13 December, from Ouarzazate to Marrakesh, 193 klm, 3.30 h

On the road to Marrakesh, there is a city (Ksar) made of clay and straw, called Ait Benhaddou. It is a Unesco Heritage site and many films where filmed here. According to Wikipedia some of the films include Jesus of Nazareth, The Last Temptation, Gladiator, Alexander as well as some of the Game of Thrones scenes. 

Last night Pascal told us that it is free to enter the city and we should not follow any of the kids trying to get money for a tour. It is early in the morning, so there are not a lot of tourists yet. We leave the car and start walking towards the city. Tourist shops everywhere. 

There is a shop owner who asks K. if we are with the group ahead of us. We are not. The guy asks him for a favor. He makes us go in his shop and asks K. to write a letter in french. Despite thinking it's a scam to make us buy stuff from his shop, we realise there is sn scam.The guy wants to write a letter to invite his french friends at his sisters' wedding. I look aroud the shop, but there is nothing that I like... K. wants to make a joke and asks the guy for money for his service. The guy does not really understand the joke. We leave.

In the entrance there is an old lady who wants money for the visit. Although the hotel guy strictly said it is free, K. jumps right into the trap and we both pay to go up a 2 stories ruin in the entrance of the city! It was a "museum". We go up and take photos. We paid for it. It is really interesting the way they built and see that from up close.

When we go down, we enter the city but we decide not to go very far inside it because we have a long road ahead and we have been told that the route is not that easy, because we will be entering the atlas and we will encounter broken roads from rocks which fell. 

We take the last pictures of this wonderful fortress and we hit the road once again. 

And the road once again is really stunning. 

And the compilation of the small videos I mad on the road to Marrakesh.

As we approach Marrakesh, we see villages, more and more cars, more and more population, more and more strange things on cars like animals. The best was four donkeys on a small truck.

For the rest of the day, I have no photos, and no videos. 

Everything is in my memory and I will try to decribe them as well as I can.

According to our contract, we have to give back the car tomorrow morning at ten. We don't want to wait the last moment so we decide to go to the hotel, leave our luggage and go give the car. We don't really need it in Marrakesh. 

Maps.me has become my friend by now and I put in the name of the riad.

As we approach Marrakesh, things become more crazy. Cars, motorcycles, bicycles, donkeys, horses, everywhere you look there is danger. The GPS takes us inside the walls in the medina. Three times more crazy. There are roadworks, in the medina, impossible to reach the riad by car. It is hot, it is dusty, it is a real rollercoaster! 

Change of plans. We will give back the car.

In the crazy roads of Marrakesh, I don't even think to take our my camera, I need to stay focused to find the Hertz agency as well as a gas station to put some gasoline into the car before giving it back. 

With a combination of focus, intuition, gps and determination, as well as prayers that we will not have an accident in this crazy driving city, we find the agency. 

We double park and I go out to the agency.

Nobody is there.

The guy next door calls the agency guy.

We need to go to the Airport.

Deep breath, change of plans.

We go to the airport, it is not so far away. 

Everything is ok with the car.

There is a bus into the city with a free return ticket for Thursday, the day of our flight go back home.

In the bus we take a breath, released of this stress of driving around in the city.

The bus leaves us in front of the medina gates. Our riad is 5-10 minutes on foot.

Maps.me shows us the way. 

Maps.me takes us in the parking lot of a Lyceum. 

There is a lady there, who speaks French and has internet. She tells us we need to find the mosque called Bab Doukkala. Our riad is near this mosque.

Two persons with luggage on wheels are an easy pray for the locals. 

I put on my bad girl face and lead the road.

The only thing I do is go straight ahead, say Bab Doukkala with a hand nod in this direction. I get positive nods and I continue like a pro. 

We arrive at Bab Doukkala. 

There are taxi people there and K. talks to them in all his human trust. There is a guy who asks about our reservation an I want to ignore him. I take K. by the hand, leave these aggressive guys behind, hide behind the mosque and call the riad.

A lovely girl who speaks english will come and take us.

We stay at the side of the mosque and wait. 

Our energy and patience are running out, we have been driving for hours in the Atrlas mountains, we have been driving around the city in the heat and dust, we need to rest. Being the team that we are, we do not lose our shit, we keep talking calmly between us and wait.

An old guy sees us and tells us the girl from the riad will not find us if we stay on the side of the mosque. Are they watching us these people?

The mosque is literaly very small, so in 2 moinutes you can go around it. The riad lady could do just that.

I don't know why, but we listen to the old man and we return in the front of the mosque where all the aggressive taxi people are. 

The guy from before sees K. and shouts I found your riad! I will show you where it is!

I am very surprised and I DON'T WANT his help. 

I look at my man, I tell him the girl from the riad is coming to get us, my man gives me a helpless nod and follows the aggressive taxi guy. The only thing I can do is follow from a distance. I am angry, frustrated, tired, dusty, sweating and the scenario in my head is that this guy will take us to a small backstreet and he will take out a knife and he will take all our money.

We follow him in a small back street and he knocks on a door and it is the riad. We say thank you and try to get in but he tells us he wants money for his services. 

We don't have any morrocan money left, just 3 euros worth of moroccan money. It is not enough and the guy becomes aggresive, he wants at least five euros. He walked for 5 minutes with us, he did nothing to deserve this! The riad host speaks arabic, tries to reason with the aggressive taxi man. 

I take out three euros european money, give it to him and he goes away.

We get into the riad.

Our host Hassan knows what is going on in Marrakesh. 

He repeatedly says we are safe here and offers us mint tea. 

The riad is very quiet. 

A riad is an ancient home, with a garden in the middle and rooms overlooking an open space. There is a terrace overlooking the city, where you can go and relax when the weather is nice. It is a wonder how the riad keeps the noise of the city out, it is calm and quiet.   

Hassan waits until we calm down and process what happened. He then gives us a tour of the house. He also gives us a seminar on how to move in Marrakesh, what to do, what not to do and what to avoid. It is very helpful and reassuring.

In Marrakesh:

You don't engage in conversation.

You don't ask for prices.

You don't let the ladies in the square Jemaa el Fna take your hand for a henna tatoo.

You smile and continue your road.

We put on our cold faces and go out to walk and eat. 

After a nice meal at the terrace of a restaurant called Jaman Food (see the joke?) this crazy day is over.

We can go to sleep.

Tomorow is a new day.