Mental note: when arriving in Morocco, have your hotel's phone number and address in Arabic. Also, I only just made both my flights out of Barcelona and Madrid. Barcelona airport is slow. Also, you can't get dirhams in Spain or change Australian dollars in Morocco.
My arrival in Marrakesh was stressful and chaotic, to say the least. A taxi driver dropped me off near my riad (guesthouse), then, in short, it took three guides and an hour of wandering the streets with my luggage to find the place. Good thing it's completely lovely, all rugs, couches, and frankly astonishing tiling that I guess is just typical here.
After some recovery time, I explored the souks, heading towards the main square, Djemma el-Fna. Moroccan streets are like what happens without any planning whatsoever - crowded, haphazard, completely fascinating, and utterly confusing - you could compare it with a maze, but at least a maze has a solution.
I reached Djemma el-Fna, which was quiet when I arrived, but as the sun set, it filled with food stalls, orange juice stands, henna painters, musicians and more (though none of the acrobats and snake charmers promised by Lonely Planet). Had dinner at one of the stands. Was a living ad for the owners: "look! There's a eating here, it's safe!"
Walked home, promptly got lost. After a while, reluctantly enlisted help. My guide took me to the wrong place at first, then took me back to where we started and told me directions. After much negotiating, I was scammed out of 150Dh (about A$20). Finally got home feeling overwhelmed and a bit defeated. Will get a better map tomorrow and avoid navigating through the souks.
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