I’ve been here two hours and have already got lost in the medina, met two British women at an ATM that didn’t work (they have set hours, apparently) who I shared a cup of mint tea with on a restaurant balcony overlooking the Djemma el Fna – the huge square in the middle of the medina – then agreed to have tea with, had a snake pushed into my face, was nearly run down by a motorbike, and had an unpleasant experience buying dates and almonds at a stall when the seller didn’t want to give me change.
Welcome to Marrakesh!
I had been warned about the frenzy of the place, of the monkey handlers, snake charmers, acrobats and other ‘performers’ who try to extract your money; of the beggars and cheats, the impossible-to-navigate souks. And although I have successfully negotiated markets and backstreets in India, Vietnam, Cambodia, Laos and Thailand, this has a different tenor about it…very aggressive.
I confess that I’ve thought of turning around and going home…or of cutting my five-day reservation in half. I would feel different, I’m sure, if there was someone here to explore and get lost with…to laugh with over the misadventures of the day. But, I’m here, so will give it a shot.
Too bad the medina is ‘dry’…a large gin and tonic would do wonders!