All aboard the train: The Marrakesh Express !

8:30
The A/C unit is set to MAX heating output, but my feet are still icicles..... those floor tiles never seem to get warm.... there is a good reason that this is the area where CARPETS come from, LOL.

Breakfast is the same....only today the eggs are still warm and there is black olives in addition to the green ones ;-)

I was going to see the mosaics at Mahkama du Pasha today..... but given the coming rain and this new translating work this is something I will have to leave for the next time.....

9:30
I finally understand a LITTLE why Americans are SO AFRAID of terror.  It's the CONSTANT news coverage of rare explosions (just THINK how many people DIE in CAR accidents every DAY and compare that to terror victims).  When I see this vehicle pulling up in front of the reception of my hotel....

....I actually pull the curtains closed, just in case a pressure wave will shatter my windows. 
NOT a good thing!   There are no fates worse than living in FEAR !

10:15 
The hourly weather forecast is scarily accurate:  It's raining in Africa!

11:00
It's POURING out there now, LOL.... NOT the weather I was expecting when I envisioned this trip.

12:00
Check-out time..... It's raining slightly when I walk to the bus stop....

...the bus is supposed to run every 15 minutes but I notice that people who have been waiting for a few minutes try to secure rides with the shared Petit Taxis..... 

Is the bus not running today? 

 I keep looking at my watch...  I don't want to miss my train at 12:55...

 After 20 minutes of waiting, I do it.....
A woman just asked a taxi with one person already in it and he's apparently not going her way because she's not getting in.... 'Gare Voyageurs' I shout over her shoulder into the open window and he nods at the seat next to him.  

I'm more than a little proud of myself. 
I have got myself a seat in a shared taxi, LOL.
The driver heads towards Gare Voyageur and drops the woman in the back seat off in her street.  
I pay 10 MAD (1 US$) for my share of the ride (God only knows how the driver divvies it up...)

waiting ....

NOT my train

13:05
The train is only 10 minutes late ;-)  Again there is WiFi but no internet at the station ;-(  

My 1er classe compartment is full of Westerners.

5 Germans (actually there are 2 Swiss, but unfortunately I count as German myself) and one Arab.  At some point ALL FOUR GERMANS SPEAKERS who are NOT me, are texting or doing something on their cell phones all at once.  The whole atmosphere in the compartment screams "DO NOT talk to each other !" While at the same time I can hear AND understand every word of the conversation in the compartment behind me, LOL. It's mind-boggling, LOL

Yummy peppered Turkey !

This is one of those toilets where you still pee directly onto the tracks !
The door locks don't actually work....
BUT:  they DO have toilet paper 

Agriculture?  I was expecting desert !

....the desert shows up an hour later...

I guess some people like to eat olives while they're sitting on the loo?

And then when the train takes a last turn and enters a large plain with Marrakesh at the center, I don't believe my eyes.....

Those ARE SNOW-covered Mountains!   Meet Atlas !

Gare Marrakesh 

NOT the actual date palm... pilfered from the net

Time to walk to the hotel:

I'm walking along the path and step on something squishy....
golden honey to brown colour.  

NO WAY! It CAN'T be !

I look back and up and there it is:  A date palm tree. 


I'm walking on dates, LOL.



The first thing to do after checking in, is:

Walk over to my nearest Label'Vie to buy wine and munchies.... fortunately it's just around the block...... 

the usual HIDDEN entrance to the booze section

Ronaldo almost blushes when he shakes his head in answer to my question whether there is a cork screw.  Obviously it's a religious thing, but there is more to it:  Imagine if someone asked a Western receptionist for a sharp knife to slaughter their dog in their hotel room.  

20:00
I think I should get a decent meal before going to bed..... let's see what I can find ....

The restaurant I saw from my balcony is just a coffee, tea & cake establishment.... this is Morocco, so it's packed. 

The second one I walk by is a CLUB with tall men in black suits guarding the entrance... NON, Merci ;-)
There is another place..... I put on my glasses to study the menu ... it looks good.... an employee points at the menu and says "only Moroccan food" ..
LOL. Is that supposed to scare me off?  I didn't come to Morocco to eat at Burger King....

It's NICE here ;-)   

A lounge-type atmosphere..... I'm not hungry enough today for a Tajine so I'll get a Salade Nicoise ;-)  By now I've had enough wine this evening (and they don't serve any anyway), so I get the The Special (I've had enough of The a la Menthe by now), whatever that might be....

OMG, it's GOOD!  I have no idea what I'm tasting exactly but its AMAZING; it smells a bit like a men's eau de cologne ;-)

 WTF?  The Salad comes with an appetizer?   Warm bread with lentils !

 LOL, the Salade Nicoise is to DIE FOR...  I will DEFINITELY come back here tomorrow ;-)