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Amidst the all-encompassing aridity of the stone desert of Oumnas, the lush, well-cared-for garden bears witness to great dedication and deep connection – to the surroundings, to the people who live and work here and to the local nature.
The daily care by the gardeners ensures a lush but tamed greenery. Metre-high cacti grow together with their small offshoots in curved flower beds, expansive ground covers with their delicate flowers green otherwise bare slopes, fragrant flower tendrils adorn the walls and facades of the lodge and century-old olive trees spread their branches over short trimmed lawns.
The vegetable garden is also lovingly tended, and its small but fine yields are sometimes on the evening menu. When the wind rustles through the leaves of the surrounding olive trees at a late hour and the garden of the Berber Lodge glows in the sea of colours of the setting sun, the garden fruits are served as delicious tagine or vegetable side dishes.I
The Berber Lodge is characterised by valuing the simple, doing without the unnecessary, using what is available and treating oneself to a little luxury in spite of everything. All the accommodation is modelled on traditional Berber architecture and built according to the surrounding architecture. Clay, straw and wood provide a pleasant coolness inside and, thanks to their earthy colouring, also a noticeable cosiness. Antique treasures, selected furniture and resourceful collectibles made of terracotta, rattan, eucalyptus and clay bear witness to the owner's Moroccan understanding of art and his love of local craftsmanship. With them, Romain Michel Meniere gives all the small retreats of the lodge a private, almost familiar flair.
Whether body and soul long for conviviality by the pool, in the communal living room or at dinner, or rather for a sense of contemplation in the library, while strolling in the garden or on one's own terrace – the Berber Lodge is a place where pleasure and well-being can be felt indoors as well as outdoors. Relaxation and the grounding feeling of 'just being' can be found in every corner. 'Just being' in an oasis in the middle of the stone desert of Oumnas.
All words and photos by The Sturgheons..
