Morocco Wrap-Up

Here are my stats and likes/dislikes for Morocco.  All dollar amount conversions are approximates.

Total Spent: $661.70
Cheapest Day: $18.55 in Meknes
Most Expensive Day: $91.86 in Essaouira (where everything is most expenisve)
Cheapest Hotel: $9.66 in Meknes
Most Expensive Hotel: $48.28 in Essaouira (a traditional riad)
Cheapest Meal: $3.45 in Rabat (Cheese Panini and Fries including tip)
Most Expensive Meal: $27.59 in Fez (Almond Chicken Tagine and lots of other stuff – a feast!)
Small Water: $.41 (as a comparison the same size water is $1.57 in Rome)
Big Water: $.69

Faves
City: Marrakesh and Essaouira (I can’t choose one.)
Hotel: Dar Afram, Essaouira (The food, the music, the super friendly owners…)
Meal: Dar Afram, Essaouira (By far the best meal – Beef Tangine with carmelized onions, prunes and almonds – mmmm)

Dislikes
City: Rabat (not much to do, intimidating cafes/restaurants)
Hotel: Hotel Regina (dark, cold room with a hard, hard bed)
Meal: Chicken Couscous in Marrakesh (didn’t care for it)

Overall the people were extremely friendly but I would have had a better time if I spoke more French and met more travelers.  The last two days in Essaouira were fantastic because of the other travelers I met and the town was much more relaxed than anywhere else.  I have come to realize that traveling is not just about the sights and the culture but also about the meeting other travelers from around the world.

The Magic of Marrakesh

Close your eyes and visualize your typical county fair.  There are animals, performances, artists, and most importantly food, right?  Now, replace the animals with snake charmers, think of the performers as storytellers, dancers, and drum beaters, the artists are pushy henna ladies (stay away from the henna ladies!), and forget about corndogs and popcorn instead think of snail soup, sheep’s head stew, and the easy on the stomach chicken kabobs and fries.  Now, add thousands of people, mostly local, and you have Djemaa el-Fna also known as “La Place”.  This spectacle of food, performance, and artistry happens every night in Marrakesh.

Marrakesh is the tourist darling of Morocco and an easy weekend trip for many Europeans.  I was taken aback by the sheer number of tourists as opposed to the other cities.  Some of the tourists were dressed in a very provacative manner is terms of Muslim culture – string tank tops, tube top dresses, etc.

I didn’t stray far from “La Place” because it was so enchanting.  Everything about it and the surrounding souqs were touristy but I didn’t care.  It was a welcome change from the French language and being intimidated to go into restaurants to eat.  Waiters stood outside and coaxed people into their restaurants.  I had the most delicious chicken schwarma sandwich.

But, the real treat is to eat at the various stalls in “La Place” when the sun goes down.  The stalls go up around 5pm and are taken down every night.  Here you can get kabobs and fries for around $5.  The waiter explained to me that one portion is 5 pieces and as I was looking at the skerwers it looked about 5 pieces per.  Imagine my surprise when 5 kabobs came my way!  Thank goodness I didn’t order two portions.  And the best part – all white meat!

Now, I’m in the laid back Essaouira (essa-we-rah).  I found a cool, funky place to sleep and it looks like I’ll get to meet other travelers later tonight.  Maybe I should have started here!

Oh, if you know how to pronounce “Djemaa el-Fna” you get bonus points.

Recent Goings and Detour

After, Meknes I traveled to Fez – the center of handicrafts in Morrocco.  It’s medina, the old city, dates back to the 8th century and unlike the other medinas I visited this one feels like it is lived in as oppossed to just shops.  Water is fetched the same way it has for centuries – from one of the many fountains.  I hired a guide from the hotel for a whopping 20 dollars for a tour through the old medina, otherwise I would probably still be lost somewhere inside.  I’d probably cry!

I was pleasantly surprised that my guide was not only a female but spoke excellent English.  She took me every which way and she showed me all the handicrafts made in the medina.  Of course, they all had shops attached, but for the most part it was ok if I didn’t want to buy.  I did splurge and picked up a handmade, hot pink Camel skin bag next to the smelly tanneries.  I did a lot in one day which is not surprisingly the first day in Morocco I didn’t take a mid-afternoon nap.  Nap!  Heck yeah, it’s part of the culture!

