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Published: October 1st 2006
Colorful Water Man
Colorful Water ManHello everyone, it has been way too long. But i have good news...i am in AFRICA!!! Morocco to be exact. And this time i brought a friend.....a girlfriend to be exact. Haley and I have been looking forward to this trip for ages and it is hard to believe that we are actually here. So now down to business. After multiple plane delays, missed connections, and about an hour of begging and pleading for someone to switch seats with us (we were not initally seated together) we arrived in Casablanca, Morocco! During the second leg of our trip we met a friendly Dutch (aren't they all friendly) guy named "Bob". Bob was renting a car and heading to Essouira and invited us to tag along...after a few minutes of "secret note passing" we decided to join him (free transportation is always fun)( we had planned on visiting Essouira anyways). We had a pretty uninteresting drive from Casablanca to Marrakech (you had to go through Marrakech to get to Essouira...kinda) save the crazy drivers and (our favorite) Morocco's version of a drive through (see pic). Men on the side of the road would hold up chickens for the passer bys to purchase.
Chicken
Morocco's version of a drive through We also got pulled over the the local police looking for a little bakshesh (brib). Luckily BOB was able to smooth things over.
We ended up hoping out of the car in Marrakech because it would have been too late to get a hotel by the time we would have arrived in Essouira. We found a nice hostel (after much looking around). When you are a backpacker you definitely get hassled by the local touts...when you are a backpacker that actually has a big backpack on...you are a huge blinking target...by the time we got to our hostel i think that haley was about to ring one of these kids necks. What is also kind of funny is how the locals act when you dont take there advice. they will be soo nice at first...and then as you say NO and walk away they will try to curse (in english) but somehow mess it up...which always makes me laugh. So that night we just poked around a little had some dinner and then called it an early night (we where awake for almost 40 hours).
This morning we woke up early (of course) and attacked the markets (just
night scene
night scene looking, not buying, well at least that was the inital plan...until haley saw all the jewerly, and shoes, and wraps). We visited a palace (see some pics), got lost in a really shady part of town, and basically just explored the local area. To my suprise Ramadan has not really effected us that much...but then again the area that we are in is over run by tourists...so they really cater to them / us.
Side note > at the palace haley spotted a lady that had a cast on her hand...a cast that forced her middle finger to stick straight up...it was really funny in a middle school kinda way....what was even more entertaining was me watch haley try to sneak a pic of here when she wasn't looking.
Side note > Marrakech is very dirty...it just kind of feels like there is dirty floating through the air....don't get me wrong it is really beautiful. but the first thing you want to do when you get home is shower...and you can see all the brown water that comes off in the shower. Also, the architecture (specifically the mosaic tile work) the the builds (and palace) have been really
Haley
Haley in our hostels alley way impressive. I am really looking forward to visiting some more places (and hopefully the worlds 3rd largest mosque).
We evenually broke our fast at 1pm (which is pretty good for us...maybe we will do better later) and ate couscous and meat (see pic) we have basically had the same meal every night....i think it will get old really fast..but it sure is tasty now.
The area in which we are staying has a huge central area where all the venders set up. Selling fresh juices, fruit, vegetables, meat, nuts, misc souveniers, and even snails (we tried them...see pic). They monkeys (kinda sad) acrobats, artists, fortune tellers, and even a squirral on a leash (really sad). We where definitely attracted to the snake charmers...we had a chance to hold a big old viper (which scared the shit out of haley) and then i was convinced to hold about 15 smaller snakes (haley proceeded to run away . see pic)
The central area seems to be the heart beat of Marrakech. It is packed with people and venders of all sorts. It is really fun to grab a seat at a nearby cafe and watch all the action. And
spice stand 2
Spice stand the market once the fast breaks (at around 6.30) it really livens up)
It is also interesting to note the lack of discression that a lot of the tourists here seem to have. One of the first things that haley and i read about was that we need to dress conservatively while in Morocco (or any mulsim country) especially women. Haley has dress very appropriately ....but we have seen way more skin on some of these tourists then i would have imagined...granted we are not fasting...but at least we are covering our boobs.
We met another small group of backpackers from australia and desided to take a trek to the desert together. We are leaving tomorrow morning and will spend the first night in the high atlas moutains and the second in the sand dunes (after a camel trek). We are really excited about this trip and our new friends (who all seem to be really cool/interesting). It is fun to chat with other people who are well travelled. we spend dinner talking about who has swam in the nile or the ganges or what is the most interesting town in thailand, etc. So my next update should be a
SNAKES
Snake Charmers...kinda good one. Haley and I are both really looking forward to the next three days. Until then....
bessalama (good bye)
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Lisa
non-member comment
Wow
Wow, Im so glad you two seem to be having such an amazing time. Those photos are awesome! Cant wait to hear all about it when I get home. Be safe and have a great time! Love you! Lisa