Souks galore

After a yummy breakfast of French toast and banana pancakes we took a few tips from Michelle on navigating the souks and set off. Our first stop was the spice souk to see the huge cones of brightly coloured spices. We than carried on towards towards the main square Jemaa el-Fnaa. Its funny how quickly you get use to avoiding the motorbikes and carts as they weave past you at speed. All of the shopkeepers work hard to entice you to buy by asking questions or trying to lead you to their shop. Marrakech is like nowhere Ive ever been before and the sights and sounds are an assault on the senses. The smells of petrol, leather, spices and dust all mixed together combined with the colours of the stalls and the busy lanes. I don't think you can avoid getting disoriented in the souks for the first visit and you soon realise this is half the charm to wander about with no real idea where you are. The shopkeepers will always help to point you in the right direction so it no problem.

We visited the Museum of Marrakechand Ben Youssef Madrasa which both had amazing displays of architecture, artefacts and rich history of Marrakech. It was then back out into the souks and we just managed to avoid the tanning area as the smell was so bad! We had lunch overlooking the main square and it was lovely to just sit and watch the city go about its busy life. There were monkey handlers, snake charmers, henna ladies and loads of colourful stalls.

Back at the Riad for our afternoon mint tea and pastries before getting ready for dinner. We took a recommendation from Grant and booked in at Le Tanjia. We had a lamb and a chicken tagine which were both amazing. Dinner was followed by a brilliant belly dancing display.


Marrakech, Morocco