Luggage Tag...: Marrakesh

Showing posts with label Marrakesh. Show all posts

Thursday, November 7, 2024

Exploring Marrakesh, Morocco

Trip date: September 2023

On our first morning in Marrakesh we had booked a private walking tour of the medina with a local guide. This had worked out really well in all of the cities we had travelled through so we were excited. Jamal started by taking us by one of the local hammams; just like mosques, most neighborhoods have a hammam, or public bath. He explained that there were seperate hours for men and women, and that it was a very social place for everyone. Kinda like a coffee shop!

Then we arrived at the Madrasa Ben Youssef. The interior of the courtyard of this 14th century Islamic school is possibly one of the most beautiful things I've ever seen! The tile work is absolutely mesmerizing!

And just like the one we visited in Fes, the upstairs students' rooms were not fancy at all.

From here Jamal took us through one of the many souk's in the medina. We didn't really have time to shop as this was just a morning tour, so we tried hard to remember where we were so that we could return another day. Didn't happen! The souks are just too confusing!!

We stopped into one of the rug co-ops to see how the rugs are made. These shops are said to represent Berber women of different tribes around the country and sell their rugs to help them earn a living. Jamal assured us that we didn't have to buy anything, that this was just so that we had a better understanding of the craft. We were seated, and offered tea or water, and then a couple of men started unrolling rugs and showing us different Berber patterns and styles.

It felt very salesy though. We let them show us everything, Gail was originally considering a rug anyway, and there were a couple I thought were nice but I hadn't planned on buying anything. We politely took the little scraps of paper that the manager wrote prices on for the few we inquired about and then we were back out into the busy streets of the medina.

We walked through Jemaa el-Fnaa, Marrakesh's huge square. Jamal told us that at night this place is teeming with people and filled with hundreds of food and juice stands. This is also where you will find street musicians, performers, and the awful monkey handlers and snake charmers. Jamal warned that if you take a photo of them, they will come and demand money from you. And they are generally not polite about it.

During the day there are just a few vendors and a couple of animal abusers under the shade of umbrellas. At the far corner of the square sits the Koutoubia Mosque, the largest mosque in the city. The mosque was closed due to damage from the earthquake, but as we aren't Muslim we wouldn't have been able to go in even if it was open. It's a striking symbol of the city and when the ladies and I walked past it that evening I thought it was even more beautiful!

We walked back thru the Jemaa el-Fnaa and Jamal led us to a spice shop/pharmacy where we again were given a little presentation this time on herbal remedies. Even though we all left with something, I would have preferred to be seeing more of what we had on our list, like the Jewish Quarter or Mellah.

We did walk thru some of the Hayel Mella, mainly just the market, but it would have been more interesting to see the synagogues.

Our last stop was to one of the local bakeries. As in the other cities, the neighbors take their dough to the baker in their unique linen so they can identify it once cooked. This baker was also doing some open faced sandwiches for a local cafe.

We ended our tour just a short ways from Jemaa el-Fnaa square. Jamal showed us around a couple of the food stands and then was nice enough to walk us to Nomad where we wanted to have lunch. We discussed this tour while having our lovely meal on the terrace overlooking the medina. We also discussed the rug that I liked. I ran some numbers and went back to the shop after and negotiated hard. It took a while but I did end up buying a beautiful Berber rug!

I think we all felt that this was not the best tour & guide that we hired. Wasn't terrible but compared to our guide in Fez it was just really meh. Add to that the obvious kickback/commission spots that we were taken to (he even messaged me asking how much I paid for my rug!) it seemed he was more focused on earning vs. guiding. For those reasons I will not be recommending him here. But I still would recommend a walking tour of the medina.

It was quite hot when we were in the city so it was always really refreshing to come home in the afternoon, poor some cold wine, and have a little plunge in the cool pool.

One of our favorite days in Marrakesh was spent at the incredible Majorelle Gardens. Originally designed in 1920 by French artist Jacques Majorelle, it was almost destroyed in the early 80's by a hotel developer, but Pierre Bergé and Yves Saint Laurent purchased it and restored it after years of neglect.

The garden is a haven with so many hues of green from all the plants, and accents painted bright yellow and of course the patented Majorelle Blue. It's stunning! There are trees, cactus, fountains, ponds, etc. The garden crews work non-stop picking up any fallen leaf or petal! It's absolutely pristine!

And as gorgeous as the gardens are, the onsite Berber Museum was absolutely incredible! No pictures are allowed. I also loved the gift shop where I bought some tea that I haven't found to be available anywhere else! I'd say this is a definite do-not-miss.

Next door is the YSL Museum, a wonderful collection of the designer's sketches, designs, and a film of his fashion shows. Unfortunately there are no photos allowed here either, you'll just have to go and see for yourself! We had bought our combo tickets online in advance as they sell out frequently.

Wandering the area after, we found a super cute homewares shop called Chabi Chic!

Our last full day in Marrakesh was a dedicated shopping day! Caitlin had read about a small shop selling handwoven scarves, bags, etc called Fiber Trip. It took us a while to locate but it was worth the hunt and the owner was super nice helping us pick out styles.

When we passed The Secret Garden we decided to stop in; we had expected it to be on our tour on our first day but it wasn't. This is another amazing and beautiful garden!

