Marrakech with Mother - Day One

The Journey...

After a very very early start and some fun on the motorway (Mum dozed, I slept and Dad took the wrong junction) we arrived at Gatwick ready for our flight. Our gate number wasn't due until 5.25am so we headed to Starbucks for breakfast.

Having filled up on a muffin and a large tea I was ready to fly. We popped to Boots to buy a meal for the plane and then it was time to make our way to Gate 559. Luckily it wasn't too far to walk and we were soon waiting in the departure lounge. We were both surprised by the abundance of small children on the flight. Queuing to board, we amused ourselves by people watching.

Our seats were 22E and 22F, with me in the window seat. There was a small palava finding a space for the cases overhead. Mum's fitted a few rows in front but, being terribly British, I let ladies behind me take the other spaces. Unfortunately this meant my leg room was now slightly diminished, but I squished in regardless.

I think we both slept for the majority of the flight, waking only to eat and stare at clouds for a while.  I managed to crink my neck quite badly from doing my best impression of a nodding dog. No surprises there.

On landing at 9.40, we were gutted to note that it had been raining and was still a bit grey. On first glance though the city looked incredible, stretching out as far as we could see.

The queue for passport control was long and we spent nearly as long waiting for currency. Annoyingly, the man we decided to queue in front of closed to count his money. Naturally, we muttered under our breath and moved to another queue.. only for him to open again moments later and a man to take our place. I wouldn't have minded half as much if it hadn't have been the same man that had stood on my foot earlier, knocked my case over and was chewing gum with his mouth open.

With the money debacle finally sorted we moved through to arrivals to meet our transfer. I spotted him first and made a beeline through the crowds. He shook my hand and introduced himself as Mohammed. Piling into his car we then made our way through the New Town to the Old Town where we would be staying.

Mohammed was very good, pointing out historical sights and answering our questions all while navigating the busy roads. Parking up, he carried our bags down a few alleyways until we finally arrived at our home for the next 3 nights, Riad la Porte Rouge.

The Riad...

We were welcomed in and sat in a beautifully decorated lounge area and given paperwork to fill in. We were then provided with our first mint tea - it was divine! One of the lovely people from the Riad then gave us a tour.

Our room is on the bottom floor and is adorable. There were rose petals arranged on both of our beds and also on the toilet seat! It has beautiful lamps and I've already fallen in love with the reds and oranges used throughout.

The sun came out just as we were shown the roof terrace and boy was it hot. Perfect. There is a masseuse on site and a free jacuzzi too. We made the most of this once our tour was over and our bags were unloaded.

Our walking tour wasn't booked until 2.30pm so after a good half hour in the jacuzzi, we dried off and suncreamed up. Time for a spot of sunbathing. The sun was glorious and I have to admit it did make me sleepy. We moved to the shade as we're both a bit warm, despite our massive sombreros.

We moved again to the shaded area and relaxed on the comfy cushions. It was nearly time to meet Mohammed so we went back to the room to get organised and get changed.

The Tour...

Just before half past we gave in our key and went to wait outside for our guide, both in dresses (!) and excited to explore. Bang on 2.30pm a man arrived on the back of a scooter and introduced himself as Mohammed. His first question "are you good walkers" gives a clue as to how the tour progressed...

Over the four hours we were on our tour we visited so many sites, and were given lots of hints and tips for when out on our own.
In a rough order, and from what I can remember, we saw:
- Jewish Quarter (originally inhabited by
- Secret garden (hidden in a Riad behind a boring door)
- Medrasa Ben Youssef (gorgeous gorgeous gorgeous)
- Public Bakery (where local women take their dough to be baked every day)
- Oldest fountain (basically a tap)
- Fruit and Veg market (where we met a man who knew "tomato" and "onion" in English)
- Blacksmiths (including the "oldest blacksmith in the world" at 91)
- Souks (with crazy traffic of scooters, people and carts)
- Tanners (dyeing their leather bright colours and hand-stitching slippers)
- Tapestry house (I tied a knot on a loom, we were given mint tea and I purchased a beautifully unique rug)
- Spice market (where we were knocked off our feet with eucalyptus)
- Jeema El Fna Square (the tour ended with us enjoying a fresh mint tea with panoramic views across the madness from Cafe de France)

My favourite part was visiting the Medrasa Ben Youssef. It has to be the most beautiful school anywhere. The details on the walls and ceilings are out of this world. I loved the colours of the mosaics, all made with natural dyes and put together centuries ago. The ceilings are all made of cedar wood, used as a natural air con/heating system, and are intricately decorated.

The Final Leg...

After Mohammed left us we finished our drinks and decided to get a taxi back go the Riad. This was another adventure. We made our way through the square, meandering around snake charmers, monkeys, acrobats and fortune tellers. We found the taxi rank at the top opposite a mosque and began to bargain.

We finally convinced a driver to take us back for 30dhr, and it was a white knuckle ride the whole way. There are no markings on the road and everyone seems to make it up. I honestly thought we were going to kill a few pedestrians/cyclists but we made it to the Riad with no blood on our hands.

Dinner had been booked for 19.45 and we made it back in time to quickly freshen up before sitting in front of the pool. We enjoyed three divine courses. First was vegetable briouattes, very similar to samosas, with salad. We then devoured a chicken tajine with lemons and potatoes, the meat seemed to just fall from the bone and it taster delicious. For the last course we then had crepes with honey. It was all so well cooked and it made a change to be able to personally thank the cook.

Before bed we just had time to write in our diaries and decided to do so on the roof. Unfortunately it then started to spit so we called it a night. Absolutely knackered, my bed was calling. There's another bush day ahead tomorrow....

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