A taste for the senses

Day 8

Arriving in Marrakech

The souq

After roughing it in the desert for a couple of days, we decided that a stop on Marrakech would be just what we needed. And guess what, it happened to be right on our way down from the cold mountains. We quickly located a small hotel with indoor parking for the bikes (always a must) right next to the Jemaa el Fna square. Off we went into the souqs walking for hours, and occassionaly grabing a bite from the various street cart vendors. The Koutoubia minaret is the center of attention and a beakon for this city, easily spotted from every corner. The weather was simply amazing, sunny skies and warm temperatures quickly washed away any memories of riding in the snow last evening. Jemaa el Fna is probably one of the biggest squares any of us has visited. It is vast, packed with people and carries an amazing vibe that can be felt with all the senses. Marrakech is indeed gorgeous, and a must visit for anyone who wants to get a taste for this part of Morocco.

Jemaa el Fna by night

During the night the Jemaa el Fna square was packed with numerous performers and all other kinds of people, walking around, eating and enjoying themselves. Every night more than a 100 small restaurants set up their own food benches, thus creating a huge feast right in the middle of the square, with the everlit minaret in the background. Deciding where to eat was indeed hard, but at the end we were both satisfied to the fullest extent.




Day 9
We woke up around 5am in order to head north to Rabat. This was partially a mandatory stop, since we had to go at the Mauritanian embassy and apply for a visa, hoping that we would get it in 24 hours. On the other hand, Alex wanted to visit his buddy from the university, Nouredin. Soon after depositing our papers, we met with Nouredin, who invited us to stay over at his place for the night. And what an invitation it was! Moroccan hospitality at its best. Nouredin's wife cooked an amazing dinner for us, while Nouredin took us around the old Medina. Rabat is indeed very beautiful, and much more realistic than Marrakech.

Day 10

Crossing our fingers that this will work...

Our number one priority today was to fix Alex's side pannier that was damaged during one of his falls on the desert piste, as well as some other things on the 690. So we found a local metal worker in the markets right next to the Medina. After a couple of hours, and some clever ideas, the pannier was bashed back into place and then riveted all around for reinforcement. Silicone was applied for waterproofness. A new base for the GPS was made out of an old car plate, and the mirror was straightened as well.

With Nouredin and his family! Merci beaucoup!

With a sigh of relief we went at Nouredin's place for one last amazing meal. We bid our hosts goodbye and headed to the Mauritanian embassy. Got the passports with our brand new visa stamps on them. This is it. We can officially enter the Sahara! We got on our bikes and started heading south. Around dusk it was time to stop. And guess what? Marrakech happened to be on our way! So we are off now, since we can already smell the grilled meats at the Jemaa el Fna square....