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| Lemons are growing inside the riad, absorbing last night’s rain, a rare exception, and reaching for the sun that shines most days through the open roof of the center courtyard. |
Living in Dar Aicha is delightful in so many ways, all of which we take time to appreciate; little birds flying and walking about in the courtyard; sunshine streaming through the opening to light and warm the courtyard; comfortable rooms and furnishings; the finest bed and covers one could imagine; en suite bathrooms with powerful water pressure and hot water and the finest staff in the land.
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Water on the floor as the rain began last night.
 The placement of the furnishing and draperies prevent anything from getting wet. As a precaution, we moved our scattered electrical equipment undercover. |
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| We continue to explore beyond the crowds in the most popular souk, finding interesting nooks and crannies. |
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| A table of shoes likely to appeal more to the locals than the tourists. In the more popular souk, many of the shoes have well-known labels and are arranged to catch the eye of the tourist, while this is a more functional display with lower prices. |
It is definitely usual for it to be raining into one’s house other than if, God forbid, a roof is torn off in a tornado or hurricane or if a roof is worn and leaking severely, which we’ve definitely experienced in our travels. A free-flowing rain inside the house, such as we experienced last night, was unusual even for us.
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| Colorful scarves are a commonly worn accessory by the local women and in many cases, by the men as well. |
It started on Sunday night when a mysterious wind whipped up around 9:00 pm that brought us out into the open courtyard from the cozy comfort of the salon as we watched a movie on my laptop. The sudden sound of wind swirling about startled us.
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| The narrow streets away from the tourist areas, attract the locals in search of food and clothing. |
As we stood in the courtyard, leaves blew around the courtyard as billowy curtains flew about. As we watched each other’s hair blowing while inside the riad, we both chuckled over the odd phenomenon.
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| This little square offered outdoor dining with lower prices on food than in the Big Square. Overall, the cost of dining out in Morocco is reasonable with only a few higher-priced establishments. |
Loud noises came from the rooftop as lawn chairs and other items flew in the high winds. At one point, Tom went up to the roof to investigate if something was wrong. Nothing was. Quickly, he returned back inside, securing the door behind him. I had visions of him flying off the roof.
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| Heading back to the Big Square we noticed more clouds rolling in. |
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Tom made the mistake of wearing a short-sleeve shirt as the weather turned. We’d wished we’d both worn our jackets as we continue to adapt to the cooler weather. Soon, Morocco will warm up as spring nears, much to our pleasure.
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Last night, Monday, there was little wind, but it began raining lightly around 8:00 pm. Tom, with his hearing problem (a result of 42 years on the noisy railroad) didn’t hear it when I did, as the droplets of rain began clinking onto the brass fountain in the center of the courtyard.
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| Many orange juice carts are available in the Big Square, offering fresh-squeezed juice. |
We bolted off the sofa in the salon, standing on the edges of the room under the overhang as we watched the rain sprinkling into the room. With some of our power cords and strips scattered about the second-floor lounge, we ran upstairs moving everything undercover, just in case. What if that wind returned while it rained?
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Daily, the outdoor food tents are reconstructed after the necessity of taking them down every night to make way for the daytime street vendors. What a huge amount of work for owners and their workers!
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Later heading to bed, the sprinkling ended and we didn’t give it another thought. At 3:00 am, I was awakened by the sound of pouring rain with an occasional burst of thunder. The rain was pelting into the house through the open roof in the courtyard.
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| As we return to the more popular souk, the streets are lined with colorful merchandise. |
Jumping out of bed, I looked over the second-floor railing and yes, indeed, it was pouring rain. With nothing out of order, I returned to bed and soon back to sleep. This morning, although the fountain had some standing water and the stone floor was soaking wet, nothing was out of order.
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| Many of the vendors object when I’ve attempted to take photos of their displays. As a result, we try to take photos when the opportunity arises with less resistance. |
Need I say, all and all, it was a pleasant, albeit unusual experience. But, then again, many of our experiences as we’ve traveled the world, are “different” from life as we knew it in the past while living in a cocoon of familiarity, consistency, and comfort. How that has all changed.
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| Various souvenirs that may appeal to the shoppers. |
As for yesterday, we headed out in the late afternoon for a hike around the souk and Medina in search of a restaurant. Spoiled from Madame Zahra’s fine cooking, we continue to struggle to find restaurant food appealing, especially befitting my way of eating and Tom’s picky taste buds.
We’re committed to continuing to try a different restaurant every other day, at least until we feel repeats of favorites are in order. Last night’s dinner at a new location was mediocre at best. Most assuredly, many tourists would have found it to be exotic and delicious.
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| This similar costume is found on many men we’ve seen in the Big Square. He is referred to as a “water boy” from the period when the nomads came across the desert needing water. These costumes indicated that he was the provider for water. Now, with less of a need for providing water, he poses for photos for a small sum, while still carrying the cups and supplies for the water to add to his authenticity. |
In truth, our personal limitations do tend to hinder our enjoyment of the local flavors wherever we may travel. As we’ve stated in many prior posts that we have resigned to the fact that food around the world is less important to us, as it may be to other travelers. It is through this acceptance that we’re able to revel in the food that we can and do eat while focusing our attention on many other aspects of traveling the world.
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| This sign atop the building apparently says, “Welcome to Marrakech.” Why Marrakech is upside down baffles us. |
As we sit here this morning, delicious coffee in hand, we’re content that we’re dining in tonight for yet another authentic Moroccan meal lovingly prepared to our tastes by dedicated master chef Madame Zahra.
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| Another of our favorite meals prepared by Madame Zahra for Sunday night’s dinner including, from the left at the salad, clockwise; salad with radishes, cucumbers, celery, onions and lettuce; cooked, seasoned zucchini; (center) my favorite, egg battered and fried Aubergine (eggplant); another favorite, fried egg battered cauliflower; and Tom’s fried egg battered potatoes, which, along with chips, he particularly likes. |
A painful task I must begin to tackle today is the preparation of the worksheet for our accountant for our 2013 taxes, due to be filed on April 15th. As the record keeper in the family, I had taken on this daunting task as soon as Tom and I were married 19 years ago.
So, today I begin, allowing myself two days to complete the task, forwarding everything to the accountant by late tomorrow. Having already logged all of our deductible receipts, hopefully, it won’t be as intimidating as it feels at the moment.
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| This dish was Lamb Tagine which I absolutely loved. Tom, on the other hand, is less inclined toward lamb. Much to my surprise, he ate a portion, leaving the remainder for me. |
Without a doubt, this is a painful reminder to those US citizens with this job hanging over their heads. Once completed, the sense of relief will be profound when we’ll be able to relax and we’ll be able to arrange sightseeing outside of the Medina.
Our commitment to continuing to provide new photos each day is ongoing, amid our other responsibilities. May your day be filled with a sense of accomplishment, as we too strive for the same.