Nothing prepared me for Morocco! The splendid diversity of its cities, the exquisite and abundant cuisine, the contrasting landscape and the bustling busy energy of its people. Though Morocco is predominantly Arab and different from Africa south of the Sahara, it still has undeniable and visible influences of Black Africa. We entered Marrakech at dusk. I was awed by the unfolding beauty of this almost mystical, magical oasis blushing in the deep rose color that paints all its buildings. I had thought an oasis was a watering hole with a few palm trees where camel herders gathered to replenish their caravans. Marrakech has long been one of the most important oasis in North Africa. It is said in Moroccan history that he who controls Marrakech controls Morocco, and it proved to be true with successive rulers in Morocco’s history.
Today Marrakech is a sprawling city of one million inhabitants. It is called “The Red City” because all the buildings, from the world famous Mamounia Hotel, with its casinos, to corner gas stations are painted reddish pink. Marrakech is one of the imperial cities of Morocco. Today, Rabat is the capital city with 650,000 inhabitants. At one time or another, imperial cities of Fez and Meknes were also the capital city. But nothing equals Marrakech’s royal presence. African rhythms echo through Marrakech. The city has an African flavor and is not as related to Europe unlike Tangier and Casablanca. The soul of Marrakech is African.
Marrakech is chic and sophisticated. Its palaces and gardens delight the eye. It is a graceful, moderately paced city with enough ambience to fill movie screens.
The highlight of the trip to Marrakech, after the fabulous shopping buys, was an evening out at the Chez Ali. An evening at the Chez Ali is like a marriage of Arabian nights, Walt Disney, dynastic grandeur, and a feast fit for royalty. In the midst of all this are hundreds of costumed entertainers and a splendid horse trick riding show, all at night under the open sky. Interestingly, the whole entertainment of the Chez Ali is choreographed and orchestrated by an elderly Black African who looks like my grandfather on my mother’s side.
Since I have traveled all over the continent, I know the risk of people going to Africa for the first time. With all the negative images of Africa generated by the unsophisticated media (most of which do not have news bureaus in African countries), travelers are often predisposed to have an unconscious negative reception of Africa if they do not have a safe first encounter. I always recommend to first time travelers to Africa to go to Dakar, Senegal or Nairobi, Kenya. These cities are easy to adapt to and they make African Americans feel easily at home. I add Morocco to the list of first time travel to Africa.
We took a planned, packaged tour of Morocco. When traveling alone, I usually try a mixture of independent travel and arranged tours to give myself more flexibility, more choice, and more independence. I thought it best traveling with the family to stick to the planned packaged tour. To cut down on hassling over whose option became paramount, the packaged tour is the best choice. We stuck to the tour for the most part. Yet, there were times when individual tastes were satisfied. Morocco had it all.
Though, we did also have fantastic tour guides throughout the tour; they frequently informed us in impeccable English and Spanish aspects of our tour including the logistics.
It is customary to bargain, sometimes noisily with the merchants and vendors in Morocco. My wife was a champion bargainer by the end of our stay in Morocco.
I did not do too badly on the shopping myself. I bought a sharp leather jacket, designed by Yves St. Laurent for less than one half its price in the U. S. , in a leather shop in the souk or open-air market of Marrakech. My wife bought a superior quality Moroccan carpet in Fez, which we could not afford to buy at prices at home in the states. The plan to buy the carpets was in my advanced planning but somehow she got ahead of me in her shopping spree. She had become shopping savvy in a short time. She also bought a large, marvelously colorful eye catching wide mouthed ceramic bowl on a road side near Tetouan.
No one can tell you about Morocco. It has to be experienced, felt, tasted.
Our first main stay was in the Moroccan city of Fez, the cultural capital of Morocco. Visiting the historic medina (old walled city), the largest in Africa that dates from the early middle ages, was the highlight of Fez. But Fez is a sensory delight with it superb restaurants and residential palaces hidden behind the unimposing doors of the souk (market). It is the Moroccan tradition, handed down from the Black Moors to provide the luxury of a home on the inside and to have indoor courtyards to share with the family. Unlike the European and American traditions, it is not important to impress the Jones with the exterior of the home. It is important to have the family enjoy the best of everything. In the Moroccan tradition, the sky is opened in the home that the family may share the heavens from which God looks down on them.
Shopping in Fez is a tour de force. All the bargains, the hassling over prices, the aromas, are heady stuff that shocks and educates the nose. It is something that should not be passed up, even if you do have trouble with fast moving crowds in narrow passageways, and the ubiquitous presence of beggars and hawkers. Shopping in Fez is a cultural experience not to be missed.
While Marrakech lingered in our minds, we journey to the modern, gleaming white European-looking Casablanca, the commercial center of Morocco with its connection to the classic movie starring Humphrey Bogart and Ingrid Bergman; and to Rabat, Tetouan, and Tangier. Each Moroccan city has its own charm and is worth a longer visit than the week we had.
I could always go back to Marrakech. And, perhaps next time visit the sophisticated resort of Agadir, a favorite of the European jet set, on the southwestern coast of Morocco.
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© 2010 Ja A. Jahannes
Ja A. Jahannes, writer and psychologist, writes about African and African American culture and aesthetics. Contact: ja.jahannes@toonarimedia.com | twitter.com/jajahannes
This is a very insightful eloquently written article of your Morocco experience. It was a joy to ‘listen to’ in my case and illustrates your journey beautifully. Keep up the good work Ja.
Sounds like I’ll have to add Morocco to my Bucket List!