The Arabic Morocco

We were lost in a maze of small alleyways. Walking and wonder because this place is absolutely stimulating all your senses. There are alleys full of exotic scents, spices are sold, something like those scented sticks, colorful carpets and clothing, and so on. Then you enter another alley and everything turns to the totally opposite side. A guy is slaughtering chicken on the road, another is selling the intestines, goat heads and feet, stink everywhere, have to be careful not to walk into something when you wear open sandals. The place described here is called a souk, a place in the old Arab city (the Medina) in which the trade and exchange happens. Fes, the third largest city in Morocco has one of the largest and oldest (over a thousand years) medinas in the world.

Souks - where trade and the exchange take place, where the food is fried, where everything smells and stinks. Mostly crazy, and if you do not know the way, you will probably get lost from time to time and come to the same place repeatedly.

A guy who plays the old traditional three-wired instrument Guembri. Has a nice relaxing sound. The guy claims to have played to Sting, which is not so surprising considering that Sting is a big fan of Morocco.

Tannerie - a place where leather is colored. As one of the largest manufacturers of leather goods in this old way, Fez is full of these stinking old "plants".

Beni Mellal - the city's nothing special, but pay attention to the roofs full of satellite dishes.

Ait Benhaddou - "a fortress city" in Arabic is called Ksar. Filled with beautiful and preserved kasbahs, only one of many in the area from the Sahara to Marrakesh. This is the largest and most beautiful Ksar in all Morocco. Many movies are filmed here, and the Ksar is listed as a monument under UNESCO protection. We met a dear Muhammed who lives here. He said that about 5 people are currently living there. Unfortunately, after every rain and storm, due to erosion, the ksar increasingly decay.

Examples of kasbahs, these large established buildings with four towers.

Berber girls party before the wedding (Bridal shower) - In a small village we had the privilege to attend an original Berber girls party before the wedding. We wandered the streets and went into this room, attracted by the drums and singing. Basically, it was a great experience to attend such an event. In the middle of the dance circle women drummed, while others danced and sang. We were the only men in the room, and therefore we felt privileged. They sprinkled us with three types of women perfume, and beside that aggressive music, they danced and sang such zeal and energetic, yet soft and elegant.In the evening we were invited to the wedding.The recordings of the party and the wedding are shown below. The wedding footage was shot in the pocket as the locals would not be upset. So pay attention only on the audio.

Berber girls party before the wedding

Berber wedding - shot in my pocket, not to disturb the locals. So, pay attention only to the audio. Basically, the whole performance was a gig. Various percussion instruments, Benjo, a little crazy "violin" and guembri. Between gigs, the team played some scenes from everyday life, or a drama or comedy. Men and women sit separately, and there is no interaction between them. They are traditional Muslims and Berbers, so there's no alcohol and the partners are arranged by the parents. My little friend Isham who brought me to the wedding, after I bribed him with some cigarettes, has a girlfriend in a small town an hour away. He sees her once a month, she was found by his mother, and a  marriage has been arranged for the year 2012.

Again some jammin. Often, we spent the evenings with local people and their traditional music. Berbers prefer to transfer their culture, including traditional Berber rhythms. This example is from a train ride. Basically, it was not boring.

This is a special moment. The moment in which we succeeded in our "The quest for the golden treasure." We found beer. As Morocco is traditional Muslim, alcohol is found only in larger cities.

Marrakesh - in front of the mosque. Some women do not show the hands, so they are wearing gloves, although it is currently 43 degrees Celsius.

The main square in Marrakesh, Djemma el Fna, a disgusting day tourist attraction full of street musicians, "snake charmers" and stuff.

I repeat, disgusting tourist attraction because it is all artificial, organized, and furnished only for instant tourists. We used to "defend" ourselves from time to time, but the hassel is so intense that you easily end up like me in the picture. As soon as you picture something they are asking you for money.

The same square, only in the evening, turns into a huge frying pot where meat and other things are fried. There are stalls with exotic dishes, standard "shish kebabs" style, and we even found a stall with only heads and tongues, where you can choose from the following menu: Big Head, Small Head, etc.
Who doesn't believe, here's a picture below ...

For more about Morocco check out all the other posts...