Today, I took the train to Marrakesh… seven hours long!  I even forced myself up early so that I would arrive at a decent time.  Marrakesh is the tourist epicenter of Morocco or so I’ve read.  There’s a hugh open space where when the sun sets a bunch of food stands pop up and the story tellers, snake charmers and such emerge.  If you were to tell a citizen of Fez that you are going to Marrakesh they would ask why and tell you that there’s only a square.  A bit of a rivalary!

On to the detour… I am leaving Morocco a week early and going to Rome before heading off to meet Meaghann in Athens.  I bought a new ticket to Rome for the 22nd.  My orignal flights included a layover in Rome anyways and I’m still hoping to catch the second part of the orginal plans which would be the Rome to Athens flight.  But, I need to cancel the Casablanca to Rome flight on the 29th so that the airline does not cancel my entire original intinerary because of a no show in Casablanca on the 29th.  Whew!  Does that make sense?

I politely asked my mom to call for me from the US (Thanks Mom).  The Expedia rep said that I am confirmed on the Rome-Athens flight and that just because I miss the first flight it does not cancel the rest of the itinerary.  I’m inclined not to trust the Expedia rep, so hopefully I will work this out at the Casablanca airport or when I arrive in Rome.  I only booked five nights in a hostel just in case I have to take the overnight ferry to Greece – much cheaper than a last minute air ticket (I know I’ve checked).

Ok, so to the reasons for leaving.  Firstly, the people of Morocco have been nothing but genuine and nice even saying “Welcome to Morocco” as I walk by.  But, in all honestly, it has been very lonely.  I thought it would be easy to meet other travelers (as the Morocco Lonely Planet says) and I have done everything I can think of to meet other people including hanging out in common areas and eating at Lonely Planet recommended places.  The other tourists are either part of a tour group or are traveling as a couple.  On top of that, the official langauges are French and Arabic.  Therefore, Morocco has a lot of French-speaking tourists.  My two years of high-school French over a decade ago doesn’t help so much.  So, imagine being with only your thoughts and your thoughts alone and not being able to communicate for the better part of the week.  It starts to get to you.

And just when I’m getting used to these keyboards! (If I were to type like I would in the US the last line would look like this: Qnd just zhen Iùù, getting used to these keyboqrds1)

One last humorous antedote.  On two occasions the following coversation took place with a Moroccan woman and also at Soumia’s house:

“Are you married?”
“No”
“Have you not thought to get married?”

No, I forgot.

Genuine Moroccan Hospitality

I am finishing this post because I was cutoff last time.  Sorry for the repost.

Morocco has had it’s ups and downs already.

The passport inspector at Casablana airport asked me if I was coming to Morocco to get married.  So much fun already!

I arrived in Morocco yesterday.  Independent traveling is not a vacation in case you are wondering.  To get from Madrid to Rabat it took 2 metro lines, a flight, 2 different trains with a taxi between the stations.  Outside the train station in Rabat I was not even bothered with.  I finally flagged down a taxi and he would not take me to the hotel because he said I do not need a taxi that I can walk.  So different than India or Thailand in that respect.

Eating is a challenge here.  Not so much the actual food but by not being intimidated to go in.  Rabat is not on the tourist trail and it is very lonely here because there are not a lot tourists.  All in all, Rabat is ok.

I took the train this morning to Meknes.  On the train I met a student named Soumia she invited me to her house.  I took the offer because she seemed very genuine and she is female.  I arrived at her family’s house to warm open arms.  With my limited French and Soumia’s limited English, I had a great time.  Imagine nine people around a 4 foot table eating from a communal plate.  They kept saying Stacy eat, eat!!  The table was a complete mess.  A truly Moroccan experience that I would not have had if I was traveling with a group or with someone else.  I even tried new things and everyone knows how picky I am.  But, I can safely say that I don’t like beets, or olives, or those little pickle looking things.  After lunch, there was fruit, mint tea and a well deserved nap.  The Moroccan way!!

After the nap, Soumia and her brother took me to find a hotel.  Soumia’s brother even had his policeman friend in on the search.  They stumbled onto a hotel recommended in the Lonely Planet.  So, it is good enough for me but let’s just say I’m thankful for the toilet paper Dave gave for Christmas.  But, what can you expect for about 7 dollars a night.  When, I left the hotel to find a ATM the hotel owner gave me a piece of his dessert (something like an elephant ear).  Meknes is much better than Rabat and I haven’t even been here for one night.

You’ll have to forgive me if there are any typos or punctuation problems- this French-Arabic keyboard is very different.  There’s so much more I can write but I’m afraid it might take me all night!

By the way, welcome Whidbey-News Times readers!