Travel

Morocco: June 2018

In June 2018, my friend and fellow English teacher Rob Williams and I went on a 3-week trip through 8 cities in 4 countries in Southern Europe and Northern Africa. We spent a week of that time in Marrakesh, Morocco where we rented a 3-bedroom traditional Moroccan-style house that had shared gardens, a pool, and a mosque on site.

Morocco located in northwest Africa has a population of over 33.8 million people and an area of 274,460 square miles. Its capital is Rabat and the largest city is Casablanca.

The Alaouite dynasty, the current ruling dynasty, seized power in 1631. In 1912, Morocco was divided into French and Spanish protectorates, with an international zone in Tangier, and regained its independence in 1956. Moroccan culture is a blend of Berber, Arab, West African, and European influences. The main religion is Islam and the official languages are Arabic and Berber (with Berber being the native language before the Arab conquest in the 600s), and French is also widely spoken.





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We stayed right outside the walls of the oldest part of the city called the Medina.

The Medina is a densely packed, medieval city encircled entirely by a continuous wall and dates back to the Berber Empire, with mazelike alleys full of souks (marketplaces).

Upon our arrival, we walked into the Medina which is full of people, scooters, cars, and it is easy to get lost on the maze-like winding streets. We asked someone where we could find a restaurant and he led us down a few streets and then handed us off to a guy who took us on a tour of a tannery, where they showed us the process of curing leather. The smell was so strong they gave us handfuls of mint to hold up to our noses. Afterwards, we were led into a leather shop and encouraged to buy leather jackets, leather pants, etc. even though it was nearly 100 degrees.

Inside the Medina

Trying to take a taxi through the crowded streets of the Medina

Jemaa el-Fnaa is the main square in Medina and is quite overwhelming when you first arrive. It is an open marketplace full of shops, snake charmers, henna tattooists, fresh juice stands, monkeys on leashes, Moroccan music blasting, and scooters, horse-drawn carriages and bikes zipping past on all sides.

Shots in and around Jemaa el-Fnaa

Ibrahim, who helps take care of the house we rented, was an invaluable guide and friend and helped us book our tours, transport, and navigate the chaos of the city.

One day we went to Moroccan Hammam where we got massages and afterwards went to a water room where you lay on a large stone slab and they pour buckets of water over you, scrub your skin, and wash your hair.

We went a few times to a delicious French Moroccan restaurant where one night we had tajine, a traditional Moroccan dish which is named after the earthenware pot in which it’s cooked:

They also had belly dancers each night.

One of the highlights of the trip was when we did a day trip to the Atlas Mountains and visited several Berber villages and shops.

The Berber people are an ethnic group indigenous to North Africa who are Muslim and speak Berber. Our guide told us that much of the pottery, jewelry, woven rugs and other handmade art pieces we had seen in Marrakesh are made by the Berber people.

We visited a family-owned Berber shop and purchased many items.

And we rode camels after they dressed us in colorful Berber clothing.

We went to Ourika Valley in the Atlas foothills 60 kilometers to the south of Marrakesh where there were Berber villages surrounded by many waterfalls and rivers. These are pictures from our hour-long hike up along a river that took us past many Berber artisans and restaurants that had riverside tables and even couches and beds. The hike ended at the biggest of the many waterfalls we saw along the hike.

As seen in the top line of this sign, the Berber language is quite unique.

On the day before we left, we rode quads through the Palmeraie (palm grove) which is a palm oasis of several hundred thousand trees outside of Marrakesh. Situated at the edge of the city’s northern section, it measures 5 miles in length and covers an area of 54 square miles. Afterwards, they served us tea which seemed to be the most popular beverage in Morocco.