Merry in Marrakesh!

We arrive to Marrakesh ready for adventure and fun. We checked into our cozy raid style hostel in the Medina. The Medina is a term for the old part of the city, only accessible by foot and enclosed in a huge protective wall that occurs in every major city in Morocco. Our first impressions of morocco include the sweltering heat, crazy driving, conservatively dressed locals in robes and ha jabs, the melodic prayer calls and the hue of pink clay buildings everywhere.

Once settling in, we took to the streets and headed to the famous Djemma el-Fna Square. We savoured our first taste of the delicious Moroccan food: chicken tagine and brochettes (like kebabs). Our restaurant was overlooking the square so we had a great time taking it all in. We also set our sights across the square to the site of the terrible bombing at the Argana restaurant only a week earlier. It appeared to be untouched since the bombing and was surreal to see after watching it on the news in Canada. Apparently the bombing was due to anti tourism antics from Casablanca terrorists. 15 innocent tourists died (30 injured) doing just what we were, getting a bite and enjoying the sights of the square. The square seemed to be unfazed by the bomb and was thick with tourists, snake charmers, henna artists and fresh orange juice and nut vendors.

After lunch we took to the streets behind the square to feast our eyes on goods in the famous "sooks" or markets of Marrakesh! These shops are fashioned in a labyrinth style maze of confusion. It is impossible not to get lost while being dazzled by the shiny goods, leather products, spices, carpets, mirrors and really anything you can imagine! I had to constantly remind myself of my three limitations: a strict budget for my three month trip ahead, no space to bring souvenirs in my over packed backpack as well as weight restrictions on our return flight to Paris. But as the Moroccan vendors commonly profess: looking is free! So into a carpet shop we go to "look for free". Suddenly there is a very friendly man walking alongside us, welcoming us to morocco and engaging is what seemed to be genuine interest in our trip. He was teaching us all about rugs, how they are made, the natural dyes etc. We politely listened as a good Canadian would! Suddenly we are sitting drinking Moroccan mint tea with another worker throwing dozens of rugs in front of us to display their unique traits. We suddenly realize this is a huge sales pitch we got wrapped into. Aaron politely admitting to being a student with no money to buy a carpet did not deter this production one bit. Prices are being thrown at us ($2000 euros!), Aaron is nervously laughing and I'm profusely sweating due to the pressure sales and hot tea! Finally we just got up and left but not before the theatrics of the rug seller throwing a carpet I admired at the other worker telling him to package it for bargain price of $1000 for me! We emerged into the narrow passageways of the sooks laughing at the best intro into Moroccan sales we could have had:) Never again did we accept a friendly cup of mint tea from a seller or believe that "looking is free"

The next day after checking out the gorgeous Bahia Palace we embarked on an experience that was truly Moroccan: the hammam! Patricia (Dutch) and I headed to the hamman with two local ladies who work at the hostel we were staying at. The hammam was close by and for locals, ie: we were the only tourists in the place. I had no idea of what to expect but giggled nervously as immediately on entering the "women's" entrance I was told to take off my clothes. Being a prudish Canadian woman, my heart was racing as I nervously took all but my underwear off with three women I had just met ten minutes previous. They were so at ease, it was unreal to see their thick robes and ha-jabs (head scarfs) come off. Suddenly we are all alike. We enter through another door and into the intense humid heat. It is a fair sized dark room, crowded with women sitting on stools with buckets of water scrubbing themselves and those they came with. The women we came with got straight to work and sat Patricia and I on a mat on the floor. Buckets of near scalding water are poured on us and we are rubbed down in a special mixture of henna, fresh oranges and other spices. After the application we are lead to the corner of the hammam which had scorching hot tiles to lie on. This allowed our skin to absorb the henna mix and soften. On the hot tiles, you close your eyes and allow all of your senses to take over. You hear soft Arabic murmurs, water splashing and running into buckets, the scrubbing of skin, you smell of soap and feel the intensity of the heat. Next we are led back to the mat unsure of what to expect. What came next is hard to describe: two women exfoliating my entire body. By exfoliating, I mean they used something similar to a dish scouring pad to take a whole layer of your skin off! The women (with a disgusted look on their faces) kept on stopping, giggling, and showing me all the skin they were removing. I apologized and tried to explain that we don't have hammans in Canada and I would promise to exfoliate more often! Too funny. After a good old fashion soaping and hair washing, we emerged from the hamman appreciative to these lovely and kind Moroccan women. We also appreciated experiencing this integral part of their culture.

What struck me was how at ease all these women were to be naked an with each other! I reflected that in Canada we dress quite liberally (ie: show a lot of skin) but as a culture we have no place for public nudity. There is no socially acceptable place like a hammam to strip down to your birthday suit in the company of other women or even to see what other women's bodies look like. Europeans also seem to enjoy nudity with plenty of nude beaches and spas. No wonder we have such an unhealthy self image when the only half naked women we see are those in magazines that are airbrushed and non realistic and non attainable. I was anxious to strip all my clothes off but on seeing these women who are normally totally covered, undress without a thought it gave me courage to do the same. I left the hammam full of life, invigorated and with skin that has never felt so smooth!