Marrakech - the Red City

Our journey to Marrakech was an adventure in its own right. Our journey began with an uneventful private car hire taking us back to the Tangier train station. Our driver was quite friendly and somewhat talkative. We learned from him that since a certain event February this year, that the petrol price of $15 Durham per litre was a 50% increase from prior to that making it that much harder to make a living as a driver. He spoke fondly of life in Morocco otherwise. Our train to Marrakech was via Casablanca. While our initial train ran pretty much on time, the train from Casablanca was an entirely different story. Initially the board showed the train would only be about half hour late, which wasn't that bad. But it progressively got longer and longer and the attendants had very little information to share (at least in English). It was quite hot in the holding area as well and people were getting restless and frustrated. At one point when we finally learned that our train would be at least two hours late, Z did think about trying to change our tickets to an earlier train that seemed to arrive however the line up at the ticket office was so long that he gave up and we waited it out. When the train finally did arrive and we were let on, we had some troubles with people sitting in our assigned seats and of course they chose to speak Berber Arabic making it difficult to communicate. Thankfully one individual finally intervened and helped with the communication. Turns out he was the one sitting in one of our seats but didn't say anything at the time and that we had one of the seats wrong so we made a slight scene that probably could have been avoided. 

We got in much later than we had wanted to and after having to really haggle again with the taxi driver made it to our hotel, which we had also switched up the day before as we learned the one in town we had originally booked was undergoing significant renovations and recent reviews indicated that it was very disruptive and basically avoid staying there. So we ended up booking our stay at the all-inclusive Delta Eden Andalou Aqua park, about 20 minutes outside the main downtown part of Marrakesh, which is why the taxi driver wanted more of a fare. While this wasn't our first choice for our stay, it ended up being quite enjoyable. With the train delays, we ended up not having a proper supper during the journey, only a handful of snacks. Because we arrived to late at the hotel, the restaurant had already closed for the night. Thankfully the hotel seemed quite prepared for late arriving guests (seems like delayed trains to Marrakech is common) and gave us the option of a couple different sandwiches as a late night supper. Shortly after settling into our room our chicken sandwiches along with a large amount of french fries each arrived. While it was way too much food, the chicken was tasty and satisfying. We did end up switching rooms after eating much to the chagrin of the hotel staff. We explained to them that the air conditioning was not working, which it really wasn't as the room wasn't cooling down in the least bit. The staff at first tried to fix it but after we insisted it didn't work, they agreed to move us. We ended up in a similar room size and layout, but on the ground floor which right off the bat helped to keep it cooler because heat rises. We also figured out that it was best to close the door to the bedroom sealing off the vast living room space which helped to keep the bedroom cooler while sleep as the cool air didn't escape to other parts of the room. Because we stayed here for four nights, we had the opportunity to book the two al la carte restaurants with no extra charge. We tried both La Fez - a Moroccan restaurant and La Toque - an oriental fusion restaurant. Between the two La Fez offered the better food selection and tasting food. La Toque was a disappointment, but honestly should not have been a surprise seeing as we were in Morocco. Unfortunately neither of us enjoyed our supper at La Toque and ended up supplementing it with food from the buffet afterwards. Sadly we had kinda anticipated this would happen and made sure our reservation gave us enough time for this alternative. Being an all-inclusive made the eating situation easy and the food at the Atlas restaurant (the buffet) was really quite with a good variety of options. Outside in the main courtyard the hotel had live music performances every night. The bonus at this resort, in addition to the two good sized outdoor pools, was a water park attached with water slides for the hotel guests to enjoy. It helped with cooling off in the hot Marrakech temperature. We spent four nights here and determined that if we ever back in Marrakech that we'd likely stay here again. Given its location 20 minutes outside the main part of the city, the hotel offered a free shuttle bus taking guests back and forth. This turned out to be very handy when we went for our tour of the Medina, though an unfortunate incident resulting in Z needing to purchase a new pair of sunglasses and us having to wait another hour for a return ride home, did put a bit of a damper on this service. 

Marrakesh is known as the "Red City" because of its distinctive pink-and-red clay walls and buildings. It is a vibrant cultural, economic and tourism hub. It is worldly famous for its bustling market and Jemaa el-Fnaa - the central square and marketplace that transforms from open-air trade by day into a lively food and performance space by night. This main square is filled with 

fresh fruit drink stands, snake charmers, trained monkeys you could pay to see entertain and 

take photos of. I felt bad for the monkey who were on chains and dressed up in silly  costumes. The fresh fruit drinks on the other hand were worth buying and were quite refreshing in the hot sun. The Medina is an historical old town and is world famous. The Medina souks number roughly 5000 shops and have existed since the 12th century with a medieval labyrinth where traditional crafts, textiles, leather products metalworks, dyes, and spices are sold. We ended up doing a 2-hour walking tour through the Medina and got to explore the many different sections along the way. Again, perhaps because we were with a tour, we were not hassled by any of the staff to buy things. 

Koutoubia Mosque is the largest mosque in Marrakesh and was build in the 12 century and features an iconic Moorish minaret visible across the city. It is not open to tourists and like most mosques in Morocco, non-Muslims are not allowed to enter. It is located a short walk from the central square and Medina. Park Lalla Hasan is situated right beside the mosque and was a nice place to find some shade under the trees. With it being inland, Marrakesh was the hottest of all the cities we explored on this trip and we really felt it while exploring and even while just relaxing at the resort.

Near Marrakesh is the Ourika Valley and the Atlas Mountains, both worth a day trip. Total drive time is about one hour and a half, roughly 60kms. The Ourika Valley, is a lush and scenic river valley in the Atlas Mountains offering some breathtaking views of the mountains from the roadside. Our tour stopped in one of the traditional Berber villages were we were able to tour one of their traditional houses. We also
stopped at a woman's co-operative where they made Argan Oil products. Here we got to sample some of the products and then were encouraged to purchase products as well. The main attraction for us was the 45 minute hike up to the Setti-Fatma waterfall with about a 200 metre elevation gain. Our guide was great and very patient with some of the other guests who didn't seem to realize what hiking involved. I would consider the hike itself to be easy to moderate in effort as we wandered through market stalls lined up the mountain. The moderate stretch was the last portion which was mostly hiking up a rocky pathway. The surrounding l

andscape was stunning with walnut and wiping willow trees lining the trail. Our tour ended with a riverside dining experience along the Ourika River for a three-course lunch. In peak tourist season it's not hard to imagine these restaurants with their colourful tables and cushions packed with tourists particularly on the seats facing the river.

I was prepared for more of a chaotic visit to Marrakesh and was pleasantly surprised to experience the opposite. The heat was immense and that was a bit of a challenge to deal with. But outside of the initial haggling with the taxi driver when we arrived, we didn't encounter any more of that while we were exploring around. The day trip to the Ouirka Valley and the Atlas Mountains is a definite must do; it's a great escape from the city. Our stay here was a good blend of exploration and relaxation before we moved on to our final destination....Casablanca.