Morocco. Marrakech and Essouira

The train from Fes to Marrakech took 61/2 long hours. We booked first class and it was a cabin with six seats, other passengers came and went as we stopped at various stations, but it was always full. The scenery was interesting as we rolled though large and small cities, areas of agriculture and also some desert. No one talked to each other the entire journey
I had arranged a pick up from our Riad at the station and we drove though the new part of Marrakech which is very modern pristine and affluent looking. Green boulevards lined with palm trees and many parks and flowers. Quite posh looking. The weather is so much warmer here.

Eventually we got to the old town, Medina, where we are staying. What a difference from Fes. All of you senses are assaulted at the same time. The taxi dropped us at the end of the grand square where we had to once again walk as there are no cars allowed. We are met by Mohammed from the Riad who walks with us and our bags through the chaos. Motorcycles, bicycles and many hand carts try to negotiate though the many hoards of people. The square has many vendors, performers, music bands, monkeys dressed in clothing on a leash for photos, snake charmers and acrobats all hoping for you to part with some dirhams. Once again however no one is pushy or assertive.

Riad Irhalne is only about a 10 minute walk and upon arrival we are greeted by Mohammed 2. We are on the ground floor in a very cute, small but charming room. We find the Riad rooms all very dark, so bringing a flashlight is a good idea

Dinner was prearranged and we enjoyed a tagine before retiring to bed.

A walking tour was arranged and it was okay but it is so noisy I had a hard time hearing what he was saying and it was so crowded and busy we felt we were left behind a lot. We did cover a lot of ground though and got the lay of the land in this area.

Marrakech was not a favourite place but still glad we came. Money seems to be an issue, not just here we had a problem in Fes as well. This is a cash society, cards are rarely accepted. But we had to go to five different ATMs to find a bank with money left. Weekends are bad so don’t wait until you are broke to get more cash. There are lots of ATMs around , they just get used a lot so run out. This has happened to us in other countries as well.

We took the 8:30AM CTM bus to Essouira and arrived at 11:30. I bought tickets on line for 80 dirham each way.
Our hotel Riad Borge el Baroud, was not ready for check in yet so we left one of our day packs and went to explore. Once again we left our suitcases in Marrakech for this one night getaway
It is so much quieter here, smaller Medina, less tourists and a calmer vibe. We wandered around the Medina and as this is a fishing town there is fish on every menu. Doug had a large plate of sardines he really enjoyed. I had a vegetable pastry but it was very bland unfortunately.

The evening was spent down by the port watching the fisherman come in with their catch and the beautiful sunset It was very busy with tourists from all over the world enjoying the changing colours of the sky,

Dinner was at Mandela society and I was in heaven. It is a vegan/ vegetarian resterant but they do have a couple of fish dishes. I had a vegan bean burger that was the best I think I have ever had. We came back again the next day for lunch I loved it so much
Wandering around the Medina we saw so many interesting doors.

We took the bus back to Marrakech at 5 PM the next day, but not before buying a lovely old small rug that we are happy with.
The square was very busy and crazy when we arrived at 8 PM. We had a light dinner on the terrace of a restaurant to watch the goings on below.

The last day sometimes create panic to buy stuff before you leave. We fell into that a bit today. I bought Doug a t shirt, I found some water colour powders made from plants that I can’t wait to try and a couple little things.

A visit to the Palais Bahia was interesting and glad we did that. Wandered around the Medina, finding new little streets. But the controlled ( or non controlled) chaos is too much. So many people being dodged by motorcycles, donkeys and carts, bicycles and hand carts. It was just too much for me. The diesel fumes were awful. It was exciting in a way, but give me Fes and the other two towns we went to any day. So many people just love it here though, so don’t take my opinion.

Doug likes to get a hair cut when we travel and found this little hole in the wall. The barber was quite young and very stylish. They agreed upon a price for haircut only, but when I came back he also had his moustache and beard trimmed, eyebrows and his nose and ear hair waxed. The fulll meal deal and three times what they agreed on. The barber never spoke English but Doug looks good
Then he wanted to tackle me, but I politely declined.

Packing up after dinner for our flight to Amsterdam tomorrow morning. Two nights there and then home again. We enjoyed Morocco, the people especially were wonderful and I loved meeting other travellers from all over the world and learning more about this area of North Africa.

Thanks for coming along with us.

Note about leaving Marrakech from the airport
I read to give yourself three hours which we did and got to our gate 15 minutes to spare. Long lines to check in ( could not get boarding pass beforehand) long lines to get through security and then again through passport control. We arrived at the airport at 8:45 for our noon flight. Go early