An oasis in the middle of the city!

Back to shopping! We stopped into Corinne Bensimon, a lovely design shop, and I splurged on some gorgeous table linens and had then shipped back home. Caitlin and I stopped in the shoe souk and tried on pretty much everything before buying leather sandals and slippers. Gail found some really fun straw lamps & we were all amazed at how the shop owner was able to fold them into really small packages! We also found a really nice little jewelry store and I bought some pretty earrings. By the time we were done, we had spent every bit of Moroccan dirham we had!

And that worked out just perfectly because the next morning we were up and out early. Our Airbnb had arranged the guy with the wheelbarrow to load up our luggage and take it to the private taxi they had scheduled to be waiting for us.

Traveling around Morocco had been a dream of mine for a long time, and this girls' trip was an absolutely fantastic realization of that!

All Marrakesh photos here.

Tuesday, November 5, 2024

Marrakesh Eats and Drinks

Trip date: September 2023

After a very long car ride from the Sahara Desert, our driver Madhi drove us through the streets of Marrakesh, even stopping the car outside of a shop and having them sell us a bag of ice, to the Riad Laarous area. We were met by the house-girl Mouna who also had an older gentleman with her. Madhi and the man loaded all of our luggage into the man's wheelbarrow, we said our goodbyes, and then Mouna led the way down a few alleys to our townhome.

We had rented a private riad thru Airbnb which had lots of space on its 3 floors, a great rooftop, and a small plunge pool. We immediately made a round of gin & tonics and took in our first sunset in Marrakesh!

Every morning, for a daily 150MAD ($15 USD), the house-girl would arrive and make us breakfast. There was coffee, juice, eggs, bread, bread, and more bread! And no matter how many times we said we didn't need five different types of bread, we still got it! Languages can be hard!

That first evening, being so exhausted, we only cared about 2 things for dinner: that they served alcohol and it was nearby. We had a short walk to Cafe Arabe and were able to sit up on their rooftop terrace with cocktails and Italian food. The terrace was great, the drinks were good, the food was fair.

We did much better the next day, having lunch at Nomad which was recommended by a friend of mine. We started with some delicious zucchini fritters served with a goat yogurt sauce and I had a refreshing cucumber, lemon, and mint juice (the restaurant is dry).

My main of Moroccan quinoa with grilled veggies and feta was excellent. And the views and sounds of the medina below us were perfect!

Another day we had lunch at Cafe Clock, which had been recommended to us in Fez. One of the things they are known for is their camel burger. When in Morocco...

It was good; the meat is quite lean and doesn't have a real distinct flavor. The cheese and the fries were very disappointing to this American however!

Lunch on the rooftop at Kabana was probably our favorite. The terrace was beautiful, we were able to order a bottle of rosé, and our crispy feta & mint "cigares" as well as my falafel were delish! I was told they have great cocktails as well but we stuck to wine that afternoon.

One evening we had dinner at the lovely Hotel les Jardins de la Koutoubia. They have a wonderful list of Moroccan wines and my chicken & preserved lemon tagine was excellent. However as we got the bill our waiter actually reminded us to tip him!!! We were shocked.

Our best dinner was at Al Fassia, this is pretty famous and since we went on Friday I ordered the Royal Couscous. It came with veggies, chicken & lamb brochettes, onions & raisins, along with some delicious jus. It was entirely too much for me to eat!

I will say that even though service was excellent we all felt a bit rushed. Still happy to recommend this exclusively female, family-run establishment though!

On our last night we hadn't made any reservations and didn't really have a set plan so we ended up at La Pergola, which had been recommended by another friend and had a very nice rooftop. I was happy to get to try tangia, which is beef cooked in red wine in a clay pot, and it was fine. But for the most part the restaurant caters to tourists and serves things like burgers and tapas. I think there are more interesting restaurants to find in the city.

If you are looking for a spot to watch the sunset and Jemaa el-Fnaa square come to life, go to Le Marrakchi. Their terrace faces right out onto the square which is a fascinating thing to watch while sipping on a cocktail or a glass of wine. This is an unbeatable view! And when you leave, and you walk through the crowded and crazy market, that will be a pretty cool experience too!

One night we went to Barometre after dinner. Part bar, part lab, part art installation; it was fun and quirky. This is a great spot if you are with a group also as they have quite a bit of space. I think they serve full dinner too.

And of course Marrakesh has some very posh hotels in which to drink at. Royal Mansour has a couple of bars on their incredibly beautiful property. We had cocktails one evening the Main Bar. We walked into the small room with its silver ceiling, rose gold leaves on the walls, and vintage Art Deco chairs and were immediately charmed.

They have a nice list of signature cocktails using syrups with fresh local ingredients and made in house, like fig and date, and of course they can make you your favorite classic. We had a couple of rounds, it was lovely!

Without a doubt, my favorite bar we visited was the Churchill Bar at the Mamounia. Another completely opulent hotel, but this one with a small jewel of a cocktail bar, meant to remind you of a luxury railroad car.

There's a lovely menu of cocktails, both exclusives & classics, as well as a selection of champagne cocktails. You can even order caviar with your drink! And of course they have Sir Winston Churchill's favorite champagne, Pol Roger, by the bottle. The gentleman would be quite pleased with it all, as were we!