Jemaa el Fnac 014Originally uploaded by Joyz Life.
Morocco, Part 2
Although an Arabic-speaking Muslim country, Morocco is not in the Middle East – it occupies the northeast corner of Africa, with both Mediterranean and Atlantic Oceans coastlines. Prosperous Moroccans rent or own homes on the coast where they go to escape the summer heat. The proximity to Europe makes the resorts popular with Europeans.
The marketplace we visited is called Jemaa el-Fnac and has been designated a World Heritage Site by UNESCO. We were there at the worst possible time of the day – in the heat of mid-day, when most of the locals had the good sense to be inside somewhere. So the marketplace itself was fairly empty – just a few intrepid snake charmers (that’s me with a live snake around my neck), Berbers in full native costume and fortune tellers looking to make some money off the tourists. It costs you to take pictures of them or have your picture taken with them, you see. The fellow who “charmed” us wanted 200 Dhurhims (about $20), but had to settle for 100. On top of that, Don was not happy about having a snake draped around his neck. In the cool of the evening, the Jemaa el-Fnac comes alive with entertainment and traders.
People dress in both traditional Moroccan clothing as well as Western. Some women wear Western clothing from head to foot. Others can be seen in many different interpretations of Muslim attire: simple headscarves worn with Western clothing, headscarves with Moroccan clothing and a few fully-veiled. Men were more likely to be in Western-style trousers, but others wore the hooded garments typical of Morroco or caftans.
Let me tell you – if you can drive in Morocco, you can drive any where. You must have nerves of steel to deal with the cars, trucks, motor scooters, buses and even the mule-drawn carts converging from every direction at intersections and in the traffic circles, all vying for a break in traffic. Lane markers and stop signs are just a suggestion, unless there are traffic police in evidence. We have seen a lot of aggressive driving styles in our travels – notably in Paris (where driving is referred to as the “National Sport”) and in Lisbon (where high speed tail-gating is the norm) – but Marrakech trumps them both.
There is both prosperity and poverty in Morocco. Domestic help is inexpensive and prosperous Moroccans will have a staff of several people. We saw signs of development everywhere in Marrakech, evidenced by huge construction cranes building or refurbishing hotels and new housing developments featuring beautiful mini-mansions as well as apartment buildings. We also saw mule- and horse-drawn carts carrying people and goods down the narrow streets of the medina (old town) and wide boulevards. There is always a man “in charge” of parking in any stretch of street or parking lot. He helps you find a space then collects a few cents from you when you leave. These caretakers make sure your car is safe while you are gone.
