Morocco, the land of the setting sun

While the city is nothing out of the ordinary, there are still many things to visit, like the third largest Muslim religious building – the mosque of Hasan II. Making eight pilgrimages here counts the same as having been to Mecca once. The minaret is astounding 210 meters tall and can be seen from far away on a clear day. It is made up from three basic elements – the foundation, the tower and the gallery. The foundation is always in a shape of a square, usually dug into the ground and covered with gravel.

 

During the train ride I’ve met a local, who told me he knows our football star Zlatko Zahovič, and I’ve smiled as he told me a little bit about him, since Morocco and Portugal are not far away. It was in Portugal that Zlatko Zahovič had some of the best matches, outside playing for Slovenian national team at the world cup. The official languages of Morocco are two – Arabic and French, and there is really very little English that can help you. The country is ruled by the lifelong ruler king Mohamed Vi, whose pictures hang in all larger cities, on city walls and in other places. I’ve asked somebody, how happy they are with their king, and soon realized it was an acquired question. After some time I got an answer, that the government is good for some, but not really good for others.

 

Otherwise, it was hot! Really hot! I was there is summer and it was way over 500C, with hot wind coming in from the desert. It’s would have been murder without cold water, but you get used to anything. Morocco is a tourist destination, so it’s fairly easy to travel around the country and each station has the latinic transcription of the official name, so reading the names in not a problem. I continued by train to Meknes and then hitched a ride to a place called Volubilis. Volubilis was the southernmost outpost of the Roman empire and a trading centre that supplied Rome with various colours and dyes they got from their neighbours. In its heyday the city had 20.000 people and an aqueduct supplying them with fresh water. 

 

A few kilometres away is the religious centre of Moulay Idris, where you will find the Mausuleum of Idris. It’s a pilgrimage centre for the Muslims of Morocco. As I travelled further east the heat got only hotter and the gauge showed a heart-warming 610C in the shade. It was too much for me, but they are used to it – so a traveller also has to get used to it, there’s no other choice!

Most people say that to visit medina in Fes you need a guide, for the city has over 9400 streets. I was lucky to have a friend who teaches English at the University of Fes and offered to be my guide. I’ve explained that I have a long way behind me and as a student, very little money left in my pocket, so I cannot pay him. He smiled and said it’s not a problem. Out of gratitude I gave him a bottle of Slovenian wine, and although Muslim are not allowed to consume alcohol, still he was very happy to receive the gift! While walking around Medina, everybody is inviting you to their shops, or to climb the roof of their house and see how big the whole area really is! I felt like I was in the middle ages. A carpet salesman lured us into his shop and started unwinding the merchandise, but I couldn’t even count them all. There were really many! After I explained to him we were students, he offered us mint tea and when he saw we were not about to buy anything, he just said – we should return when we won’t be students anymore and will buy something then. They can really fold them up to take so little space, it would not be a problem to bring a carpet home! In Azru, under the mountain of Midle Altas I decided to hitch again, for they have almost no buses. The manual told me about the waterfalls in the mountains. And many tourists go there, but also other people, for in the summer heat this is really a nice refreshment. The people have very little in this places, so apart from a few sheep and the donkey (which you cannot do without) there were very little cars. About half an hour later a full car picked me up – it was really jam packed, but they found enough place for me as well and helped me to get to the waterfalls. They were probably selling everything off their trunk to make a living. They did not take me for free, so I paid 100 dirhmans for the ride, but we became friends in the end and next day I was a guest in their home. People don’t have electricity here, and they go for water and bring it back on donkey backs from kilometers away. All of a sudden I saw children dancing in the street to earn a coin or two. You rarely see a car anywhere. The landscape is beautiful and the people are relaxed. They live for the moment and to see a car is a special event – something we cannot imagine anymore. These people are the natives – the Berbers – who speak their own language. Next day I was a houseguest and the whole family accepted me well. They’ve prepared a special dish for me, my favorite dish in Morocco – the Tajin. And as it was the time, when my host’s best friend got married I was also invited to a traditional Moroccan wedding. It differs a lot from what I got to know back home!

 

My agenda also featured the Merzouga desert, on the border with Algiers. There is no distinct border line, between the countries, but you will see police on camel-back on each side. It’s really interesting. I’ve spent a night under the stars and the among the camel calls, otherwise there was a complete quiet and you really feel that the time has stopped. It was here that many movies were made, such as the Mummy or Legionar (with Jean Claude Van Dam), but also many other hits. On the way towards Marrakesh I also stopped at Ouarzazate to see the Atlas Corporation Studios where the films like The Gladiator, The Jewel of the Nile, Asterix&Obelix, Alexander… were made.

 

The saying goes, if you haven’t seen Marrakesh, you haven’t visited Morocco. It was once the capital of the country and is completely different from other cities. There’s always something happening at the main square of Djama El Fna and you can always see crafts and arts of the people from the surrounding hills, who come here to earn a coin. There are many medicine men, shaman and healers around, but also many frauds. They will prepare you medicine from hedgehog’s pines, ostrich eggs, roots and dried lizards, which can cure all aliments. I got used to things that increase your libido, but here they can even cure you of jealousy. Among the mass of strange people and pickpockets, you will also see many people with colorful hats and goat bags – they are the water salesmen, who offer water n brass cups. You must try the fresh orange juice – it’s delicious! And you can also taste cooked snails, which are a real delicacy.

 

All in all, Morocco is a land of many friendly and open people.