Come in, come in

The door to the Berber Shop is always open, even in the coldest, most inclement weather. To a Moroccan, a closed door is a barrier, and the door should always be open to entice customers.

I spent a while with Mr Aziz this afternoon, seen here on his phone, showing him photos of the trip to Tangier, and enjoying a latte. Then it was time for my haircut.

In the evening, I travelled to Leicester University for a lecture on the archaeological findings of surveys of pre-Islamic and Islamic settlements in southern Morocco, in the Draa Valley. This is the area from which tribesmen spread north to invade Marrakesh and beyond including the Iberian Peninsula. Seeing the photos of the environment at the present day makes you wonder how these people came to be a force for Islamic culture in Western Africa, but they did.

It's quite probable that pressure on the land and agriculture was a prime motivator for the invasions. They also brought Islam with them.