2/11:Marrakech Express

Morocco: 2/2-2/5

Talk about culture shock.

Bienvenue a Casablanca, Morocco. Take 5 steps off the boat and let the haggling begin. Hop a train to Marrakech and 3 hours later we arrive in a city where cars, buses and trucks share the same lanes as mopeds, rickshaws and donkeys. The 6 of us (JacMac, Lisa, Nick, Chandler, Brian and myself) spend the next half an hour being led around by a group of small boys in the Doukala area searching of a place to stay (since spontaneous travel has become the theme of our little group). From the looks of the streets we think we’ll be lucky to find a place with any sort of bathroom at all. Down a tiny alley and the images of our possible lodgings become even sketchier. A knock at a large brown door and we find ourselves in what can only be described as the perfect Moroccan “Riad”. After being greeted with some of the most wonderful sweet mint tea I’ve ever tasted we explore our surroundings. A large atrium opens up around rooms draped in Moroccan décor with full working sinks, showers and toilets. For Less than $25 a night we couldn’t be happier. We settle in quickly.

After washing our faces (with our mouths closed of course) and freshening up, we hit the streets. After walking less than one block we hear the sound of children singing coming form a nearby school. With 7 years of French under my belt I’m feeling bold. We walk up the narrow stairwell of a run down building and find a welcoming little woman who ushers us in to sit with the children. We can’t take our eyes off of them. Tiny voices rise to sing the obedient Arabic verses of the Koran along with the sounds of French children’s songs. We laugh and sing and take pictures with the children. Less than half an hour in the city and we’ve made a connection.

Hungry from our travels, we leave in search of some sort of sustenance, each of us secretly worried about everything we touch, but trying not to let on about it. Distracted once again, we enter a natural herbal pharmacy and are greeted by 2 of the most enthusiastic pharmacists you could image. And the speak English! We are directed to all sit against the wall and then given a scented tour of Moroccan culture. Spices, oils and lotions. Cures for every ailment. The entire place smells of things we’ve never experienced. We’re total suckers for the performance and everyone buys a little something, but no one minds. We had so much fun with them that they lead us to a nearby restaurant where we are promised good food and good service.

The restaurant delivers. 2 ½ hours and 3 courses later, our bill totals to less than $7 each. You certainly get more bang for your buck in Morocco. After being directed to a nearby Hukkah (Shisha) bar we spend the night smoking and drinking tea in the company of the locals. The perfect way to end our first day in Marrakech.

How can we top the experiences of day 1? We plan a trip to the Medina, but as usual we are side tracked along the way. Walking into an Artisan shop, we had few expectations but to be bartered with and ripped off. We could not have been more wrong. Abdul and Yussef, the store owners, welcome us into their home in the back of the store for more of the mint tea. They dress us in traditional Saharan Berber outfits and spend the afternoon talking with us. After giving us all Moroccan names (Fatima, Aisha, Hadija, Hassan, Rashid and Mohammed) they direct us on our way to the medina, and invite us into the medina and invite us to come back for diner to learn how to cook a Moroccan meal. We gladly accept the opportunity to have a local cooking class!

After stopping to take a few pictures of Koutubia, Marrakech’s largest and most famous mosque, the medina (Jemaa el Fna) opens up before us. Snake charmers on the left and belly dancers on the right. It’s a scene right from Disney’s Aladin. We haggle our way through street vendors and into the heart of the Medina. 4 hours later we emerge bedecked in jewelry with pirated DVD’s in hand (which we find out once we’re back on the ship are dubbed over in French…at least they were cheap!).

We return to Abdul and Yussef’s place and spend the evening chopping vegetables and learning to cook traditional “Tarjine”. We talk about politics, war, religion and anything else we can think of. We end the night exhausted and speechless at our Moroccan adventure. A country we feared to enter ended up being the most welcoming place we could have hoped for. We are even offered a place to stay if we ever choose to return. We leave a note on Abdul’s door in the morning before we leave and he bikes around the streets until he finds us to say one final goodbye.

Back on the train heading for Casablanca. Now comes the entertainment. Chandler and I, bored with the scenery, go in search of our other SAS friends we met in Marrakech in another train car. We leave everything behind with our friends 4 cars back. We sit with the others playing cards and exchanging stories, passing the time. We hear an announcement for the Casablanca stop but we are instructed that this is the first of two stops, and we want the next one. We decide this makes it a good time to head back to our seats. For some reason, we can’t find them. 10 panicked minutes later, we realize we are on a train in Morocco with no passports, ID, money or cell phones. This could be a problem. During the rainy half an hour walk (we couldn’t take a taxi since we had no money) back to the ship, all we can do is laugh about the circumstances and hope our friends grabbed all of our belongings when they got off at the wrong stop without us. After somehow convincing Border Patrol to let us past the gate with no identification, we get on the ship and wait for the rest of the group. Seeing my friends and my bags has never been so exciting. Plus we made it through the entire trip without anyone getting Shista, Crypto, bed bugs or Scabies!

What a trip.

Sea you later!