We had almost decided to go to Barcelona and Valencia for this year's holiday when Marrakech made a late appearance in the running and completed an admirable sprint finish to be Destination 2013. Choosing the hotel was equally as difficult and just when we thought we had made our decision Al Mendili popped up on the radar. I can't possibly judge it against the 'also rans' but I am certainly glad we came here.
We are staying in the Chaar el Assel room overlooking the Atlas Mountains. It's name means Honeymoon but we only learned that when we arrived!
http://www.almendili.com/en/elassel.php
This link is a photo of the room and I am sitting in that comfy chair right at this minute!
There are only 10 rooms in the hotel, or riad as they are called here. It is run by a delightful French couple, Catherine and Alain who are wonderful, caring hosts. A car picked us up from the airport and we were welcomed at the riad by Catherine and Alain and served with local mint tea and a wet towel to freshen up. Through halting French and English we introduced ourselves and were shown to our suite.
Dinner was served on the rooftop terrace with the stars twinkling overhead and Venus shining brightly over Marrakech in the distance. Meals here are slightly unusual as there is no menu. The waiter serves what the chef prepares which may be disconcerting for some but Catherine had asked if we had any allergies or dislikes and the kitchen would have been informed if there was an alternative required. We are pretty much omnivores and I have to say, the food is delicious. To accompany the meal we asked the waiter to recommend a local vin gris, a specialty of Morocco and Algiers. And very nice it was, too!
This morning we asked for breakfast to be served on our private terrace overlooking the Atlas mountains. Basically, it seems you can eat wherever you want if you give the staff notice in advance and there is no extra charge. Lunch was eaten by the pool where we had spent most of the morning after a stroll round the garden. Catherine arranged for a taxi to collect us after lunch to go into the Medina, the central part of the city.
Our driver was very friendly and spoke French clearly and slowly so I could understand. He dropped us off near the Koutoubia mosque which we wandered around (not allowed in on account of being non Muslim and, in my case, non male). There are some nicely laid out gardens at the back of the mosque where we tried to find some shade from the 30 degree heat.
The central square, Djemaa el Fna, is nearby. Its name, according to my guide book means 'Place of the Dead or Place of the Apocalypse. Not encouraging! It is a bustling place with market stalls, beggars, snake charmers and street vendors of all kinds. I got grabbed by a henna tattooist who had henna on my hand even as I was saying 'la, shukran' (no, thank-you)! I managed to get away! Not all tourists are so efficient at avoiding the aggressive sales pitches. As we sat on the terrace of Le Grand Balcon I saw a caleche driver draw in a couple who obviously felt it was rude not to stop to speak. Very quickly he had them in his caleche and was trotting off with them!
Our driver collected us at the appointed time and place and returned us to the riad. It is now time for a cocktail methinks.
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