Marrakesh - Desert flower - The red city
Ok, so I might be a little biased by the fact that I came here from Agadir, but it is still a marvelous city. It is more African than the cosmopolitan Casablanca, more Morroccan than Rabat and more Berber than Fès. The large Moroccan cities have colors associated with them.
Berber legends has it that when the Koutoubia was planted in the city's heart, it poured
so much blood that all the walls, all the roads and all the houses turned red. At dusk,
in the last rays of the setting sun, the walls of the city turn crimson. It is a sight not to
be missed.
The city itself is divided into two main portions: the Ville Nouvelle (new city) and the Medina (old city). If you look at a map, it is very obvious which is which. The streets of the Ville Nouvelle are straight and designed in a modern way. The Medina on the other hand, is not designed at all. It looks as if streets are just the spaces left inbetween the houses without any grand scheme of city planning. Where else can you find streets that just end in a wall? (Ok, so dead ends may exist elsewhere too, but it was my first encounter of "real" streets doing so.)
As far as the new city goes, I can't really comment. I just drove through it a couple of times. The only thing I am sorry I missed, was "La Mamounia". It is the crown jewel of Marrakesh hotels. Maybe the best in all of Morocco and in the top league of African hotels. (At least in my book, concidering it's history.) It was built between 1925 and 1929 for the French controlled Maroccan railways. And it soon became a favoured retreat for financially undisadvantaged Europeans. Many fleeing the decadence of Tangier. Winston Churchill used to come to paint and Erich von Stronheim passed through on several occations as did Franklin D. Roosevelt, and Rita Hayworth. Rumor has it that it lost some of the original feel when it was renovated in 1986, but it is still marvelous. Rooms start at Dr1700 (single in low season) and end up around Dr30.000 (3 room suite). Breakfast will set you back a whopping Dr170. But you don't have to live there to take a walk in the garden or admire the lobby.
But if you are at all like me, you will want to find a small hotel in the Medina, and explore
the souks during the day, and savour the sights and sounds of Djemaa el-Fna at night. For it is
truly an experiece not to be missed. For me it was (along with the souks) the embodiment of what I
expected to find in Morocco. Berber, Arab and African. They all converge here. A man plays his flute
and sways from side to side while the black cobra stands ready to attack in front of him, but does
nothing. As transfixed by the man and his music. You lose sight of them for a moment as someone
passes in front of you, and a thousand scents grab you by the nose and lead you to towards the
food stalls. Each one producing more marvelous treats than the next. Suddenly a young girl grabs
you be the hand and tries to paint it with henna before you can say no. You kindly (but sternly)
say no, as you are caught between two men arguing about who is to pay for the broken jars. You only
have time to think "What jars?", before your attention is drawn to the face a young woman
behind a food stall. She is the first yong, smiling employed woman you have seen all day. So you
sit down by her stall, as her brothers(?) give you a paper napkin for a plate and a piece of freshly
baked bread.