Morocco

Mid February I traveled to Morocco with Ry.  He had some business to do in Casablanca, but we also traveled further south to Marrakesh.  It was a blurr of a week; I have faint recollections of snake charmers, lovely riads, eating exotic Moroccan cuisine, getting lost in the souks,  visiting beautiful mosques...and mostly enjoying Ry's company (we see him so little this time of year).

 

 

 

The tile in Casablanca's Hussein II Mosque was gorgeous

Ry did some snake charming of his own in Marrakesh (it was Valentines Day after all:))

We tried to learn some Arabic

We drove around the city of Marrakesh in a horse-drawn carriage

Mohammed was our charming carriage driver

Who succored us into stopping at several tourist traps around the city

I succumbed in the apothecary where I was happy to let them talk me into a bottle of Argan oil,

As well as some Moroccan Curry

Ry and I had good fun getting lost in the souks, the labrinth of shopping streets that branches off from the main plaza.  You can find anything from Moroccan leather (see slippers above)

to spices

to reclaimed tile.

We enjoyed watching shop owners working with leather, making bags, clothing, belts...even instruments.

I  enjoyed checking out the textiles as well (me, pictured in makeshift dressing room...the shop owner stepped out while I tried on harem pants...which I always hope will look cute on me...but don't). 

You can also have some singular services done in the souks, like a good ol' fashion blade shave

or getting a henna tattoo.

My tattoo artists were a couple of lovely ladies...

Marrakesh' main plaza, Jemaa el-Fnaa, really comes alive at night as the locals and tourists pour in to taste a bit of the night life.

We ate some really yummy Moroccan food one night,  from a restaurant that overlooked the plaza.  We watched the storytellers, musicians, snake and monkey charmers work their magic down below, transforming the plaza into something other-wordly than it had been during the daytime hours.

At this time of the year the storks are migrating back north...we saw them all over the city walls

And at this time of the year, cactus fruit is in season...Ry discovered that he liked it...

As well as pigeon (tastes like chicken...just not as filling)

We visited the tanneries in Marrakesh; very interesting...and very stinky.  They offered us a "gas mask" as we walked through; a handful of fresh mint!

Local transport

Old meets new

My new friends that sold me a beautiful map of Morocco (Ry and I try to find interesting maps of the places we visit)

The only pic we managed to take of the two of us the whole week...in the airplane, heading home.  Thanks for the great week, Ry...to think, I almost stayed home because I was too worrkied about leaving the little chickens (er, pigeons?)!  Pshhh!