Marrakech, the arrival

Traveling can be stressful at times even if it is a magical destination. We arrived, with a delayed flight, and luckily had already planned with the Riad to get picked up. It was painless but passport control always proves to be a little difficult, no matter where you're going. Not like unmanageable difficult but the person checking papers seems to put on this I-hate-my-job face most of the time and the lines can seem like your waiting for a new drivers license at the DMV, endless. It took under an hour so we were happy. Since we are traveling with just our packs, yes ladies, just one, very small pack on our backs, with limited variety, we zipped through customs and found our driver. He was nice and boy, did he know how to drive. Taxi drivers are of a different breed, always knowing their way around and having such faith in the roads they travel and the other people on those roads. The streets are tiny and with cars, scooters, bicycles, people, people riding on carts pullled by donkeys or horses, and cats everywhere, I was a bit overwhelmed to say the least but I had faith in our driver. He was of that breed, a part of the taxi-man clan. 

As I look out my open window, I breathe deep and try and feel the place out. My apprehensions, trying to make their way to the surface but I swallow hard to keep them at bay, there is nothing to be afraid of. The landscape so parched of water, brown and beautiful, filled with palm trees, houses that are much different in appearance than my own, and people, literally everywhere. We had arrived at dusk and the sky was of perfect orange sherbert with hints of lavender towards the top escaping to the dark, dark skies above. As we travel to the riad, I'm acutely aware that we are in a much different place with different customs and rules. The energy here is fast moving, in every direction, making me swirl to a tizzy just trying to keep up and notice everything. We were at our riad before I knew it. The door opened and immediately it hits you, the noises, the smells, the what seemed like confusion but wasn't. Massimo, our Riad's owner met us and showed us the way. It was a small feat just getting there. Street names are not common and even if it had a name it wasn't visible anywhere to our eyes. We learned the landmarks to look for and took some mental pictures. I have to say after just a day here, it is much easier than first thought to navigate your way. We get to the riad, sit down, get our welcome gingery iced beverage and I notice my bag, not my pack with clothes and toiletries but my bag with passports and money, got left in the car. With the fast pace of everything, my nerves, and having my hands full of a shawl for around my shoulders, I totally forgot it. 

This is the worst thing to happen while away from home in a foreign land. With passports, money, credit card, and the only debit card we brought along this trip, all seemingly gone forever, I was almost in tears. I wasn't sure what was going to happen. Massimo, told me not to fret and after a little friendly jabbing, called the driver. Language here is Arabic or French, most people learn both starting in primary school. I'm proficient in neither, so a slurry of words being exchanged that sounded promising was all I heard. He had the bag! Let me repeat, he had the bag! I went with Georgina, Massimo's wife, to pick it up along with a very nice tip. The streets so full of life, energy moving every which way, its hard not to be distracted. The driver was just as elated to receive the tip, as I was to receive my bag. Everything was right in my world again and my heart was finally starting to slow down, panic attack was averted. We arrived back at the riad with smiles and a great lesson learned. The people here are wonderful, nice and friendly, and just as curious about us as we are about them. Most are not here to rip you off but make a living like the rest of humanity. 

The place we are staying in Marrakech is the Riad le Clos des Arts. I highly recommend it if you are going to be visiting Marrakech. A Riad was once a single family home built around an open courtyard. Most are now being converted into hotels, ours has 7 rooms to choose from, all decorated and themed in different colors. Georgina and Massimo, the owners, have put so much into making this a wonderful stay and are the most helpful with finding things to do and places to eat. We also got some tips and pointers from them about navigating the Souks. 

This Riad even had a pool on the top floor. It isn't a big pool but after walking around in the heat for hours, it is a welcomed sight. This is where we enjoyed breakfast most days too. There was a small kitchen on the roof as well as the main floor. This made distributing food easier. 

Ours was theTurquoise suit, including its own bathroom and a little extra living space. It was beautiful with so much attention paid to the details. I felt like a princess staying here.