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Published: November 8th 2011
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Here we are - so close to CasaBlanca, that I can feel it! (remember that movie?)
We landed in Marrakech on Sunday - and it's been a whirlwind ever since. This is a magical city and should be on your list of travel places, for certain. It is a very beautiful city and we have had a really good time here.
The grounds of the hotel are so very zen-like; the air is fresh - the temperature is perfect (mid-20's), the streets are clean, the people are lovely - and the food - ah yes, the food........check out the photos.
On our first evening, we had dinner in the dining room of the hotel and it was just perfect. Early to bed, after a day of travel..........
The next day, we started out bright and early for our city tour. Loved every minute of that - our guide was most informative and humorous at the same time. That always makes for a fun tour. We visited the monuments - Palais bahia, Menara, Koutoubia and the Majorelle garden - all of which are so very beautiful. The topography is breath-taking; the buildings are consistently low and of sandstone.
The photos will speak for themselves as you tour virtually with us.
One of the things that caught most of us off guard was the road-side BBQs (very primitive) - because of the holiday yesterday, everyone was out BBQing the heads and feet of the sheep - they do that to remove the hair. There are a few photos to show you - not something we would ever see at home, I don't believe. Certainly interesting to be in different parts of the world to learn about different cultures. People were most accommodating with my photo habits!
We visited a gorgeous part of the city - the Palms (I believe it was called) - where the more wealthy people lived. Camels can be seen, often, at different street corners - we passed their golf course (beautiful!) - our bus had a 'pit stop' at a gas station, where Brenda came out with the most decadent chocolate ice cream bar for me. I love Brenda!!! It was a beautiful sunny day and everyone enjoyed the escape from the humidity of Sao Tome and Dakar.
We were back at the hotel for lunch - the food is so flavorful
and tasty here. And, of course, the chocolate croissants have captured my heart.
After lunch, we were taken by horse-drawn carriages from the hotel to the Medina, in the old historic district. We started from the main square (Djemaa El-Fna) and took part in a treasure hunt within the souks (bazaar) - this was our version of "The Amazing Race - Travel Guild Style!" - that is a separate blog coming your way soon.
It was a full day - after a few hours of 'down time', we headed out to dinner at the Kasbah Tassarout restaurant with a gala show. We had a dinner that was out of this world yummy! We were aptly entertained with dancers, singers, a belly dancer (THAT photo you MUST see.........) - and a horse show at the end (which I missed because it was a very long day and I was tired - so many of us left on one of the earlier buses - that's where Robert's photos are a great back-up because he stayed! See........we do everything we can to 'bring it all to you'!)
And that was the end of Day 2 - today was phenomenal -
one of our absolute favorites of the whole trip. Stay tuned for that blog!!! We went up into the Atlas Mountains in 4 x 4 Explorers - a great blog and photos coming your way.
So much to share - so little time, LOL. This is a team effort right now to get all this out to you - Robert and Brenda are sitting here with me, drinking red wine, as I write this content - I love having company while I do this.
So here you go! Enjoy........much more coming.
(Good night, Mom. Love you so much and can hardly wait to see you - 3 more sleeps!)
Happy Pat
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3 more sleeps. #ADORABLE
Do Mcdonalds use the same ingrediaents world wide? Hows your mother doing. Did you get all of my intel from last night. I will be out tonight but try to get home for nancy or hope getting the boot. I am 110% consumed with Penn State and the scandal rocking the University. My husband and daughter are like shell-shocked. Travel safe. will look at pic's later. xo