Today Anas agreed to take me on a tour of some of the tourist sites in Marrakesh. First we visited the Majorlif Gardens. The gardens are beautiful and well-maintained. I wonder whether Calatrava, the architect of the City of Arts and Sciences in Valencia, took some of his inspiration from the Majorlif Gardens. The walkway that he designed there is very much a modern version of a vine-covered pool at the Majorlif Gardens. Instead of wood, Calatrava has used metal arches to support the vine canopy above.
Anas then took me to Palau Bahai, which is an old palace. It is beautiful but falling apart. There is some maintenance work ongoing but not sufficient to keep it preserved.
Later in the evening we stopped by the market, which is known as La Souk. I wanted to buy a jalaba, which is a long robe-like garment worn by local men, so that I could dress like a native for Friday prayers. I bought a gray jalaba, and Anas helped me with the negotiation.
Afterwards we stopped by Jama Al-Fna to eat dinner. We had tangine, which is a Moroccan delicacy comprised of meat and potatoes, and I tried lamb’s head meat, too. It didn’t sit quite well with me. Not that it made me ill, but only that I didn’t care too much for the taste. An overweight, jovial young woman sat next to me on the bench at dinner, and she let me taste some of her food as well. I also tried lamb brains. I tend to like brains, but these weren’t so great.
