January 19, 2004

Kenifra - Marrakech

We left Kenifra early this morning for Marrakech. It took us most of the day to get there, because we stopped every hour to either use the restroom or eat. Our stops were rather drawn out, because, at every stop, our guides sat down to tea. When we got to the hotel, our room hadn’t been made up yet. So, I convinced one of the guides to take me to a silver shop. It was the last gift I really needed to buy, and I didn’t want to risk not having the time or the money to buy it. This was by far the most rewarding shopping experience I’ve had this trip. There was not an overwhelming amount of pressure. I told the owner what I was looking for; he pointed it out, and then allowed me to peruse the items on my own. When I was finished, he let Dawn and I just wander the store and admire the artwork and the craftsmanship without any hassle to buy. I asked the salesman if he had any sort of student discount for poor students traveling around the world without a lot of money who still needed to buy their grandparents a gift, and he dropped the price over 30 dirhams!

Dinner at the hotel was a huge buffet, and we went back for course after course. Incredibly tired, our clean, warm beds were wonderful to fall into.