Monday, July 14, 2008

Last Summer at the Beach



One thing about the beaches in Morocco is that they're huge, and it's very easy to get away from the crowds.
Here at Sidi Kaouki some 14km. south of Essouira a mist came in off the Atlantic shrouding everything in a romantic miasma.......out of which emerged the usual salesman selling "Rolex" watches.......



At Diabat, camels head towards Essouira and are about to ford a little stream which crosses the beach,



Fairly lonely young men with bicycles also going towards town.
Also at Diabat.




This castle in the sand will only last a few more minutes.

Edmund Spenser wrote:

"One day I wrote her name upon the strand"

One day I wrote her name upon the strand,
But came the waves and washed it away:
Again I wrote it with a second hand,
But came the tide, and made my pains his prey.
Vain man, said she, that dost in vain assay
A mortal thing so to immortalize!
For I myself shall like to this decay,
And eek my name be wiped out likewise.
Not so (quoth I), let baser things devise
To die in dust, but you shall live by fame:
My verse your virtues rare shall eternize,
And in the heavens write your glorious name;
Where, whenas death shall all the world subdue,
Our love shall live, and later life renew.

21 comments:

Anonymous said...

Beautiful photos and words.
This is what it reminds me of:
We write our days out on the sand and then each night they vanish with the waves, wiping our slate clean for one day of creation!

I've never seen a photo of a camel at the beach before. Thank you!
Did you and Camilla email? She's a special one like you.
xo
Constance

SandraRee said...

Beautiful pictures and I love the words!

this is my patch said...

Great photo of the camels on the beach. We spent some time on our beach today, J swam and I spent the time beachcombing. The sand and sea makes you feel so relaxed after a stressful day. x

Anonymous said...

Thank you so much for those lovely photos. I miss the sea more than I can say right now and that helped a bit :-).

Sara at Come Away With Me said...

I love the beautiful distance in these photos and the simplicity of sea and sky, where man seems small compared to the greatness of it all.

And the Edmund Spenser poem fits well with such thoughts....

Unknown said...

Definitely miss the beach ... a lot!! 14 km? that's really long and no crowding, how cool :)

Hey Harriet said...

Sadly I've never spotted camels at the overcrowded & noisy beaches closest to where I live. I Love the remoteness of those beautiful beach photos. Lovely poem also!

Anonymous said...

Beautiful.

Can you imagine that there are beaches when the sand is just as white, the sea just as green up in Lofoten.
The water is icy could though, and still my daughter and her cousin, and my husband, decided to swim :-)
Me? I took photos.

Tess Kincaid said...

This first picture makes me long for the sea!

I love that last line of Spenser's poem.

Flower said...

What a tranquil place to see!
Your poem fits beautifully.

Lavinia said...

I remember a beautiful beach in Morocco, and a stream/pond that crossed its sands. Seeing your post today brought it all back.

Barbara said...

To be on such a deserted beach - what a delight. I wonder if you swim there?

CaBaCuRl said...

The beach is so atmospheric with a sea mist rolling in, but , for me, what a surprise to see camels emerging from it!
I have lost count of how many secrets i have written in sand on beaches around the place...the sea knows EVERYTHING about me!

Marja said...

What a great pictures Love the camels on the beach. In NZ you have endless beaches as well. The sea is always so peaceful and the sound of the waves so relaxing.
The poem is absolutely wonderful

Willow said...

Beautiful photos. I thought, oh yes, that looks like Ventura County beaches in the fog. Until I scrolled down and saw the camels.

Maria said...

Fascinating photos! I'd like to be there!

Kristen said...

my favorite spot is the beach..probably b/c I grew up near one. great pictures and poem.

Anonymous said...

Beautiful beaches! I'm surprised they are so empty but then, that's a good thing. I like your description of a salesman selling rolex watches emerging from the romantic miasma...it's straight out of a wonderful novel!

Muriel said...

I love the photo of the camels. I'm in love with all the camels in the world, dead or alive!! hahaha

Beautiful poem

Gretel said...

Camels!! Lord, how exotic that looks from the Cotswolds.

I have missed coming here, I'm taking time out to catch up...

Barrie said...

Those are incredible photos. And so different from the beaches near me here in So. Cal.