I’ve been channelling Graham Nash all day – Don’t you know we’re riding on the Marrakesh express – and I can’t get that song out of my mind. But then I don’t go anywhere without my music (in my head) so this song is entirely appropriate. This place (Marrakech – note the different spelling) was one of the hippy havens back in the 60’s and there’s enough of that environment left to accommodate the Cheechs and Chongs of the……what do we call now? The 1990’s were the nineties and the 2000’s were the noughties. Are we now in the tenties? But hippy stuff notwithstanding this is a haven for tourists as well.
So we did the walking tour through the various palaces, mausoleums, mosques and markets and were once again subjected to a piece of economic tourism. Only mild compared with Fes since we were only required to contemplate the efficacious properties of various potions and lotions at a local herbalist’s. I think the bloke talking to us was an adjunct professor at Hogwarts.
The upshot of being rubbed with numerous oils and greases was that I came out smelling like a tart’s hanky, as they say in the classics, and the CB had some magic potions that will allow her to make her lips something or other and a rose smelling thing that will get rid of the bags under my eyes apparently.
But the most important thing about our first day in Marrakech is that we found a bar which sold cold beer. After another day in the sun I was reasonably happy with the first beer which didn’t touch the sides as it went down but the CB said it could have been colder. I was so proud of her. Anyway the Sky Bar is just down the road from our very comfortable riad and is open tomorrow (we checked) which is a public holiday on which we were advised no booze would be available. Our friendly waiter is reserving our table for us.
Incidentally this riad we are staying in advertises that it has a bar. The most potent thing it sells is Red Bull. I’m not going to bag them because it’s a very nice place and very conveniently located (vis a vis the Sky Bar) but their advertising is somewhat semantically challenged.