Atlantic Coast - Morocco - page 412

Sights

With more than 50 resident artists, five galleries and several artist studios and exhibition
spaces, Assilah is renowned as a city of arts. It all started in 1978 when several Moroccan
artists were invited to hold workshops for local children and to paint some walls in the
medina as part of the town's moussem (saint's day celebrations). Several Zaïlachi artists
and some of these children have now made their name in the contemporary-art world,
among them the late Abdelilah Bououd, Brahim Jbari, Elina Atencio, Mohamed Lhaloui
and several members of the Mesnani family.

Ramparts & Medina
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Assilah's largely residential medina is surrounded by the sturdy stone fortifications built
by the Portuguese in the 15th century and it is these walls, flanked by palms, that have be-
come the town's landmark.
The medina and ramparts have been restored in recent years and the tranquil narrow
streets lined by whitewashed houses are well worth a wander. Although the restoration
work has left the medina much sanitised, the ornate wrought-iron window guards, pale-
green jalousies (wooden, trellis-like window shutters) and colourful murals (painted each
year during the Assilah Festival) give it a very photogenic quality. Craftspeople and artists
have opened workshops along the main streets and invite in passers-by to see them work.
Access to the ramparts is limited. The southwestern bastion is the best spot for views
over the ocean and is a popular spot at sunset. It also offers a peek into the nearby Koubba
of Sidi Mansur (which is otherwise closed to non-Muslims) and the Mujaheddin Graveyard .
The southern entrance to the medina, Bab Homar OFFLINE MAP (Ave Hassan II) , is topped
by the much-eroded Portuguese royal coat of arms. There are a few old cannons
OFFLINE MAP GOOGLE MAP just inside the medina's seaward wall, but they are cut off from
the walkway below and can only be seen from a distance. The Bab al-Kasaba leads to the
Great Mosque (closed to non-Muslims) and the Centre de Hassan II Rencontres Interna-
tionales. The medina is busiest on Thursdays, Assilah's main market day.

HISTORIC BUILDING, MEDINA

Palais de Raissouli
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Also known as the Palais de Culture (Palace of Culture) on the sea side of the medina, the
palace was built in 1909 by Er-Raissouli and still stands as a testament to the sumptuous

HISTORIC BUILDING