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Monday 8 September, walking through the Medina

Marrakech - part II

Elisabeth & Teije
2006-07-19 18:51:23

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on a pile and sometimes they throw it on their cart to bring it to an unknown destination. We try to convince ourselves that this smell is one of the important characteristics of this town.

After straying for quite some time we arrive at a larger square. We seem to be near the Sidi Ben Youssef mosque and the Medersa, an Islamitic school, founded in the 16th century where one could study theology and Islamic law. The mosque is the centre around which the Medina is build and dates back to the 12th century.

The museum of Marrakech is established in a palace. Besides the splendid mosaic decorations on the floors, walls and ceilings one can also admire a lot of contemporary paintings. And, what is best, it is a cool place.

We walk back to Jemaa el Fna through other parts of the souks. We also cross some more northern parts where poverty clearly rules. We feel almost ashamed to walk here, as the rich tourists we are. Back at the Jemaa el Fna we are pretty exhausted and sweaty from this walk that took hours. It is time to look for a restaurant where we can sit on the roof!

From the terrace we have a beautiful view on the square and we can't get tired of watching all those people crawling like ants and enjoying the ambience. Snake charmers' music fills the air, sometimes joined by the muzzlemen that chant their prayers from the mosques.

At sunset we take a cab back to the hotel and Elisabeth still doesn't like it very much. Distance between vehicles is not measured in meters but in centimeters. I just turn a knob in my head and put my fate in the hands of Allah. Normally, when I sit next to a driver I also keep a watch on the traffic, but here there is no point in doing that, unless you are willing to risk a heart attack. So, I must say the drivers here are good.
There are not many heavy accidents in the cities, mainly with some damage to the bodywork. Accidents on the roads through the mountains are a completely different story, especially at night. The death toll there is 10 times the amount compared to accidents in Europe.
Fortunately, we arrive sound and safe at the hotel and after a cold shower we sit for hours in pubs near a roundabout, watching the traffic roaring before us. It is a chaos but everything goes allright, well, just.
For the first day here we have walked and seen quite a lot. We had wanted too have an easy day but we are already totally absorbed by the Arabian culture. We feel very satisfied when we go off to bed.