Sir Richard Branson’s Moroccan Retreat

July 1, 2009

After resigning myself to the fact that I had to leave my little slice of heaven in Essaouira, I started another 4.5 hour taxi transfer across Morocco, back down towards Marrakech and the Atlas Mountains. I had booked a single night’s stay at Sir Richard Branson’s Moroccan Retreat because… well, just because. Richard Branson is the eccentric billionaire owner of Virgin Airlines and Virgin Records, the adventurist who managed to circumvent the globe in a hot air balloon and- as it turns out- the owner of a half dozen luxury resorts around the world. Think South Africa, the British Virgin Islands, Switzerland and (drumroll, please)… just outside a tiny village in Morocco. Consider it done- I was on my way.

Driving up into the Atlas Mountains was treat in and of itself. The narrow roads were punctuated by donkeys, the occasional camel and mothers in abayas (traditional Muslim robes) walking hand-in-hand with their children as cars swooshed by at perilous speeds. I tried to film the ascent for you, but it made me physically dizzy and I had to force myself to stop. We did get an opportunity to stop over in a tiny village, where many of the locals had gathered down by a rushing creek. There was an outdoor cafè- if you’d like to call it that- just across the water and the locals were busy harvesting food, bathing their animals and doing the laundry in the local waters. They seemed genuinely happy to see a foreign face and were quite welcoming.

We resumed our ascent through rust-colored deserts and mountains of sparse little vegetation. But the moment you turned a corner and spotted it, you knew you had arrived. Kasbah Tamadot. The story goes something like this: Sir Richard Branson first found this property (built in the 1950’s) when he was attempting to circumvent the globe in a hot air balloon. His parents fell in love with it and encouraged him to purchase it and turn it into a retreat. He did so in 2005 and it now hosts 24 intimate rooms, 3 pools, a spa and immaculate gardens at the base of the Atlas Mountains. Turns out, I had scarcely missed Richard by a matter of weeks- he’d left the Kasbah not long before I arrived. So close and yet so very far….

My room at Kasbah Tamadot was cozy and furnished with neat Moroccan antiques. Each room is individually decorated and uniquely titled. I stayed in the Jacaranda suite, named for a native tree that stood just outside my balcony window. This particular suite is known for it’s gorgeous hand-painted ceiling, which made me want to sleep with the lights on. I also had two seating areas, a desk, a decadent bathroom and a private terrace that overlooked the pool. Suffice to say: I’ve stayed in worse.

One of my favorite features of the property is the outdoor pool. The infinity edge makes one feel as though you’re going to careen off the side of the mountain. Just across the valley is the village of Tanghart, which was settled in the 12th century by Jews. Its population is now composed of 100 families, most of whom are Muslim and many of whom work to create the goods sold in Richard Branson’s on-property boutique, the proceeds of which go back to the community. I should also mention that 90% of the staff at the Kasbah are local Berber people who have been fastidiously trained in impeccable service and most of whom speak at least three languages (Arabic, French and English). I feel like a ridiculous underachiever.

That evening, the guests enjoyed dinner by the reflecting pool, scattered with rose petals and populated by couples, the majority of whom were on their honeymoon or an anniversary holiday. It was the most magnificently romantic setting I have ever witnessed- especially for me eating dinner alone, with The Omnivore’s Dilemma as my only companion. However, I fell in with a couple of British gals who came together as best friends, just for the adventure of it all. Now there’s a couple of girls I can identify with. As an aside, cell phones are banned at the resort, you have to ask for a TV to be placed in your room (I did not- who travels to foreign lands to watch cable?) and children are only permitted during a few specific weeks per year. It truly is just that: a retreat.

The six-course tasting menu featured some outrageously good red wine from Morocco. So intensely good that I completely forgot the name. We also enjoyed Zaalouk Vegetables, Spring Pea & Morel Risotto, Cauliflower Crowns with Smoked Salmon Mousse, and a memorable Raspberry and Strawberry Tart with Green Lemon Sorbet and fresh lavender from the gardens of the Kasbah. Yes, I’m missing a few courses in there- did I mention I had several glasses of the good Moroccan red wine?

I hopped in the infinity pool for a swim after dinner and listened to the crickets chirp in Morocco as I floated under a starry sky. It’s usually between day 6 and 8 of my international travels that I start to miss my children madly and in sitting there- eyes closed and immersed in the familiar sounds of nature- I took some comfort that my Celie was probably listening to very similar sounds on our back porch at home, sipping our nightly jasmine tea in South Carolina. I slept like a rock that night.

The next morning we were treated to Moroccan honey-baked crumpets with caramelized bananas and roasted almonds and the ever-present pot of Moroccan Mint Tea (which just may become my new obsession) out on the restaurant terrace. After breakfast I snuck in a treatment at the spa’s hammam and spa, Asounfou (the Berber word for “relaxation”). Dubbed the “Yazire Angel”, it features a brisk exfoliation with warm oils mingled with crushed rosemary from the Kasbah’s gardens and a keise (traditional hammam mitt). The body is then cocooned while a scalp and facial massage is performed. It was 90 minutes of heaven! I chose this particular treatment because it is one of a few select treatments known as the “Angel” series. As described by Kasbah Tamadot:

“Over 16,000 people die each day in sub-Saharan Africa from preventable and treatable diseases because they live in areas where aid cannot reach them. Virgin Unite, Virgin’s charitable arm, is raising money for the ‘Heavens Angels’ project to buy motorbikes for trained medical workers in sub-Saharan Africa so they can reach thousands of people who may otherwise die unnecessarily. In aid of this charity, we have devised these ‘Heavens Angels Spa Packages’ whereby 15% of the money from treatments sold helps to raise funds for this worthy cause.” Neat idea, yes?

It’s days like these that I wish I possessed both a photographer’s eye and a better camera. Unfortunately, I have neither, so you’ll have to stroll over to the Kasbah’s website for the full suite of drop-dead-gorgeous photographs. I can only tell you that I stared at those photos for weeks, studying them in ridiculous detail, drooling slightly with high expectations… and then I got there. And it exceeded every last one of those expectations.

With great reluctance, I summoned the hotel car to depart Kasbah Tamadot. I wish I could have stayed longer, but doing so likely would have entailed the sale of one or more of my children to finance the affair and I am rather fond of those little beasts. Next time- there’s always a next time (Please God let there be a next time). The staff was kind enough to pack a delicious picnic lunch for me to take on my way and they loaded my luggage into an SUV that promised to stop in at the argan oil cooperative to show me how this famous cosmetic oil is made. But that’s a story for tomorrow…

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