Morocco Travel Guide

HISTORIC    SITE

crammed artisans’   studios.

Follow  Rue el-Mouassine    north   until   you reach   an  intersection    with    Rue el-Ksour,   which   heads   left    under   an  arch.   Here    you

can take    a   shopping    detour  loop    west    along   Rue el-Ksour    to   Al-Kawtar  and  Kif-Kif    and back    to  Rue el-Mouassine    via

Rue Sidi    el-Yamani.  Otherwise,  continue    north   past    the Mouassine   mosque  entrance    on  your    right   and look    for a   sign    for 

Dar Cherifa at  your    next    left.   Signs   will    point   you left,   then    right   under   an  archway to  this    15th-century    showplace,  where   you

can enjoy   mint    tea in  Saadian-stuccoed    splendour.  Head    back    to  Rue el-Mouassine    and follow  your    rumbling    stomach north

past    the  Mouassine  Fountain    to   Terrasse   des Épices  .   Go  right   to  the top floor,  flop    on  a   couch,  and watch   the sun

set on  your    glorious    afternoon   in  Marrakesh.

Saadian Tombs

Offline map Google  map (   Rue de  la  Kasbah; admission   Dh10;    9am-4.45pm)    Anyone  who says

you can’t take it with you hasn’t seen the Saadian Tombs, near the Kasbah Mosque. Saadian
Sultan Ahmed al-Mansour ed-Dahbi spared no expense on his tomb, importing Italian Carrara
marble and gilding honeycomb muqarnas (stalactite plasterwork) with pure gold to make the
Chamber of the 12 Pillars a suitably glorious mausoleum.

Hidden Passages

Al-Mansour died in splendour in 1603, but a few decades later, Alawite Sultan Moulay Ismail
walled up the Saadian Tombs to keep his predecessors out of sight and mind. Accessible only
through a small passage in the Kasbah Mosque, the tombs were neglected by all except the
storks until aerial photography exposed them in 1917. You can wander around the compound
solo, or engage a guide at the entryway to explain what you’re seeing (customary tip Dh15to
Dh20).

Courtyard Tombs

Al-Mansour played favourites even in death, keeping alpha-male princes handy in the Chamber
of the Three Niches, and relegating to garden plots some 170 chancellors and wives – though
some trusted Jewish advisors earned pride of place, literally closer to the king’s heart than his
wives or sons. All tombs are overshadowed by his mother’s mausoleum in the courtyard,
carved with poetic, weathered blessings and vigilantly guarded by stray cats.

DJEMAA EL-FNA DINNER THEATRE

Arrive  just    before  sunset  to  watch   chefs   set up  shop    right   in  the heart   of  the action  in  the Djemaa  el-Fna. Djemaa  stalls  have    a

better  turnover    of  ingredients than    most    fancy   restaurants,    where   you can’t   typically   check   the meat    and cooking oil before  you

sit down    to  dinner. Despite alarmist    warnings,   your    stomach should  be  fine    if  you clean   your    hands   before  eating, use your

bread   instead of  rinsed  utensils    and stick   to  your    own bottled water.

Pull    up  a   bench   and enjoy   the show:   the action  continues   in  ‘La Place’  until   after   midnight.   Storytellers    recite  ancient tales

near    dentists’   booths  displaying  jars    of  teeth,  not far from    a   performance involving   clowns  and worryingly  amateur boxers.

Some    of  the Djemaa’s    evening entertainments  haven’t changed much    in  a   millennium, including   astrologers,    potion-sellers

and cross-dressing  belly   dancers.