Marrakesh Is Something You Experience

Marrakesh is one of those places that’s hard to explain properly until you’re standing in the middle of it.

The Medina feels like an entirely different world. Narrow alleyways twisting in every direction, scooters squeezing through impossible gaps, carts being pushed through crowds, smoke rolling out of food stalls, woodworking shops covered in dust, people trying to sell you rugs, lanterns, spices or leather goods every few metres. It’s loud, chaotic and full on from the moment you step inside.

And honestly, I wouldn’t say we loved Marrakesh.

But I’m really glad we experienced it.

I think it’s probably one of those places that anyone travelling to Morocco should see at least once because there really is nowhere else like it. The souks are incredible to walk through. Every corner looks different. Lanterns hanging overhead, colourful rugs stacked high, giant bowls of spices, tiny workshops tucked into old buildings that look like they’ve been there forever.

But at the same time, it’s intense.

You don’t really switch off there. Even a simple walk turns into sensory overload after a while. We’d usually come back to our accommodation mentally drained after a few hours wandering through the Medina. There’s just so much happening all at once. The noise, the movement, people constantly trying to get your attention, scooters weaving through tiny alleyways, smoke, dust, smells and crowds everywhere you turn.

Maddie actually really liked Marrakesh. She loved the colours, the markets and how different it all felt compared to anywhere else we’ve been. But even she said the souks felt claustrophobic at times because of how narrow everything is and how tightly packed all the shops and people are inside the alleyways.

Emmett thought Marrakesh was cool too, but said it was a bit too busy and crowded. He was pretty stoked about the amount of crepe stalls around the Medina though and loved seeing the monkeys and the cobra snake charmers in Jemaa el-Fnaa.

As adults though, it felt very different watching it.

The monkeys were dressed up and posed for photos, clearly aimed at tourists and kids, but all we could really see was the chains around their necks and the way they were being pulled around. We spoke to a local about the cobras as well and he alluded to the fact that they were “sleepy”. Reading between the lines, we assumed they were likely drugged or sedated in some way to make them less aggressive and easier to handle.

We tried to stay away from those shows where we could because it just didn’t align with the way we see animals and how they should be treated.

One thing that surprised us was the weather. Everyone talks about Morocco like it’s blisteringly hot, but while we were there it was actually pretty mild. Warm during the day, but definitely not what I’d call hot. Once the sun dropped, it cooled off quickly.

The food prices surprised us too. Before arriving in Morocco, I think we expected Marrakesh to be really cheap, but it was definitely more expensive than we thought, especially around the tourist areas. Still cheaper than Australia obviously, but nowhere near the bargain prices we’d imagined beforehand.

The people generally seemed friendly enough, but there’s also an energy in Marrakesh that’s hard to explain. Not aggressive exactly, but there’s definitely a toughness or attitude in the air that you notice pretty quickly walking through the streets and markets.

It also very much felt like a man’s world. Men dominated most public spaces, cafés and businesses in the Medina and you don’t see many women around in the same way you do in a lot of other countries we’ve travelled through.

That’s not necessarily criticism, just an observation from our time there.

We only spent a few days staying inside the Medina itself before moving out to a more residential area just outside the old city walls. That side of Marrakesh felt very different again. Rougher, dirtier and far less polished than the tourist-heavy areas.

One thing that stood out immediately was the amount of cats everywhere. Cats roaming the streets, sick kittens, injured cats, dead cats on the roadside. It honestly felt overwhelming at times.

When we first arrived at our accommodation outside the Medina, the stairwell smelled heavily of cat poo and urine because cats had clearly been sheltering in there away from the heat during the day.

It was hard not to notice it constantly after that.

It made everything feel a little dirtier and sadder in a way. A lot of the cats looked unhealthy and not particularly cared for, which was difficult to see as animal lovers.

There also seemed to be quite a lot of poverty throughout Marrakesh. We regularly had people asking us for money, food scraps or asking us to buy them things while we were eating breakfast or walking through the streets. Once we understood what people were asking for, we always tried to help where we could.

The language barrier definitely made things difficult at times though. Marrakesh feels very much French and Arabic first, far more than English. Simple conversations could become tricky pretty quickly if neither side fully understood each other. “Tricky,” as Emmett put it.

One thing we noticed with both Morocco and Vietnam was how much attention Emmett received as a blonde-haired little boy. Locals constantly smiled at him, spoke to him, touched his hair or tried interacting with him. It definitely felt like boys were favoured socially more than girls in a lot of situations, something we noticed in Vietnam as well.

The city itself feels old and rough around the edges. Quite dirty in parts too. There’s dust floating through the air constantly from the streets, woodworking shops and everything happening around you. My lungs definitely weren’t a fan of it. I ended up with a cough that hung around for quite a while afterwards and my chest just felt irritated from breathing everything in.

As a family, I don’t think Marrakesh is somewhere we could stay long term. A few days felt like enough for us. But at the same time, I’m glad we saw it properly instead of skipping through quickly.

There are moments there that stay with you. Sitting on rooftops listening to the call to prayer echo across the city. Walking through the souks at night while smoke pours out of the food stalls. Watching the chaos of Jemaa el-Fnaa unfold after dark.

Marrakesh isn’t relaxing.

It’s something you experience.