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Morocco

March - April 2024
A 8-day adventure by Mary Kieran Gap Year Read more
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  • TravelerMorocco
    Day 1

    Day 76: Casablanca & Hassan II Mosque

    March 26 in Morocco ⋅ 🌬 61 °F

    We arrived in Morocco the previous evening and jumped on a train to downtown Casablanca. We sat across from a fellow Canadian traveler who was just in Dakar for 5 weeks and both admitted it was nice to speak fully fluent English after weeks of broken French.

    Our hotel was awesome and greeted guests with hot tea, even at 11:30 at night. We woke up refreshed and enjoyed a carb heavy breakfast with Mimi, the hotel cat who likes cuddles and pets.

    We were running late so we power walked 37 minutes to get to the Hassan II mosque which only offered tours until 11am. It’s the third largest mosque in the world and they built designs with references to Christianity, Judaism, Hinduism, and Buddhism because they wanted the mosque to be a place for everyone. It was an incredible building and the ocean waves crashing added to the ambiance.

    We walked through the Casablanca Medina and saw more market stands with fresh fish, fruit, and olives. Compared to Tunisia, Casablanca cafes and restaurants were just not open until 6pm. We took a nap and then strolled down to an amazing traditional Moroccan restaurant with a live singer and sintar.

    Finally, Mary really needed to see Dune 2 again in IMAX so we found a mall with showings. The theater was surreal experience where you could grab popcorn off the wall and head up to the seats via escalators.    Read more

  • TravelerMorocco
    Day 2

    Day 77: Gauthier & Train to Marrakech

    March 27 in Morocco ⋅ ☀️ 70 °F

    Last day in Casablanca we explored the Gauthier neighborhood, the indie heart of the city. We perused the Arab League Park and petted at least 3 chill AF cats. We also viewed the Sacred Heart Cathedral, a former Roman Catholic Church from 1930. We hit the stores for snacks and then hopped on a 3 hour train to Marrakech.

    The train car was similar to Harry Potter where you had individual rooms with a set number of people. They put 8 individuals to a room so it was a bit snug. We played Cribbage to pass the time. The train quickly transitioned from grassy landscapes to desert terrain. As you approach Marrakech, there are beautiful mountain with snow in the distance. It felt like Denver Colorado.

    We arrived at the Marrakech Medina and had to shuffle our way through the crowded markets to reach our hostel. It was hard to believe we were the the heart of the Medina, but it was so quiet. We grabbed dinner and enjoyed a beautiful sunset as the prayer belted out from mosques around the city.

    Hostel: Riad Layla Rouge

    Restaurant: Café Terrasse Bab Ftouh

    Food:
    Lamb Couscous
    Beef Tajine
    Harira Soup    Read more

  • TravelerMorocco
    Day 3

    Day 78: Medina and 3 Hour Power Walking

    March 28 in Morocco ⋅ ☀️ 73 °F

    Marrakech is a major tourist destination for Europeans and for the first time in Africa, we didn’t blatantly stand out in the crowd. The Moroccan shop owners would shout out Spanish, French, German, Italian, and English, trying to encourage the people to come to their stand.

    We enjoyed walking past the souk stalls which contained purses, shoes, decorations, tajine pots, and other Moroccan staples. Living out of a backpack, not owning a house, and having a strict budget made it easy for us to avoid buying all the pieces.

    The food was a bit harder. There were so many fruit stands, spices, sweets, meats, fish, vegetables, and olives. We spent the day walking through the souks and checking out the Gueliz neighborhood (party district). In total we probably walked 3 hours.

    Before turning back, Kieran hit a barber shop for a much needed haircut. He showed them pictures of his normal cuts, and they got it pretty close while giving it some Moroccan vibes (shaved on the sides). After, we took a nap and hit up another delicious restaurant for camel meatballs.

    Restaurant:
    El Cherifa
    Gourmet Market - Carre Eden

    Food:
    Tajine Pizza
    Curry Beef Panini
    Chicken Pastilla
    Camel Kefta Meatballs

    Spots:
    Marrakech Medina
    Gueliz    Read more

  • TravelerMorocco
    1
    Day 4

    Day 79: Jardin Majorelle of YSL

    March 29 in Morocco ⋅ 🌬 63 °F

    Come on, Vogue!

