Morocco

February 3 – 5, 2009 Morocco

Al-salaam aleikum!
Morocco has been experiencing a rainy winter. We arrived at Casablanca in the early morning and waded through puddles at the port to leave on our trip at 8 am for Marrakech. Les and I were in a large group, about 80 on two buses. At the same time, Matthew, Wendy, and Barrett left (a day later than planned) for Marrakech and the coastal towns near Essaouira. We all had a grand time and learned from our amazing guides’ expertise on their country.
Our guide was Hamadi. He wore the traditional Berber dress, a dgelaba. These are long robes with zippers and peaked hoods. Dgelaba are worn by both men and women for going outside, and they look effective in the windy rainy weather. Hamadi was very kind to explain his country and customs, and to tell us about his family. He speaks at least six languages. He remembers going to the square as a boy to sit and learn about the Qu’ran. This was his madrasa experience. They used bamboo pens and sheep horn charcoal for ink. Now Hamadi’s three daughters are becoming well educated, two already in the university.
Marrakech is one of the Imperial Cities of Morocco located on the Haouz plain at the foot of the Atlas Mountains. We could not see the mountains due to clouds. The old part, the Medina proper, is walled in reddish clay, and it is known as the red city. Outside the walls are the more modern areas. Inside are the traditional shops, the souk (covered market), the Kasbah (palaces), and in early times the Mellah or Jewish quarter.
The country going to Marrakech is very beautiful, open with green wheat fields, herders watching sheep and cattle, and small mud brick villages with whitewashed minarets in the middle. We stopped first for lunch. Salads were special, featuring separate bowls of lentils, peppers, tomatoes, carrots, cabbage, beets, eggplant, broccoli, cauliflower, and hot sauce. Bread and olives come with each meal, and rice and couscous are also served. Big bowls of oranges are dessert, followed by sweet mint tea. A woman danced with a tray of candles on her head.
Our next destination was the palm groves for camel riding and visiting a traditional house. We were entertained in the house with more olives, Moraccan crepes and mint tea. The tea was poured from a silver pitcher. Several men played traditional instruments.
Our camel ride went through the palm groves and a village with mud homes that had torpedo shaped outdoor ovens and satellite disks on the roofs. I was on Ali, the lead camel. I tried to take some pictures as we rocked along. If you turn your heads, you can see a little film clip. Les said he’s done that now! I liked it.
Our hotel Ryad Magadore Opera was very nice. We had a big bed and a bathtub!
The lobby was like an indoor plaza with a huge hanging chandelier that hung down four floors. We woke to the sound of a call to prayer from the mosque nearby, had petite dejeuner, and took off for sightseeing.
First stop was the Al Bahia Palace where we met the watermen pictured. We saw storks nesting on top of communication towers and minarets. Inside, every surface was ornamented with carved plaster, intricately cut cedar, or tile mosaic. Between rooms are gardens. Hamadi told us an old saying as he showed us the wives’ apartments where each new wife had fancier quarters: First favorite wife is second mother; second favorite wife is honored for her education; third favorite wife is a beautiful jewel; and fourth favorite wife is God’s gift. Hamadi says it is very rare for anyone in Morocco to have more than one wife today. This palace, built at the end of the 19th Century, also had a room for the harem.
We also visited the Saadian tombs from the 16th century. Moslems bury people on their right side facing toward Mecca. The body takes up a spread hand’s width of space. They are dressed in white. Rather than flowers, people put dried fruit and nuts on the graves.
The rest of the day was devoted to markets, the government Moroccan-made store and the souk. We all visited a spice shop where we learned about herbs and spices, lotions and oils. Afterwards Les was buying me a scarf, and we got separated from the group. The old man, Miki, who was hired to ‘watch our backs’ was there, and he began to go with us through the labyrinth of the souk. He came in front of me and said with a laugh, “Follow me to the kazba!” We rushed through the souk passing dozens of shops, trying to find our group. We never found them. At one point, I asked Miki, “Etes-vous perdu?” No, he said, he was looking for the group. Les and I were smiling as we wound through the maze. Finally I told Miki that we were to meet in the Place Jamaa Al Fna. Because of the rush through the souk, I didn’t get to take any pictures. Here are Les and my memories:
•men running all the shops wearing takias (beanies) or fezes
•beams of sunlight coming through into the mostly darkened paths
•motorcycles and bicycles whizzing by, often with two astride
•sound of hammering metal, welding rebar, shiny brass, and wood shavings falling at our feet
•rocks, amanitas, and blood red lantern lights
•cloth and rugs – wools, silks, brocades, Berber & Marrakech weavings
•clothing - shoes, scarves, shawls, embroidered shirts, and baboosh (pointy toed slippers)
•mud, 6’wide cobbled street, puddles, and boards underfoot
•mosaic mirrors, antiques, filigree
•polished cedar ornaments
•piles of hides and leather workers
•tourists from Europe mixed with Moroccans wearing dgelaba, scarves, fezes, leather coats, takias, western dress, and even burkas

It was an overwhelming mix of color, sound, life!

Back in the square, we saw cobras, monkeys, fortune-tellers, shellfish and sheeps’ heads with tongues hanging out. Donkey and horse carts wove in and out among pedestrians. We heard music and saw large groups of men gathered in big circles listening to storytellers or music. Carts held piles of oranges or displays of dried fruits and nuts. Kebabs were cooking, and tagine pots were simmering. Around the square, people sat in shops drinking café au lait or sweet mint tea. There was a sense of living theater in Place Jamaa Al Fna.

Captain Jeremy Kingston gave us a warning before pulling out of the Casablanca harbor into the Atlantic. The boat tipped steeply for about ten minutes. We were in Matthew & Wendy’s room. We had tried to put everything away, but Les flew across the room in the chair, the trash can tipped over and spilled, and Judy slipped off the bed! We had a hilarious time saying, “Whooa” every time it rocked. Some of the students sit on pillows and slide across the union floor, but several people are bruised or broken from the rough water. We are headed down the African coast and will be at sea for eight days.