Morocco notes, 3/2004

Just back from 8 days in Morocco. Here are a couple of things that I
did not gather from reading other posts so maybe they will be useful
to someone:

Faux guides:

A mixed picture as of 3/04. In Marrakech, they are GONE. Only a couple
of whispered solicitations and they seemed jumpy and afraid of their
own shadows. Easy to ignore. People in stores call but do not follow,
and everyone takes no for an answer. Fes is a different matter
entirely. Possibly it is better than before, indeed there is no
solicitation activity around Bab El-Djid, but once you are inside (or
even outside but away from the Bab area) there are a number of very
persistent people. We got solicited from the moment we got off the
taxi and were walking to our hotel, and some of them don't quit
easily. They seemed to have a memorized pitch, which even they don't
seem to believe and so recite listlessly: "I am not guide, I am
student, there are three trillion lanes and four billion mosques here,
you will get lost, what you are looking for, I get you good price,
what means 'la', 'la' means nothing to me, you do not like Maroccan
peoples?" etc. We were followed for half a mile by one irritating kid.

The standard advice on dealing with these guys is effective, although
many westerners must find it hard. IGNORE UNSOLICITED APPROACHES. You
are not required to acknowledge anything said to you by anyone. To do
so is like carrying a sign that says "I am a sucker". You are not
required to give them the benefit of the doubt; if they talk to you,
they are faux guides or aggressive salespeople. You are not required
to tell them where you are from, what you are looking for, or to shake
hands. Do not interact, but maintain a pleasant expression, do not get
mad. They will not physically attack you. And ultimately they will
give up.

The current prison sentences for faux guides are 3 months the first
time, 9 months the second, 15 months the third. On the other hand, the
store commission or a guide (real or faux) is 40%. It seems to me
that instead of (or in parallel with) the jail sentences, what is
needed is to make store commissions illegal.


Finding your way without a guide

What's the big deal? Marrakech is trivial, Fes is not too bad.
Suggesting that you will get lost is just the start of a scam. You
will not get seriously lost. If you do, ask someone YOU SELECT, like
someone in a store. The locals are courteous, gracious, friendly
people who are embarrassed by their city's reputation. Just don't ask
directions from anyone who approaches you.

I had a number of pleasant conversations with storekeepers who were
grateful to talk. Remember, these guys are bored out of their minds
sitting on stools outside their stores, and many of them are quite
well educated. It is not a big risk to talk to a store owner; they
cannot leave their stores and follow you.


Other notes

Whatever people may say, Meknes is not worth a visit. It is a drab,
sorry little medina, talked up by people who are tired of Fes and
Marrakech and want to say they've been somewhere you haven't been.

Marrakech has a pleasant souk with wide streets. It is like markets
all over the east, except with more stuff to buy. At least in March,
it has 10 tourists (mostly uncouth French tourists in groups) to each
1 in Fes. But Fes is unique in my experience, except maybe for
Jerusalem. It is a trip to the middle ages; you will later have dreams
about it, probably involving the word "balek". Nothing I said above
about faux guides should dissuade you from going to Fes.

Here's a tip on food on the Jma el-Fna square in Marrakech. The stalls
with the wide variety of colorful piles of food, the ones that will
sell you couscous or brochettes or calamari or whatever you want, the
ones where the tourists are eating, DO NOT have the good food. They
are tourist traps. The good food is in the stalls that sell one thing
only, like bowls of soup or large chunks of fish that must be eaten
with one's fingers. For the latter go to stall 98, which has been
around for fifteen years (they say). That fish (20Dh for about a
pound, and 5Dh for an astonishing mashed eggplant) will restore your
faith in Allah.

It is true that you don't need reservations in 1st class, but having
reservations for window seats allows you to get window seats,even if
other people are sitting in them when you board. I recommend reserving
when possible.


Women

Until this trip the most 'advanced' Muslim country I had been to is
Turkey. But relations between men and women are stiff and stilted in
Turkey compared to Morocco, where women (some in astonishingly
skin-tight clothing, some in jalaba and covered hair, some in
astonishingly skin-tight clothing but covered hair) go everywhere, do
everything, work, ride scooters with aplomb, talk freely to men
including tourists, and generally appear to live relatively free
lives. Of course, I didn't see the ones that weren't free to go out on
the streets, but there were a lot of women on the street. So what if
some had their heads wrapped? The head covering is a symptom, not the
problem. And in Morocco, it doesn't seem to be a symptom of anything.
By making it illegal in France, they are making it a rallying issue.
The west should should just accept it as a cultural thing, like
turbans on Sikhs, and focus on the important things like jobs and
rights and legal protections.

Of course tourists have no idea how to dress. Thy see these stylishly
clothed Moroccans and assume all western clothing is OK. In Marrakech
I saw women in shorts and halter-top. Folks, this is not OK. The
difference is simple enough. You can wear what you like, but don't
show skin except face and arms. That's all.

Thank you for reading this far.

Chuckles wrote:

Just back from 8 days in Morocco. Here are a couple of things that I
did not gather from reading other posts so maybe they will be useful
to someone:

snipt great post

Thanks for that. Will be in Morocco in May. Lotsa handy info.

Cheers
Greg

Thank you for reading this far.

Thx for your notes, Chuckles.

I visited both Marrakech and Fes in dec2003/jan2004
and enjoyed very much !

You can take a look to the pictures I took here :
www.corradobina.it/marocco/marocco.html

Corrado :-)



------------------------------------------
Travelogs & pictures

http://www.corradobina.it
------------------------------------------

"Chuckles" wrote in message
om...
Just back from 8 days in Morocco. Here are a couple of things that I
did not gather from reading other posts so maybe they will be useful
to someone:

snip a very informative post
Great post, I stayed in Morocco for 4 months in1966 and it seems the
women have been greatly liberated, good for them. Your comments of
the dress standards of the tourists, is very pertinent.
Cheers
Richard