The Souk - aahh, The Souk

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Day 3 - and we had planned to go to the souk for just a couple of hours, HA HA HA.
So, we started off a bit later than planned, since we were just dead from the previous day. Two of our party wanted to buy leather jackets, so our first stop was a leather goods factory about 1 minute walk from our Riad. As I've said before, there was 6 of us, and we ordered 11 items of clothing - mostly jackets and skirts !!! Now, it was Friday 11:00 when we finally left the factory, they don't work on Sundays, and on Monday at 12:00, they were all ready, even after last minute adjustments. The prices were more than reasonable (590 Euro for 2 jackets and a suede skirt), we got exactly what we wanted, and I have been getting compliments on my blueish-purple jacket every time I wear it.

After that, into the Souk, which was 1 more minute away. Well ... what can I say ... we stayed walking around the souk and spending money (isn't that what vacations are for ?) till 16:30 !!! The colours, the people, the smells - we were absolutely hooked.
I don't know why people say you can get lost in the souk of Marrakech, we had no problem finding our way around. The only reason we left was that it was Friday afternoon, and for observant Jews that means the beginning of the Sabbath.

So, run back to the Riad (such an amazing place, in such an amazing position - you can read my review on TripAdvisor - Riad Dar Silsila), shower, change clothes, and off to the old Synagogue in the Mella (old Jewish quarter of Marrakech). The synagogue is very beautiful, and I suggest a visit even if you are not Jewish. After services, we walked to the home of a wonderful woman called Mrs. Peretz, who does Kosher catering for tourists in Marrakech. We had a great meal, and really needed the walk back to the Riad to get rid of all those extra calories. We walked back via the Jemma El Fna - the main "square" of Marrakech, which has a UNESCO rating to keep it preserved. In the evening it becomes one huge kitchen with hundreds of food stalls in the center, and many restaurants around the sides. We stopped to watch a boxing match, with a crowd of other spectators, when all of a sudden my 2 women friends and I started to feel strange hands on us !!!
One of the guys thought his wife was imagining it, but he really wasn't. I think they were just looking for money or cameras, but with us they had no luck - observant jews are not allowed to carry money or cameras on the Sabbath !! I must say that this was the only instance of unpleasantness during the whole trip.

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