Marrakesh - the land of snake charmers, henna artists and touts

"Welcome to Morocco my friend. It's your first time? You from Australia? Aussie, aussie, aussie, oy, oy, oy..."

Feeling pretty lucky with our luggage in tow again, we hopped on the short, 3 hour flight from Gatwick Airport to Marrakesh.

After a rather bumpy landing, we were picked up by a transport arranged by our riad (a type of Moroccan guest house) and were led through the windy lanes of the medina to where we were staying for the next couple of nights.

Entering the old city through one of many gates.

Riad Massin is a lovely, traditional Moroccan home that has now been converted into a hotel for tourists. The manager prepared traditional mint tea and sat down to formally welcome us to Morocco. He also walked us through some of the good things to do in Marrakesh as well as what to avoid (mainly touts and shopowners trying to sell us stuff for 500% the normal price because we're foreigners, i.e. gullible). Apparently, the lesson in bargaining comes later.

Some of my favorite things about our riad (and Morocco) are the beautiful decorations.

The fountain in the courtyard

The ceiling design and light fixture in our room

The lovely artwork in our room

Our street in a very calm part of the medina.

We were already surprised by how expensive Morocco was. A room for $55USD per night? We were paying about $15 per night for a nice room with our own bathroom in Bolivia. This place is going to blow the budget! But we found out soon after arrival that riads are the B&Bs of Morocco, so they are more expensive than hotels. It's great, but I don't think the budget allows or us to stay here for too long...

Well, no better time like the present to walk right into the fire.... we headed in to Djemaa El-Fna (pronounced jemaa lefnaa) - the main square where it seems everyone in Marrakesh congregates of an evening. It's the easy one to find, you just walk toward the tallest minaret in town or listen for the "call to prayer" - sung 5 times per day (starting at lovely 4am) - and you'll find the main square.

During the day, it is populated by tourists and locals alike, women vying to be the one to coat the women's hands with henna, men eager to be your guide through the souk, and my personal favorite, the snake charmers.

Djemaa El-Fna

Enjoying a glass of fresh squeezed jus d'orange from one of the zillions of stands selling it for 3 dirham (less than 50 cents). I knew that I liked this place for a reason.

And after some juice, it's time to buy some cashews from the next stands down. (Not quite as cheap as the OJ though.)

The snake charmers are interesting. I'm thinking that it's more tradition and for tourists, but the snakes aren't in any basket or anything - they are just hanging out, that is until the charmer starts poking at it so that it will flare it's neck out for pictures (that is, of course, allowed for a small fee).

The guys that made me nervous were the touts working for the snake charmers. They were eager to get you to pay for photos which usually meant they would run right over to you with snakes in their hands and put them on you so that they could charge you for the "experience". The first time I saw the guy coming for me with the snake i nearly wet myself!! "If you want me to pay for a picture, running toward me and waving a snake is DEFINITELY NOT the way to do it!!" You're freaking me out! I'm outta here.

But at night, this place lights up!! They set up food stalls (broken down and set up again every single day) for the cheapest dinners in town. Everyone eats at the food stalls... the difference is which one you choose. The tourists usually end up at ones selling couscous, tagines and kebabs while the locals are eating at the stalls with snail soup and roasted sheep's heads. Hmm, tasty!

The hazy, smoke-filled magic of the food stalls.

Kyle probably trying to work out what he's about to eat. (not that it would stop him)


The fresh food waiting to be prepared

One of the touts trying to lure you to their stall. The guys are utterly amazing. They all speak a little of every language imaginable so that they can speak to you and try to earn their commission. "Oh, you're from Australia? Aussie, aussie, aussie, oy, oy, oy! G'day Mate! etc., etc." (Every single day, we heard that every single day....)

The rest of the place is lit up like a Christmas tree as well. The souks are filled with people, the juice and dried fruit stands are trying their best and there are random groups of locals (especially men) huddled around in big circles. I still have no idea really what they were watching, because when we tried to get close, I felt at least 5 hands subtly rub against my butt. You losers! Hands off or you might lose them!

Looking into the souks, and spotting my favorite store... the lamp store! ;). It absolutely killed me not be able to go browse and buy a couple lamps, but after my last experience trying to import untreated goat skin into Australia, I think I'd better pass. (Especially if I want to keep Rhyan as a friend. In fact, it's probably why he moved from UPS before we left for our trip... I swear I won't try to bring back anything too suss...)

Watching a few of the ladies trying to lure anyone they could for some henna art and some guys doing what they do best here... just sitting around and talking.

We waited until daylight before braving the next challenge... the medina itself.

Kyle weaving through the maze of the medina.

The entire medina is like a rabbit warren, but incredibly interesting to explore (and get completely lost in!). I don't know how we possibly found our way out.

One of my favorites - the lamp shop. Of course, I could only admire it from afar as I would've been hassled to death if I even looked at any one item for more than a second...

Some of the most colorful scenes in the market - - the spices!

One of my favorite parts of the day was talking with a guy running a spice shop.

It was really interesting to hear about all the spices and products and what they are used for. One of our best market experiences! Granted we did buy from him, but he never hassled us.

Demonstrating how soft my skin feels after a clay and rose water mask. Very nice.

Another minaret that we spotted deep in the medina. Always easy to find!


One of the more relaxed squares near the Jewish section. A nice place to have some mint tea and people watch.

Having made it back out alive, we decided to treat ourselves to a nice lunch at a proper restaurant. (Not something we'll be doing often here.)

Enjoying a nice lunch. (Although it would have been even better with a glass of wine. Not found often here.)

The handcarved wall decor in the restaurant.

One of the reasons that I've always loved all things Moroccan (except perhaps the people, but I digress) is in the details... And doorways are my favorite!

They even have Jacaranda trees here. So surprised to see them in bloom!

Since we knew that we would be in and out of Marrakesh a few times, we didn't waste any time getting out of town. We'll see more of the sights later. But first, we were hopping on the next bus to Ouarzazate to starting our desert adventure!

A pottery stall that we saw on the road while we were on our way to Ouarzazate.