Running the Gauntlet, Marrakesh

Having rented a room in a "riad" in the thick of the Marrakesh medina, we thought it wise to spend the money on a taxi to help us find our way there. A woman from the riad met us where the taxi dropped us off, which was good because we were immediately swamped by men trying to sell us things. She led us down streets, through archways, around corners, and around again. We NEVER would have found it on our own!

We settled in, and Michael got acquainted with the map:

No such thing as parallel and perpendicular.

Hungry, and having not seen much from the taxi ride, we set out to find some dinner at the famous Djemma el Fna, a central square chock full of food stalls, tea and orange juice vendors, street performers, fortune tellers, snake charmers and beggars. The square is illuminated by bright yellow lights from stalls, blanketed with smoke and smells, and throbbing with the noise of drums and cymbals.

Djemaa el Fna

It is difficult to convey what the medina and souks are really like when you're in them.  The term medina generally refers to the old Arab part of town, usually walled in with several main gates.  It consists of few main arterial streets, lots of narrow winding paths that mopeds still find room to maneuver through, and plenty of dead ends (but only after you've followed them for a good many turns and are really good and turned around).  Our riad was deep in the heart of the Medina and there was no escaping the pandemonium.

In Marrakech it's crowded, it's dirty and smelly, the vehicle exhaust burns your eyes and throat, horn honking mopeds constantly threaten run into you, and it's great!  Everywhere you look are brightly colored fabrics and rugs, shiny jewelery and tea pots, caftans and gelabas, replica soccer jerseys and souvenir t-shirts, leather handbags and shoes, designer jeans and sunglasses, a creperie here and a tangine stall there, herbs and incense, ceramics and glassware, wood products and woven baskets.     These are the souks, stall after stall of wares for sale.  Each stall has at least one man shouting out to the tourists that pass by, "Bon Jour, hello, oui, how are you, where are you from, yes, come in, just for looking, babouche, espices, francais, english, do you like?"  One man asked Donica what she was looking for.  When she replied, "Nothing," he said, "I have nothing, what color?"  Brilliant.  And exhausting.

Michael hasn't had a haircut in 127 days, 6 hours, and 14 minutes.  Approximately.  He was looking a little scraggly around the edges.  One of the few street vendors in Marrakech that don't harangue you into their shop "just to look" are les coiffeurs.  It seemed an easy enough endeavor.  The well dressed gentleman pictured below was sitting on a chair smoking a cigarette outside of a barbershop.  When Michael stopped to look he asked, "Souhaitez-vous une coupe de cheveux?"  The price was right, and he invited us into the shop.

The before shot.

He put the drape on Michael, tucked a towel into his collar, combed his hair, placed the instruments on the counter, checked the hair clippers, went outside, came back in and got another hair clipper and tested it, served us some tea, went outside again, at which point Michael said, "I don't think he's a barber." 

This is going to be the worst haircut ever.

It turns out that fellow wasn't a barber (I knew it!), he's just friends with the barber.  The real barber finally returned from his afternoon prayers and, slightly amused at finding an American customer awaiting him, gave Michael a perfectly acceptable hair cut.  All the while Mr. Well-Dressed tried to sell us on various tourist excursions.

This is what, "S'il vous plait, coupe un peu tous les cheveux" looks like .

As much as we enjoy a meal at a good restaurant, to really get to know a city you have to try its street food. The guidebooks all said that Morocco's street food is a better deal for the money. Some of the vendors we tried were crap. However, we did find a few that merited going back to, again and again.

Best in Show: Spicy Cinnamon Tea in the Djemaa el F'na square, 5 Dh (approx. $0.625) It's a little strange the way the vendors are set up there - one whole row of sit-down type open air restaurants, one whole row of orange juice stalls, one whole row of fruit and nut carts, and one whole row of cinnamon tea stands. And they are all identical to one another. It is all down to the "touts" who go to great lengths to convince the tourists to choose their particular stall. And it works. Out of sheer annoyance, or exhaustion, or humor, or whatever, the tourist is finally worn down and stops at one. The whole square is truly a celebration of the salesman and quick wit.

The two gentlemen who run this tea stand made no effort to get our business. Which is precisely why they did get it! And, even when they did try to talk to us, a charming lack of teeth prevented us from understanding a single word, English, French or Arabic. The tea spoke for itself. Cinnamon, cloves, ginger, ginseng, cardamom, and lots of sugar. Absolutely delicious.

By our third visit to the Toothless Tea Stand we were getting free refills. Yum!

Apparently it is also an aphrodisiac. We drank lots of tea. :)

The mint tea is very good, too. True to its reputation, it is served absolutely everywhere. Even in tiny textile stalls.

First Place Food: Fried Stuff in a Piece of Bread, 10 Dh (approx. $1.25). This guys takes your order for either sausage or chicken. Then he fries it up with some onion, rice, and olives, cracks an egg on top, sprinkles some red-colored cheese on, and douses the whole thing in chili sauce. Then he stuffs the whole shebang inside a round piece of bread. It's DELICIOUS! Apparently Stuff-in-a-Piece-of-Bread-making takes some skill, because when we tried it at other vendors it was not nearly as good.

Look at that pile of Stuff!

Stuff on the go.

Rooftop meal of Stuff.

Stuff close up with dessert in background.