General: Morocco

Morocco
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The North African country of Morocco is one country my partner and I have always wished to visit and we were lucky enough to fulfil this earlier on in the year. We decided to head to Marrakech and explore this mythical city and the surrounding area for a fortnight.

Marrakech
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...city is a wonderful city; vibrant and alive with the hustle and bustle of people buying and selling, haggling and calling out to potential customers. We stayed in the old part of the city, within the Djemma el Fna, or the old square. This is where you want to be to experience the real Morocco away from the high rise buildings of the modern city. The square is a huge and fascinating place, dominated by the Koutoubia Minaret, the tallest building in ... more

Morocco
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The North African country of Morocco is one country my partner and I have always wished to visit and we were lucky enough to fulfil this earlier on in the year. We decided to head to Marrakech and explore this mythical city and the surrounding area for a fortnight.

Marrakech
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Marrake ch, which aptly means the 'red city is a wonderful city; vibrant and alive with the hustle and bustle of people buying and selling, haggling and calling out to potential customers. We stayed in the old part of the city, within the Djemma el Fna, or the old square. This is where you want to be to experience the real Morocco away from the high rise buildings of the modern city. The square is a huge and fascinating place, dominated by the Koutoubia Minaret, the tallest building in Marrakech (see picture below). However, as this is a mosque, entry is forbidden to all non-Muslims. Henna tattooists, snake charmers, unofficial touts, men with monkeys will all compete for your attention in the Djemma (and of course for you money). But it is at night when the place really comes alive. Dozens of food vendors set up shop at around 4pm and they remain there until around midnight. This is a place for locals and tourists alike, to sit and eat local food and soak up the atmosphere. There are also countless bars and restaurants around the perimeter and the terraces are a great place to watch the action without the hassle. It is simply wonderful and the square is definitely the highlight of Marrakech.

To the North of the Djemma you will find a maze of souks. These are the traditional shopping alleys, jam-packed full of awe inspiring and colourful local merchandise, which tend to cluster according to product. The souks cover a large area and you'll easily spend hours exploring them. I recommend taking the time to wander slightly off the beaten track to see the area's where these items are made. They are separate districts according to the type of product e.g. an iron district, a pottery district and a poultry district.

There are a number of ancient palaces, museums and gardens in Marrakech with which to pass a few hours. I particularly recommend the garden Marjorelle (see picture below) which are a short taxi ride or horse and cart trip from the square. These stunning modern gardens, awash with colour, are a wonderful way to spend an afternoon, especially given the attached art gallery. The El Badi Palace is the best of the palaces on offer. It is the largest of the palces and in a state of ruin but worth a trip in my opinion just to see the birds. Huge herons have built nests around the edges of the palace and the adjioning old city walls. The birds are unbelievably close and incredibly elegent.

There are also a number of great places to take day trips to out of the city. Our favourite was our trip to the cascades d'Ouzoud (see picture). At 65km north east of Marrakech this is a good 3-31/2 hour drive as the roads (and the drivers) aren't going to win any prizes. The falls are the largest in Morocco and really are worth the trip. The scenery is amazing; olive trees, open restaurants, swimming in the pools; and there are some great walks to be had in the area.

Essaouira.
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A three hour drive West of Marrakech takes you to the harbour town of Essaouira. This is little blue and white harbour town (see picture) is lovely with a much calmer atmosphere in comparison to Marrakech. We spent three days here sampling the local seafood, watching the fishermen bring the day's catch in and cycling along the beach. As well as just chilling out of course. Essaouira is a really great place to spend a few days, worth the time out, especially if the weather is good. There is ample opportunity for surfing and water/beach sports here as well, but not off-peak and early in the year, as it was when we were there.

The Atlas Mountains and the Sahara.
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East of Marrakech lie the amazing Atlas Mountains and it is well worth a trip up into, or preferably over the mountains if you have the time. We took a three day tour with a company called Sahara Expeditions (there are many other operators). We set off on a minibus with eight others at 7am. We took a risk as we weren't sure if we would be able to pass. There was snow on the higher levels of the mountains which was utterly stunning but in melted a little in time. The scenery and the views in general were unbelievable. We stopped often but Todra gorge was a particular highlight of this trip (see picture). This huge natural gorge cuts through the valley with a clear stream running through the bottom. It's well known for rock climbers and despite being off-peak we got to watch a couple scaling the heights. The second night of the trip we arrived at the Sahara, the greatest of the great deserts. We took a memorable albeit uncomfortable camel ride over the sand dunes for around an hour to a Berber camp. The Berber people are the indigenous Moroccans. We stayed in the traditional open tents (see picture) and spend the evening eating with our hosts, playing drums and watching the sun set. This was a great trip but there was definitely too much driving and if you want to do this I recommend doing it independently or finding a longer tour.

