After three nights in Fez, we hired a local to drive us to Marrakech, the other of the two most ancient royal cities. Its old medina is not quite so amazing as Fez's, but it has a gigantic square filled with food stalls, snake charmers, monkey trainers, fortune tellers, dancers, boxers, story tellers, acrobats, magicians, and henna tattoo artists. Ever wanted to try one of those sheep heads? Here's your chance. Wash it down with a large glass of freshly squeezed orange juice for about 35 cents. As an appetizer, try a bowl of snails, about a buck. The goat stew is very tasty, as is the lentil soup, which will put you back about 35 cents. Watch out for those snake charmers -- they are very persistent for tips, especially if you take a picture. Marrakech also has a charming new city (built by the French) and many lovely gardens.
After two nights in Marrakech, we left for a two-day trek in the High Atlas Mountains, including a climb up the highest peak in North Africa, Jebel Toubkal, 13,670 feet. Wow! We started at a Berber village called Imlil, where we met our guide, who took us to his home where we had breakfast with his folks while he made arrangements for a pack mule. The trek to the Toubkal refuge (at about 10,000 feet) took about six hours, including lunch at a rest stop (Berber style) along the way. We started the climb the next morning at 5:30AM and it took about three hours to get to the summit. What an adventure!
