Have you ever read 'The Alchemist'? If not, you really should. It is such a fast read and I always find I am re-inspired about life, personal goals, relationships with friends / family, etc afterwards. Anyways, in the book, the protagonist goes to Morocco to begin his personal journey and I wanted to replicate this part of the story. While I did not go to Tangier exactly as he did, I did spend four days in Marrakech. I also did not get robbed like he did, so that means +1 point for me.
Being in Marrakech feels like traveling back in time. When you arrive in the main square, you are instantly captivated by everything that is going on. Your senses kick into overdrive as you see, hear, smell, touch, and taste it all. Not only are their snake charmers playing music to hypnotize their cobras, but food stalls line the square making every odd item you could imagine. Gift shops are generously sprinkled throughout, and mopeds zip up and down and through the smallest of openings. I was a bit overwhelmed and had to just sit at the edge just to get my bearings.
I decided it would be best to find my hostel first so I could grab a shower, change, and find a map. (Unfortunately, the night before when I should have been preparing for the trip, I decided to go out for 'one and only one drink' with some co-workers. I have a theory that whenever you intend to only have one night, those nights generally end up getting out of hand, or at the very least become very fun. Maybe it is the lack of expectation that you place on the evening). With the previous night out, I forgot to print a map or directions to the hostel. I thought in my head, I've worked off very bad instructions before and always end up finding where I need to go so how bad could this be? Keeping in mind I had written down the address, I attempted to navigate based on Google Maps from my blackberry. Long story short, I cannot locate the hostel by name, street address, or any other modified search that Google Maps would accept. Further, my blackberry does not have GPS and only has the 'approximate location' tool which is rubbish when you need anything under 'you are within 2000m' distance of accuracy. For me, this is 100% of the time in any foreign town!
I'll spare you the details, but 2 hours later after fruitlessly asking shop owners and hotel doormen if they knew the hostel, I finally cave in and find an internet cafe to do a bit more power searching. No worries though, I think these are the things that make a vacation more memorable as long as you don't freak out. I eventually find the hostel and arrive still with a smile on my face (and a lot of sweat on my shirt)!
The other memorable event worth nothing about my stay in Morocco was a two day / one night trip out to the Sahara desert. Based on my horrible sense of geography, I thought the Sahara desert started close to Marrakech but I was horribly wrong. Not only did it take 10-12 hours of solid driving to get there, but we also had to pass over the Atlas Mountains through narrow winding roads! Upon arrival, we all took the obligatory camel ride. Side note - I've had this image of me riding on a camel with the desert in the background for a long time in my mind so as cheesy as it was, I now have a picture of it. Now, hopefully I don't burst your bubble when I tell you this, but riding on a camel is NOT that comfortable. For the first 10 minutes its fine, but then after one hour of sitting almost spread eagle style with camel hairs chafing your inner leg the whole way, you quickly realize you want to get off. And when you do get off, you realize there are sore muscles in your inner leg that you weren't aware existed one hour ago!
The camels escorted us into the desert where the Berber (local indigenous people) guides had set up camp for the night. We ate dinner in the tents and then participated in some local dancing. I think at one point in time, we formed a cha cha line though? Either way, it was all fueled on my massive quantities of Berber whiskey. For those who don't know, they don't drink alcohol so Berber whiskey = mint tea. Mint tea = 0% alcohol.
Before going to bed, I laid out on the sand dunes just to look up into the heavens. Instantly, that long car ride and the uncomfortable camel ride (and I didn't know at the time, but the travelers diarrhea I picked up as a result of bad food / water) was worth it! I have NEVER seen the stars like I did that night. It honestly looked better than a planetarium with countless stars beaming down on me. I wished I could've stayed up all night just gazing up at the sky. It was honestly gorgeous.
I can't believe two weeks before the trip, it crossed my mind that 'maybe I shouldn't take one more trip, and should just head back to New York straight away'. I'm glad I didn't listen to that voice because I would've missed out on so many good sights and sounds and experiences. As I was flying back from Morocco to London, it occurred to me how unlikely it is that I will just head back to Morocco anytime soon just because it is so far away. I patted myself on the back that I maximized my opportunities to see the world over the last three months of my work assignment in London.
Then, I darted to the bathroom as my stomach rumbled. The next few days weren't pretty...
Don't worry, I won't share these details!
1 comment:
thanks for the interesting information
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