Marrakech: "It feels good to be lost in the right direction"

After nearly 24 hours of traveling, Ray and I finally touched down on African soil and felt the sweltering African sun. We jumped in a cab, despite a verbally aggressive dispute amidst the cab drivers and made our way to the hotel.  Apparently, our hotel was on a walk street so the cabbie dropped us off as close as he good and gave us some brief directions.  We were dodging people left and right, meanwhile getting hassled to buy stuff from all the street vendors, while also trying to navigate our way around a foreign town.  Luckily, we were given spot on directions and ended up right where we needed to be.  Our hotel, Riad Mabrouk, is stunning.  The decor is amazing with gorgeous mosaic tiles all over the walls, tapestries strung from the ceiling, a viewing pond in the middle of the restaurant and my favorite, the light fixtures.  They are absolutely stunning!  

 

 

After a well needed nap, Ray and I hit the town for dinner and our first taste of Djemaa el-Fna.  I was so excited to get outside that I couldn't even take the time to walk down the stairs, I slipped on slick spot and slide the rest of the way down, using my left wrist and hip as a cushion.  Just the way, I had hoped to start the trip.  With a bit of a limp in my step, but still just as excited, we hit the main square.  It was around 6pm and the place was just starting to get set up.





We wandered through the vendors and carts and somehow stumbled into the Souqs (markets), an endless narrow path with store after store after store. It must have been almost 2 hours later when we finally found our way out, most of which we were actually trying to get out, but just couldn't seem to find the right way.   By that time, the Djemaa el-Fna was absolutely packed.  Every which way there was someone trying to sell you something, someone trying to put a monkey or a snake on you or a lady grabbing your hand to give you a henna tattoo.  Ray was inches from having a friendly snake wrapped around his neck and I nearly lost a finger trying to pull my hand away from some lady with a henna kit. We realized quite quickly that we needed to assertive and aware of everything happening around us.  It was completely overwhelming, especially for two jet-lagged travelers.  We decided to ditch the crowds and grab some drinks at a local rooftop deck.  What a view! 

For dinner, we headed back to our riad for some local cuisine: Tajines and mint tea (well, maybe minus the french fries).     

 

We had some friends of Pepe’s join us for dinner. 

The next day, our first real day in Marrakech.  We head to breakfast in our hotel and end up meeting Mostafa, an english teacher from Algeria.  He was so taken to be having breakfast with us and we loved learning some arabic phrases and culture tidbits, including how to eat with our hands and how to say please and thank you.  

After breakfast we hit the town.  Apparently, we learned that most of the streets have many different names due to when different countries had control over Morocco.  So on the map we would read one name and then on the actual street it would be something completely different, confusing much.  Looks like they are trying to resolve this problem and switch all the street names back to the original arabic names. That being said, our first stop was the Palais Badii.  Im not sure how we actually made it there, again fighting the crowds, confusing streets and getting hassled to buy stuff or pointed in the opposite direction, but we did. The palais was such a peaceful gem, tucked in the chaos of a busy city. There were 2 large pools, right in the middle of the plaza, as well as a huge temporary audience seating amphitheater (that I tried to avoid in my pix) right when you walked in. There was also a throne room off to one of the sides. 

Pepe found some friends in the shade at the Palais

Ray, Pepe and I had a great time getting lost in the in the underground hallways and seeing the ornate tile mosaic floors.

From atop the terrace, we got a pretty cool view of the city.

After the palais, we decided using the “hop on/ hop off tour bus” might be the best way to navigate this city.  Fortunately for us, there was one right when we walked out of the palais.  We jumped on and immediately were thankful for making that decision, though it was totally touristy.

  We drove right by the Koutoubia Mosque. So pretty!

We then toured around the new part of the city, going right by some pretty swanky resorts and golf courses.  We came across some friends along the way… and Jenna’s doppleganger. 

We hopped off the bus at the Jardin Majorelles, a beautiful oasis.  This place was gorgeous! Tucked quietly away from the crowds and noise of the city, was a magnificent garden, with plants from all over the world.  I loved the brightly painted flower pots, the towering bamboo and tranquil ponds. I'm thinking we have some work to do on my garden at home now.

That night we had dinner at Chez Chegroni, a cute little place right off the square recommended to us by our hotel.  The tagines and couscous were fanttastic! The best part though was watching the sunset over the Djemaa el-Fna. 

The plaza took on a whole new persona when the sun went down, it was very majestic.


Here's a view from atop our riad, gives you a great idea of how close we were to all the action of the medina.