Ed Space: Marrakech

I was woken at dawn by a loud, screaming prayer from the nearby mosque. Salah - the formal Islamic prayer - is performed five times a day, the first at dawn and the last at nightfall. Loud speakers announce the appropriate times, and an almost mechanical chanting can be heard across the whole city.

I spent the morning with the American architecture students. Our first stop was at Jma El Fna for a glass of freshly squeezed orange juice from one of the stands. We then wondered over to the nearby Koutobia Mosque - the largest mosque in Marrakech with it's towering miniaret - and surrounding gardens. We continued past the Cyber Parc and out of the old city, and grabbed some fresh, flat bread for breakfast. We then walked down to the Jardin Majorelle - a beautiful, peaceful garden perfect for escaping the noise of the traffic outside.

After a lunch at Jma El Fna, we split up and I went for a wonder into the souks. The narrow, confusing alleyways led me to a man who asked me to visit his "home". It turned out he just wanted to sell me silk scarves, so I politely (yet forcefully) declined his offer and left.
I somehow made my way to the Merdersa Ben Youssef - an old Qu'ranic school famed for its stunning architecture and artwork. It was beautiful inside with lovely wood carvings and mosaics. I wondered through the rooms once occupied by the students, looking out the windows at the street scenes on one side and the inner courtyard with it's tranquil pool on the other.
From the Medersa I walked down to the Musee de Marrakech - a museum housed in an old palace. It had a nice (but rather dull) collection of Moroccan artefacts, however the actual building was lovely - amazing architectural features and the chandelier in the main hall was amazing.
After the museum, I visited the Quobba Almoravid - a 12th century dome structure that was excavated 50 years ago.

I then wondered back through the maze-like souk, passing through Jma El Fna and down the main road to Palais el-Badii. The palace ruins were quite stunning, with lush gardens and orange trees flourishing in the middle courtyard, and storks building nests on top of the surrounding walls. The dark, eerie subterranean tunnels were interesting to walk through, but the view from the terrace at sunset was the highlight. From one side of the terrace you could see the splendour of the palace grounds below, and from the other the rooftops and satellite dishes of Marrakech.

As evening fell, I returned to the hostel and met up with the others. Mustapha offered to cook us dinner so we followed him to the market and purchased fresh cuts of lamb and an assortment of vegetables. We took these back to the hostel and all helped prepare a tajine. A very nice meal indeed.

Here are some photos from the day:

The Koutobia Mosque