Accommodation and Getting Around.
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We flew to Marrakech from Manchester with Thompson. The flight is three and a half hours long and there is no time difference (this may vary according to day light saving). Our flights were cheap. We flew out at 7am on a Monday morning (after a nasty night in the airport) and paid 50p for our flight. We flew back on a Sunday lunchtime and paid around £35. All in all including tax and insurance we paid about £75 each for our flights. You can grab a bus or a taxi from the airport no problem but please be aware that you CANNOT change travellers cheques at the airport and as you can't take currency into the country either you will need to use a cash machine.

Getting around once there is also no problem and it's cheap. Taxi's are either grande or petite. The petite taxi's are everywhere and they stand out because of their beige colour. They are the cheapest and most common but you'll need to haggle. Trains run between all the major cities but won't run outside the cities so you'll need a catch a bus. There are local or Supratours buses which are for the tourists and the well off Moroccan people. All are fantastic value.

Accommodation is varied but where possible I'd recommend staying in a traditional riad which are abundant. A riad is typically a three storey building based around a central courtyard with a roof garden at the top. There range from small, just a few rooms run by a family to those that have been adapted to cater for many. Of course there are many posh hotels, particularly in Marrakech, but these are in the modern part of the city away from all the best bits. In the summer there is also camping available throughout the country.

Money.
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The Moroccan currently is the dirham and at the time of writing approximately dh16 was equal to £1. This is an excellent exchange rate for us in the West. Here are a few examples of how cheap things are. A glass of freshly squeezed orange juice on the Djemma in Marrakesh will set you back just dh3, wonderful French pastries go for around the same price and a coffee will usually set you back dh10. For basic budget meals (couscous, omelettes) you can expect to pay anything from dh30, dh70 will get you a great meal. Budget accommodation is about dh200 for a room and mid-range between dh300-400. Overall we spent around £800 for two of us, that's for the entire two weeks and we stayed in mid-range accommodation eating in a variety of local and modern restaurants and we bought a fair amount back with us too.

Eating, Drinking and Shopping.
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The food in Morocco was wonderful. Traditional staples are couscous and tajines (pictured below) primarily served with chicken or lamb. I wouldn't recommend the beef. There is a prominent French influence in the whole if Northern Africa; baguette bread, pastries, fries, omelettes and wonderful coffee are everywhere. What's more it is very cheap. Western food is also easy to come by, at least in the cities anyway. There are pizzeria's galore in Marrakech. Vegetarians also won't have a hard time despite what the guide book might tell you.

Be aware that Morocco is a dry country; alcohol is forbidden to Muslims. That doesn't mean it isn't available but you can't just have a glass of wine or a beer with your meal. Many of the large hotels in Marrakech will have a bar, accessible to all, but you can expect to pay a similar price to that in the UK.

The merchandise available in Morocco is wonderful and it is extremely cheap in comparison to Western prices. Cast iron lamps, jewellery, carpets (really rugs), fantastic ceramics, spices and textiles make up the majority of the goods on offer. You are usually expected to haggle for what you buy, as is applicable for taxi rides and many other amenities.

Culture and Language
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The culture in Morocco is extremely different. Expect to be hassled, expect to have people follow you around and insist that you come to look at their carpet. Watch out for the unofficial touts in the big square in Marrakech. If you look even slightly lost they will stop you and offer you directions for which they will require a fee. Women in particular will receive hassle. Muslim women wear the veil and do not go anywhere unaccompanied. Moroccan men thus view Western women with fascination. Women should make reasonable attempts to cover their shoulders and ankles to help to minimise attention and to avoid causing genuine offence. My partner was unwell on one day of our trip (an unfortunate shellfish incident in Essaouira) and so I ventured out alone. The attention I received as a lone white blonde female increased ten-fold. It was unbelievable. Young men followed me around, stopped to ask me questions about myself and generally made a fuss. This isn't exactly threatening but it is certainly annoying and believe you me it is constant. Single or groups of women need to be aware of this.

The language is also something to be aware of. English is spoken to some extent but you'll want to brush up on your French which is something we weren't previously aware of. Some of the places to visit only have displays in French and out guide to the Sahara didn't speak much English which was a shame.

Weather
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We spent the last week of January and the first week of February in Morocco. It was generally warm, T-shirt and sandals weather and it was pretty hot if you were directly in the sun. But as the sun sets the temperature drops fast and at this time of year a coat is definitely required. In the mountains it was freezing at night. In mid-summer however, the temperature in Marrakech can exceed 40 and as your shoulders and ankles should be covered you should consider whether this would actually be enjoyable.

Summary
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We loved Morocco, particularly Marrakech which is an amazing city which incidentally is near enough to make a long weekend of. It is cheap place to go and a truly fascinating experience. As there are lots of really interesting and beautiful places near by it is also definitely worth making central Morocco a longer trip. I would dearly love to return and see some of the North of the country: Fes and the tanneries there, more of the coast line and the Rif mountains. Maybe next time huh!
 

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