With the landing on the Marrakech airport, our story officially began. Without any specific problems, we found a bus that runs directly to the city centre, on the main square Djemaa el-Fna. Our first task was to find our “hostel” Riad el Az, which we had pre-booked via Booking.com (on this page we booked other hostels and hotels too, except in Rabat). However, find this one was hard, it was a real small puzzle in which we inadvertently entangled with one local man, who drove us through the maze of narrow streets. At the end we finally found our Riad, but we had to pay off our “tour guide”, 20 Moroccan dirhams (1 € = 11 MAD) was enough for that.
After we settled down, we get back to the centre. Road took us past the Koutoubia – known as the biggest mosque in Marrakech, to the Djemaa el-Fna square, which is teeming with stalls where locals selling practically everything you could imagine. It is said that in this market is about 6.000 different stalls. Saša was grabbed by a woman, who started to draw a Henna tattoo on her arm. The more we was telling her that we don’t want this, more she held her and hurried with the drawing. Tattoo was really bad. Although we early on told her that we don’t want that and that we don’t have any money, she wanted 600 MAD (60 €) anyway. We had some luck because policeman came near, then she realize she will have to settle with few coins.
We visited Bahia palace, surrounded by beautiful gardens, El Badi Palace and Saadi tombs. Exhausted from driving, high temperatures and walked kilometres, we are ready for a well-deserved rest in our lovely riad (18.00 local time).
After 13 hours of sleep with intermediate shouting from the neighbouring mosque, we were happy to eat real Moroccan breakfast. We went in the more northern part of the medina past stalls. They are not familiar with HACCP system, they have open-air butcher shop on the 35 °C and chicken meat cannot be fresher because they slaughtered them in front the costumer 🙂 Fish stores we prefer not to mention. Well, definitely, this is not the only thing that they are memorable.
We walked to Ali Ben Youssef Medersa – a kind of centre of learning, intertwined with a variety of world architecture (flair of Spain, Italy, Iraq and Morocco), past Ba’adiyn Koubba and Marrakech museum, which was worth seeing. Combined ticket for museum and medersa cost 60 MAD per person. During the return to the Djemaa el-Fna, we stopped at a small market Rahba Kedima, where we afford ourselves a typical peppermint tea on the terrace of the bar. While observing the locals, we got across a clash of two sellers, what they discussed we do not have a clue, but the thing turned out very funny and interesting 🙂
In the afternoon, we wanted to visit the Jardin Majorelle. Despite the distance, we decided to walk there, but all we met there was just a closed doors, because none of us imagined that even in parks have opening hours. We awaited a sunset at one of the patio, where we met main square in a typical image, which traced to a number of photos. Market was flooded with bigger stalls, where they offer traditional food and drinks. In addition, to get their money as street artists, they hosting some kind of music workshops, staged skits, playing to their cobras, walking monkeys and much more. Our attention is also attracted the crowd gathered in circle, they were watching boxing or more funny version of street fighting.
Marrakech is cool.
S & B
