What Challenging Working Conditions...

Another morning with Youssef guiding us through the tanneries of Marrakesh. An area on the outskirts of the city, so situated to be near the river and where the prevailing wind blows the smell away. It was interesting to see the process of treatment from animal skin to soft leather but oh my what challenging working conditions and they were paid by the skin, so no room for rests, holiday, illness or having lazy day!

From there we walked to the Jewish Quarter and visited the Jewish Cemetery, where in place of flowers, visitors would lay a stone on the grave (extra), it was interesting to hear how the Jews are totally integrated into the local population and when the king of Morocco was told to ‘give up his Jews’ in WW2 he told them ‘there were no Jews in Morocco only Moroccans’. We stopped in Youssef’s local bakery to watch the bread being baked from dough made by locals and taken to the bakery for baking, it tasted delicious and as this was where Youssef was brought up we were able to visit his family home in the process being renovated.

We walked back into the old Médina for dinner in the evening and to watch the sunset over the square from a rooftop restaurant and to experience the town after dark. The sunset wasn’t so spectacular but the hubbub of the square after dark was something to behold with street food markets, storytellers, musicians and people selling everything from metal lanterns sprayed with silver paint to dead chameleons, olive oil and live miniature tortoises and the noise was nothing like I have ever heard before, it was a fabulous place to be.