First time in Marrakech, first time in Morrocco, first time stepping foot on the continent of Africa. It is a very exciting day! My only expectations are the vivid colours, a stunning Riad, ample amounts of exotic rugs, jewellery and leather to buy and a decent dose of sunshine to give some colour to my translucent winter skin. So yeah I guess I did have some expectations!
Friday night
Arriving at night, my first impression is the airport and how incredible the architecture is! Amazing roof structure, external metallic cladding with Arabic stars and shapes imprinted, solar trees outside and futuristic curves. Later I have to find out who is responsible and all credit goes to… E2a architects based in Switzerland (really thought it would be Dubai based but oh so wrong). I am actually blown away by how impressive it is and how much money must have gone into the structure.
We get picked up at the airport and driven to our Riad (Riad Assouel) the streets are busy, but wide and exceptionally clean. London actually looks like a tip in comparison! Stepping out of our ride, we do get some looks from the locals, probably not the most inconspicuous of outfits on.
The Riad is beautiful, the central pool is perfectly still and our room has the most incredible coloured lamps throughout.
Saturday Morning
We are up early to make the most of our only full day. The walk to the Medina through the Souks is full of anticipation. I am a bit nervous to be honest, the locals in the Riad said to not trust anyone and divide every potential buy by 5. I decide to look as much like a boy as possible to avoid unwanted attention, but I am ridiculous filming the whole walk on my phone (probs drawing more attention to being a foreigner than if I wore a mini skirt) but photos just really do not do the place justice! It is so interesting, everyone is setting up their stalls – there are stalls with dates, olives, lanterns made of intricately stencilled and cut tin, bags, the most stunning jewellery (I know I’m going to be broke by the end of the day). There are kids on the maze of streets and the Medina makes you feel lost on every turn. But that’s the fun of it.
We make our way to Badia Palace. Amazing architecture again, a former Sultan’s palace, the huge gardens are divided symmetrically into quadrants, some containing orange trees, some with large water pools. You can just imagine the parties the bloke would have thrown here with his multiple wives! Living the dream. There are remnants of the beautiful tiles that would have lined the walkways, and the tower affords a fab view of the rooftops and just how dense the Medina is with roofs covered in satellite dishes and clothes and rugs airing.
We head to CafeClock for lunch. Um have you tried mint lemonade? It is literally mental. Like the best thing ever. Stuff the tagine, I just want to live off the stuff. Pretty arty café, lots of frenchies and hippy types and us just drinking copious amount of mint lemonade (it’s what you do in a country where it’s frowned upon to drink alcohol).
Back through the Medina I literally get my hustle on. Bartering is fun if you do it with a smile and sometimes you get some fun shop owners who will take your cheek. Others I found aggressive and quickly move on – you don’t want to get cornered with them. All lovely when you are looking to buy and then agro when you walk away. It is a bit uncomfortable being a woman here. Not to mention I’m hot wearing jeans and covering my shoulders to fit in.
Saturday Night
Pretty spent from the day – and literally having spent all my cash in the Medina, we want to catch the sunset and head back through the swarms of people to the top of Nomad. It’s a restaurant with a mint view – pretty western I admit, but some respite is needed from the day and the hustle. The best part was hearing the Koran being sung from all angles as the sun was setting and I really felt like I was in another world.
Sunday Morning
I want to come back to Morocco and go for longer. Our cab driver who was from a small village (Zagora – the gateway to the Sahara) in the desert and a delight to talk to said we need to go to the desert and the mountains. I agree. I feel like the desert is the heart of this country and Marrakech is just a heartbeat and a glimpse into this whole new world… I admit I thought I was in Disney’s Aladdin pretty much the whole time. Where’s my magic carpet at?
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