  Marrakesh
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 1902 Marrakesh Tips.4132 Marrakesh Photos.2 Marrakesh Videos. Marrakesh Pages by mafi_moya
| Page Views: 4,027 Last Visit to Marrakesh: February, 2004 | All aboard the Marrakech Express! by mafi_moya - last update: Jul 15, 2004 |
| Al Koutoubia Mosque, the city's tallest building |
Marrakech! The name alone fills my brain with images of the exotic and the mysterious. A stronghold of the ancient Islamic empires; an Arabian Nights concoction of late night bazaars and hectic souks; or a drug-hazed rock'n'roll stop on the sixties hippy trail - it's one of the great cities of Africa.
I know it’s a bit of a clichéd description but Marrakech really is a tale of two cities. On the one hand there’s the Ville Nouvelle, the new city with its wide tree-lined avenues, spotlessly clean streets, cosmopolitan urbanites and fashionable restaurants and ice cream parlours. Just a few blocks away it feels like you step back hundreds of years, deep into mediaeval times and the dark, labyrinthine alleyways of the Medina – the sound of blacksmiths and tanneries, the smell of carcasses hanging on hooks above the gutter, and narrow, uneven roads where horse and carts have right of way over cars. |
| The Red City - narrow Medina alleyways |
It’s naturally to the Medina, with its exotic chaos, that most tourists are drawn, before retreating to the hotels of the more refined Ville Nouvelle. It’s one of the few traditional Islamic Medina remaining and despite all those tourists it's an eye-opening experience. Djemaa el-Fna, the Place of the Dead, is an incredible sight – as night falls, food stalls set up and the huge square is filled with smoke and smells, storytellers, jugglers, snake handlers and thousands of people.
Like most Moroccan cities Marrakech has it’s own colour scheme – in this case everything is painted red. Shades of houses range from pastel pink to fierce deep crimson and it makes an incredible sight just before sunset. |
| Traders on the food stalls of Djemaa el Fna |
I loved the Medina’s vibrant attack on the senses, but I also enjoyed the Ville Nouvelle’s laid-back cosmopolitan charm, even if I did feel a bit out of place in the more fashionable parts! But the thing I loved most about Marrakech was the amazing old Islamic North African architecture – the mosques, the religious schools, the museums, art galleries and old palaces. Somehow these buildings link the two cities and the centuries between them – combining the history and tradition of the Medina with the space and prestige of the Ville Nouvelle. When I'm old and rich this is how I'm going to build my dream house! |
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| Pros: | "Amazing architecture and history" | | Cons: | "The people - money, money, money!" |
mafi_moya's Marrakesh Travel Tips
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 Comments for mafi_moya about Marrakesh | | | | |
MM212 Fri Oct 6, 2006 13:54 UTC
Fantastic tips and amazing photos. Very useful for my upcoming trip to Marrakech. Thanks for sharing. | sunlovey Tue Mar 28, 2006 17:49 UTC
Just read your Marrakesh intro... great description, now to devour all of your tips! You make me extremely excited about my upcoming trip... :-) Thanks for sharing. | Escadora7 Sun Dec 11, 2005 03:15 UTC
Really nice tips and pictures. Marrakesh will definitely go onto our list of places to see! Best wishes, Ash & Eve | Tijavi Mon Mar 7, 2005 02:59 UTC
Your tales and pictures are so alive - felt being transported there myself. Thanks! |
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