Hear About Mary’s Seven Day Trip to Morocco

The Medina

Few cities in the world will give you the same feelings as Marrakech. Imagine bikes zooming right past you, market shops and local craftsmen open for business, and long narrow stretches of food lined up in the Medina. It’s most commonly regarded as the closest culture shock to Europe, but you’ll return home with much more than that. Behind nondescript doors lie luxurious palaces and bustling markets. 

Dinner at a local’s house

Tonight’s dinner opened up my eyes to what getting a true ‘local’s perspective’ is. We started off with a night tour stopping off at a hammam water heater, hotel for canapes for our first story, and then finally to a local’s home with one long wooden table. Storytelling has been around for more than a thousand years in Marrakech and to date, there are only a handful of apprentices in storytelling that is keeping the ancient tradition alive.

The chef tipped over the lamb tangia (slow cooked in the ashes from the bathhouse fire) as we watched the meat descend onto the large platter and dinner was served. If you were looking for a local Moroccan experience, this is it.

Sidecars

Wind blowing through your hair and souks racing lightspeed as you buzz through the streets of the Medina and onwards to the Old Town and Palmeraie; these are the views of Marrakech that you wouldn’t get any other way.

Hot Air Balloon

If you’re ever given the option to opt for a “sunrise surprise”, do it. My alarm was set for 4:50 am but I tossed and turned the whole night unable to calm the anticipation. Floating over the morphing landscapes of Marrakech while gazing off into the Atlas Mountains in the distance was an experience that I’ll remember forever. Just make sure to brace yourself for the landing.

Kik Plateau

Our road trip over Kik Plateau started with fresh baked pastries at the house of Josephine (Douar Samra). She built the local houses herself, maintaining the traditional structures that the Berber village people use.

Dar Ahlam

Dar Ahlam, near Ouarzazate and in the palm grove of Skoura, holds a well known secrecy about it. A traditional Kasbah with no real road map or directions, giving you the feeling as though you’re sneaking around the house at night where every meal is in a surprise location. The first night was the most romantic dinner in the back room (read as: Room of 1000 Candles) and the next morning in the lounge. You’ll never experience two days or two meals the exact same here.

Opt for a morning hike near the grounds with a traditional Hammam and massage in the late afternoon. Set up for a cocktail and game of mancala before dinner in the lounge and you’ll shortly be whisked away to a new dinner location..

Camel Ride in the Sahara Desert

Arriving to the Erg Chebbi desert in a sandstorm normally is not the best way to capture Morocco’s desert. However, when I arose the next morning to an atypical sunrise Camel trek back through the desert it all seemed worth it.

Fez

I’m not one for particularly trying new foods and, trust me, I’ll be the first one to admit it. Weaving through the Medina I was suddenly surprised at how much I did try and how the tastes were so different from each other. Morocco has a particularly seasoned culinary experience about it that’s hard to ignore. I ended up loving everything that I tried from the fresh Moroccan bread (Khobz) and fava bean soup to the dates and fresh pickled olives and vegetables. And don’t get me started about the customary green and mint tea.

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