    Today we visited the house, museum, and garden of the late Yves Saint Laurent. Mary’s introduction to YSL was through her grandmother who believed outfits with any color or pattern beyond black and plain was tacky. The family had a close friend who worked the St. Louis Frontenac YSL mall stand and taught Mary how to apply make up properly (she didn’t learn or retain shit). And despite being a socialist, Yves Saint Laurent make up and perfume is Mary’s one vice. It’s hard to break a tradition that’s ran through her family matriarchy since middle school.

    Either way, the designer’s second home was in Marrakech and he incorporated his love for Morocco in his make up and clothing. They converted his garden and house into a wonderful museum, including a special exhibit on the Sahara Berbers who influenced his lines. Mary actually put on make up for the day (yes it was YSL) and did her best to look candid.    Read more

  • TravelerMorocco
    1
    Day 5

    Day 80: Badi Palace & Hookah

    March 30 in Morocco ⋅ 🌬 72 °F

    Mary woke up with a headache today so Kieran hit the road for the Badi Palace. Construction started in 1578 and ended in 1593. Posted throughout the palace was historical pictures of the Medina and Kieran liked seeing the old markets and street performers.

    We planned on switching hostels to move into a more bar friendly district and chose Villa Yousra in Gueliz. The host Soofstayh taught us how to pour Moroccan tea and invited us to share Iftar with his childhood friend; we ate Moroccan style only using our hands and talked about Hollywood movies and interesting facts Soofstayh had on hand. For instance, we learned Morocco was the first country to recognize US independence and that cats with three colors can only be female.

    Finally we visited a hookah (shisha bar) and basked in the ambiance of smoke, fútbol, and Moroccan pop music videos. It was an awesome evening and we talked until 12am as our host was working really hard to obtain a US visa because he wanted to attend the World Cup in New Jersey.

    Guest House: Villa Yousra

    Spots:
    Badi Palace    Read more

  • TravelerMorocco
    Day 6

    Day 81: Ourika Valley

    March 31 in Morocco ⋅ ☁️ 63 °F

    Amazing amazing day of Moroccan nature and friendship! We took a local bus to the Ourika valley and by local bus we mean a small van where everyone would crowd in and hop out the back at stops. Everyone was super friendly in squeezing Kieran through to an isle seat since he is 6”2’.

    We arrive at town and realize its hard to catch a bus or cheap taxi up to our hotel. We opted for hitch hiking and a kind man picks us up no charge! We still gave him the amount we would pay a taxi driver.

    We selected the Le Jardin des Delices for our hotel because it was nestled in the valley, and it didn’t disappoint as a flush garden and terrace overlooked the river. We hiked an hour to a small town north and it was clear tourists were not a normal sight. We had farmers asking how we were and inviting us to dinner as well as little children running around yelling BONJOUR and giggling away. The landscape was colorful and desert like.

    We return for dinner at the hotel and met the only other couple staying: a husband and wife of 35 years who were born in Brazil and now live in Portugal. The husband was a previous wrestling representative for Brazil in the Olympics and he was HUGE! We joined their table and they were so kind to share their wine and tequila. We sat on the terrace until 12am and agreed to share a taxi back to Marrakech. We look forward to visiting Macello and Alessandra in Portugal in June/July!    Read more

  • TravelerMorocco
    Day 8

    Day 82/83: Last Day & Travel Fiasco

    April 2 in Morocco ⋅ ☀️ 75 °F

    We woke up at 9am to join Marcelo and Alessandra for breakfast, and then adventured on another hike with Alessandra. Marcelo doesn’t like walks so she was enthusiastic to join us. We learned that their daughter is also on a gap year and is still figuring out what she would like to study or work in. We returned to the Garden and found the turtle Mary saw when we first arrived.

    We hopped in a cab together and drove back to Marrakech. We said goodbye to our new friends and immediately got to the next apartment for our early morning Armenian flight at 7am.

    In truth, Mary was a fucking idiot and the flight was actually at 6am. There was another Air France flight at 9:30 and we had to decide between sunk costs in Armenia or skipping ahead to Turkey. In the end it was a $80 difference and Kieran said let’s go to Armenia (Mary was too excited to skip it). We flew to France, Germany, and then arrived at 3:30am in Yerevan. The bars and strip clubs were still open and we met some friendly street dogs.

    Apartment: Marrakech Autrement
    Restaurant: Restaurant Le 6 Marrakech

    Food:
    Lamb Tajine
    Beef Tajine    Read more

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