Getting lost in the medina is easy

Marrakech – Day 2
Every day, five times a day, the Islamic call to prayer is sung from loudspeakers on the top of every mosque in Marrakech. There are dozens of mosques all throughout the city and about 6 of which are situated right around the Riad that we stayed at. The call to prayer is loud, designed to capture the attention of people going about their daily business, and remind them to enter a mosque to pray or do so where they are. “Allahu akbar, Allahu akbar,… La llah ila Allah.” (God is great, God is great…There is no God but Allah.) the believers then face toward Mecca, make some predefined movements and recite prayers and passages from the Quran, all in expression of humility and recognition of Allah’s power. The earliest call to prayer is at 4am every day; it did not wake us that morning, after our first draining night in Marrakech.

Mustering up our courage to march out into the unknown; we found our way out the door and into the bustling medina. Upon arriving in Marrakech we were asked to pay for our Riad (which we thought we had already paid for online) and deprived of all of our spending cash. Thirsty and hungry we set out in search of a bank or ATM. A few hours later, after finding most of the ATM’s out of order, we finally were able to get some cash, water, and some incredible fresh squeezed orange juice.
The orange juice is a staple in Moroccan culture, after their ubiquitous mint tea, and can be purchased for around 50 cents a glass.
We soon found ourselves in the heart of the medina, walking through winding streets lined by markets, providing a variety of goods and services.


The streets are a veritable maze winding incomprehensibly in all directions, That afternoon we had a goal of getting to the Djemma al Fna; a giant open square in the middle of the medina that is home to a variety of food and entertainment. Little did we know that the square, although smack in the middle of the medina where all streets lead, would take us hours to find while getting lost in the Souq’s.


For hours, while trying to navigate to our planned destination we walked past all types of shops and were endlessly hassled by eager business men to buy something from their shop. We must have heard, “come and take a look in my shop…it will cost you nothing to look” and “today, everything is free..come have a look” hundreds of times an hour. Suffice it to say, we were suckered into buying more than we had planned on that day.

The dynamic is fascinating on the medina streets, as you pass shops geared toward tourists, you begin to realize that people live here; this is also where they do their shopping and go about their daily lives.


After getting lost and having plenty of people try and guide us to the plaza (for a fee), we made it. Hot, thirsty, and plenty hungry.
Our experience in Djemma el-Fna was pretty typical we think. There is the pungent aroma of delicious foods being cooked; from snails and sheep’s heads to tajine’s and couscous. All around are people trying to sell trinkets and foodstuffs. In the center of the square are an array of performers toying with snakes, reading cards, telling stories, dancing, and putting Barbary macaques on your shoulder whilst demanding payment for the favor.