... this little one on the ground nibbling on bare branches - come on, why not climb up the tree to eat the fruits up there?
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008 - P1160609 ... images of goats in trees have become iconic, 'tree-climbing' goats also contribute to Morocco’s burgeoning tourism industry, drawing visitors from all over...
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009 - P1160606 ... believe it or not, it costs $1 per camera to take pictures of this 'hoax' scenery - along the roadside on our way from Marrakech to Essaouira...
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010 - P1160610 ... stopping off somewhere along the way at a cooperative with mainly women workers producing argan oil by traditional methods...
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011 - P1160620 ... fruit of the argan tree is small and round, oval, or conical with thick peel covering the fleshy pulp; the nut contains one to three oil-rich argan...
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012 - P1160618 ... to extract the kernels, workers first dry argan fruit in the open air, then remove the fleshy pulp; some local producers remove the flesh mechanically...
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013 - P1160622 ... some traditionl locals use the flesh as animal feed allowing goats to climb trees freely, kernels then later retrieved from the goat droppings - AHH, that's...
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014 - P1160624 ... labor-intensive process involves cracking the argan nut to obtain the argan kernels...
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015 - P1160626 ... gently roasted or dried kernels then grinded and pressed by workers...
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016 - P1160627 ... argan oil, a plant oil produced from the kernels of argan trees native to Morocco; now popular for cosmetic purposes, locals also use argan oil to dip bread...
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020 - P1160632 ... argan tree at the Coop...
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021 - P1160634 ... take a closer look at the argan tree nut...
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022 - P1160636 ... 1/1/19 12:54pm - argan oil products of Marjana Coop...
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