Hansruedi Frutiger
editor@classactmedia.co.th
Two weeks ago, we followed Hansruedi Frutiger, the Swiss GM of Moevenpick Resort & Spa Phuket, on the first part of his recent holiday to Marrakech. Here’s how the rest of his journey went.
Tuesday was another beautiful day, I got up at 5:00am and was picked up by a jeep driver to bring me to an open field near Marrakech. Here, I met seven other tourists for a balloon flight over the empty vast land and villages. This is definitely an experience not to be missed if you’re not scared of heights.
Sunrise behind the Atlas Mountains was just stunning. I really was lost for words. When we landed, we were invited to enjoy some local mint tea and bread. We were later driven to a camel farm where I opted out since my camel was biting and was not in the mood to carry me!
By the late afternoon I went to Cafe Arab on the terrace, located in the Souk. I recommend enjoying a delightful cocktail, or ordering one of the local wines. The prices are not too expensive.
For your information, changing money isn’t too much of a hassle as there are plenty of exchange shops.
Back to the souks of Marrakech (yes, I am quite fascinated with the souks!). The air is rife with cries of gypsies, snake-charmers, wandering minstrels, magicians, and folk-singers. There are tanneries on pavements, street artists on every corner, and vegetable vendors popping out of alleys. If you’re not paying attention, you could end up with a monkey on your shoulder or a snake wrapped around your arm.
There is nothing that isn’t sold here- perfumes, spices, bags, clothes, baskets, shawls, carpets, shoes, even safety pins.
Moroccan vendors can be annoyingly persuasive. You will be pestered by shopkeepers on entering the souk, but it is nothing a firm no can’t tackle. Devise the perfect no – we suggest a baritone treading the fine line between firm and polite.
I left the next morning with an experienced driver at 8am to Telouet. Drive through the granite curtain of the snow capped Atlas Mountains over the tichka pass, and you find yourself switching from frosted slopes into the flat stony landscapes of Morocco.
The Kasbah opened in 1995. It is not well maintained, and to be honest not many tourists even visit it, as the road is pretty long and bumpy. The town seems fairly ancient, again the low green and high snow capped mountains reminded me of Europe (without the palm and orange trees).
The Atlas Mountains are the longest mountain trail in Africa and has the highest mountain in Morocco, which I would visit.
Thursday was my day off, so we went back to the square, took a hop-on-hop-off city tour bus, stopped in the new part of Marrakech, which is outside the medina. It has very modern shopping malls and expensive apartments. We had a look at the newly renovated La Mamounia. The hotel is known for accommodating stars, politicians or kings and queens. The garden is full of orange trees and the shops in the hotel arcade offer everything from Gucci to Harry Winston jewellery.
At 9am my private driver took me to the foot of mount Toubkal. The highest mountain in the Atlas, 4,200 metres high. I did not climb the mountain but drove up to 2,000 metres high, where I was met by a local guide who walked me over the small walkways, passing thorny bushes. I am physically not fit anymore and needed an occasional short rest or a helping hand when walking on icey gravel. Going down hill was indeed a lot easier, but my joints are getting rusty. Lunch was pretty good, we had the usual salad or soup followed by a hot mixed pot of vegetables, potatoes and either chicken or beef. All for MDR 150.
There are many restaurants in town, but not all are worth the visit. The first one I went to was the most expensive. I was also brave and sat on the back of a concierge motorcycle to drive through the Souks, since the traffic in the small alleys was a challenge.
Hammams
Visiting a Hammam (traditional bathhouse) is a must when in Morroco. I went to the one called 1000 and 1 night. There are three packages available, I chose the medium priced inclusive body scrub, sauna, cold shower, mud scrub, sauna, hot tea and some water, resting for 15 minutes, and finally a 30 minutes agran oil massage. The massage included special fragrant oil which was excellent. However, the pre-washing and scraping of the skin was not my cup of tea.
Morroco’s geographical variety can come as a surprise. A day journey can take you from the Atlantic beaches right through to rich farmland, over high mountains, and finally the Sahara.
The landscape is fascinating. Half of the Moroccans still live on the cliffs in the mountains or rural areas, and everywhere you see people working this extraordinary land, harvesting on tiny wall terraces, looking after olive and argan groves or leading their flocks of sheep to mountain pastures.
The amount of orange trees found on public walkways or in gardens is amazing. I feel like I am full of vitamin C, just in time to head back to work.
A tip when you visit the place:
Barter hard when buying from the souks. A quarter to a third of the offered price and work your way up. Sellers feel it when you are in love with the item.
Spend most of your dirhams before getting to the airport! Many of the duty free shops at Marrakech airport don’t accept dirhams, they prefer euros. Just keep some for refreshments.
Use antibacterial hand gel as a good alternative to washing hands.
Have a pleasant trip.