Snake Charmers and Sex Tips

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Though Casablanca didn´t meet the expectations that the film leaves, Marrakech could be a Hollywood set, almost too cliched to really perceive as real. It fit every stereotype that I had ever formed about Morocco, and is a paradise for the classic tourist. I was pleasantly surprised, however, that much of what it offers is every bit as much for the locals as for the visitors.

The central square, Djeema al Fna, is distinguishes the city from others. It is on the edge of the labryinthine and expansive souq, and is busy by day but really booms as the sun goes down. At night, the entire square fills up with stalls and tables that function as temporary restaurants. They are tightly packed and the smells and smoke that rise from the grills take over the square. The waiters mill through the narrow passages between the stalls grabbing you by the arm and trying to convince you to eat at their restaurant.

The rest of the square is filled with herbal healers, palm readers, dancers, snake charmers, henna artists, musicians and story tellers. Many of them are geared toward the tourists, but I only saw Moroccans sit down to the palm readers and virutally all of the story tellers were speaking Arabic. I walked up to one circle of people gathered around a man speaking in very animated manner, and asked someone at the edge of the circle what the story teller was recounting. He responded with a big grin that the man speaking was giving sex secrets to the men that were listening, who would tip him later according to how useful they deemed his advice. Other storytellers seemed to be telling adventure and war stories, as they were pointing to maps as they spoke and miming out action and battle scenes.

We stopped and talked to one of the "medicine men" who had all of his herbs set up on a cloth in the center of the square. He explained some of the natural remedies and spells that he could provide... like killing a lizard and burying the skin to keep a partner from cheating, using dried crushed ladybugs as a base for lipstick and combining dried flowers in an amulet to ward off bad spirits. I decided to buy one of the amulets filled with a cocktail of plants herbs. I asked the guy, slightly mockingly, if he could create one that would make me lucky in love and prevent me from having any more car wrecks. He smiled a little coyly and said that it was an unusual request, but that he could manage. I didn´t meet a single Moroccan who wouldn´t oblige any ridiculous tourist request as long as there was money involved!

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Photos

Medicine Man
The lizard on his shoulder will probably have already met his fate.

Herbalist
An herbalist in the souq that explained all of the natural medicines and cosmetics that he sold.

Jardin Majorelle
A view in Jardin Majorelle, a private garden and Islamic art collection maintained by Yves Saint Laurent.

Snake Charmer
They encourage you to take a picture and then ask you for about ten dollars, saying that they risked their life for your entertainment.

Djeema al Fna
The square fills with temporary restaurants at night.