Leaving Morocco

11:30 am, Marrakech airport

After 8 days, it's time to leave Morocco and on to Portugal. While I'm very excited about the next part of my trip, I have mixed feelings about leaving here.

True, this country is a pain in the ass at times. But there's something so unique, so authentically exotic and (for Americans at least) undiscovered about this country, that I feel like there is a lot I haven't seen. I always try to strike a balance between breadth and depth of experience, and I think I got it right this time, but I leave feeling there is so much more left to see. I didn't get to the Sahara, or Meknes, or Rabat, or Tangier, and I feel like I could have driven around for another week and found something exciting around every bend. So in that sense I hope that someday I will come back and finish what I started. But I'm leaving on a positive note, and with some distance I expect the memories will only get better.

I have to admit, I owe a big part of my good experience in Marrakech to the riad I stayed at. It was such an international, but English-speaking group, both the staff and the guests. Unlike anywhere else I've stayed, the common area truly was that - almost like a public family room. I'd go out there to read or catch up on email, and find myself sidetracked for hours having mint tea and talking with the Irish couple, or the English couple, or the American girl who arrived yesterday whom I really bonded with. We talked for about two hours about Morocco, traveling in general, etc and we ended up going to the square together to have dinner. I introduced her to some Moroccan dishes and we walked around for a little while after that. It's funny how quickly you bond with someone when you're so far from home and have just a few things in common.

I have to talk about the square for a bit. It's called Djemma El-Fna, and it's without question the nerve center of the entire country. It's a huge, irregular open space that feels like a combination between a park, a carnival, a craft fair and an open-air cafe. Unlike a lot of public spaces I've been to, although a tourist attraction it was obviously also a huge draw for ordinary Moroccans, too. During the day it's largely open space, with lots of street entertainment (magicians, snake charmers, fortune tellers, traditional musicians and the like) but when the sun sets the stalls are set up. Oh, the stalls!! Every kind of food and drink imaginable is available, from boiled snails (gross) to goat heads to orange juice to tagines to kebabs to spice cake, and so on. It's all dirt cheap -I ate dinner every night there and pigged out, but somehow never spent more than 8 or 9 bucks. I could have spent my entire time in Marrakech there and never gotten bored.

I haven't had a drink in over a week now, and what's funny is I haven't missed it one bit. It's just not something you crave here - the country is already such an assault on the senses that it almost would be a waste to drink here for fear of missing some experience (or getting suckered into buying a carpet or something!). It ought to be quite an interesting transition, from a dry country to one that is very wine-centric. I'm sure I won't have too much trouble adjusting, though! :-)

I'd better get wrapped up, it's almost time to board. More from Portugal in a bit!!