April 4, 2025

Marrakech, Morocco

Zalagh Kasbah Hoel & Spa

Good morning. At just before it had gone 06:00 the phone started making a noise. At first, I thought it was the fire alarm. I picked up the phone and discovered a voice speaking to me in French. Then it dawned on my this was a wake-up call Moroccan style.  Of course, I was already awake.

I did take the opportunity to get out of bed and head to the shower. Aziz said he was going to ask them to start breakfast at 06:45 instead of 07:00 as we have to all be On the motor coach at 08:00 for our tour of the Majorelle Gardens for which we have entrance tickets at 08:30.

Breakfast was the usually Moroccan fare. They did have scrambled eggs here, but they had no flavor at all. Salt and pepper didn’t help and there was no ketchup to help out. The croissants were a little better than the previous place, less bread like and more croissant like. The machine-made cappuccino was still not right.

I took Mary as breakfast roll of an indiscriminate type so she could have something to take her morning medication with. When I returned to the room just after it has gone 07:15 she was just beginning to stir. We got dressed for today excursion and headed to the motor coach at 07:45.

There was still one person who couldn’t make it to the coach by 08:00. We were getting ready to pull out of the hotel parking lot and leave her behind when she appeared in the doorway of the hotel. We made it to the Majorelle Gardens just in the nick of time for our 08:30 reservation.

Aziz wanted to do the gardens first this morning before it got really crowded. Thank goodness that was the place because there were already a lot of people there.

The Majorelle Garden was designed by the French artist, Jacques Majorelle (1886–1962). As a young aspiring painter, Jacques Majorelle was sent to Morocco in around 1917 to convalesce from a serious medical condition. After spending a short time in Casablanca, he travelled to Marrakech and like many of his contemporaries, fell in love with the vibrant colors and street life he found there. After travelling around North Africa and the Mediterranean, he eventually decided to settle permanently in Marrakech.

During his lifetime, Majorelle earned a reputation as a celebrated Orientalist painter. The special shade of bold cobalt blue, inspired by the colored tiles he had seen around Marrakech and in Berber burnouses, was used extensively in the garden and its buildings and is named after him, bleu Majorelle—Majorelle Blue. Prior to his death, Majorelle patented the color which carries his name.

In 1923, just four years after his marriage to Andrée Longueville, Majorelle purchased a four-acre plot, situated on the border of a palm grove in Marrakech and built a house in the Mooroccan style. In 1931, he commissioned the architect, Paul Sinoir, to design a Cubist villa for the property. Gradually, he purchased additional land, extending his holding by some 10 acres. In the grounds around the residence, Majorelle began planting a luxuriant garden which would become known as the Jardins Majorelle (Majorelle Garden). The garden became his life's work and he devoted himself to developing it for almost forty years.

The garden proved costly to run and in 1947, Majorelle opened the garden to the public with an admission fee designed to defray the cost of maintenance. At times, he sold off parcels of land to fund the growing garden. Following his divorce in the 1950s, Majorelle was forced to sell the house and land. After this, the garden was neglected and fell into disrepair. The garden and villa were rediscovered in the 1980s, by fashion designers, Yves Saint-Laurent and Pierre Bergé who set about restoring it and saving it. The pair owned the villa until 2008. After Yves Saint Laurent died in 2008 his ashes were scattered in the Majorelle Garden.

Since 2010, the property has been owned by the Foundation Pierre Bergé – Yves Saint Laurent, a French not-for-profit organization and since 2011 has been managed by the Foundation Jardin Majorelle, a recognized non-profit organization in Marrakech. Pierre Bergé was the director of the Garden's Foundation until his death in September 2017.

The garden was nice and cool. The blue color throughout probably helped with the cool feeling. It is also quite beautiful and very peaceful. Lots of people working to keep it pristine and keep people from straying off the path.

Note that Yves Saint Laurent and Pierre Bergé are both buried in the garden.

After walking through the peaceful gardens, we boarded the motor coach for a short trip to the Bab (Gate) Agnou for the Ksar or Medina of Marrakech. We walked into the Ksar where Aziz took us to 100,000 Epices (100,000 Spices) a place where Aziz says they sell the best and most pure Argon Oil.

Argan oil is a plant oil produced from he kernels of the argan tree (argania spinosa) which is indigenous to Morocco. Aziz went through the whole spiel about the argan oil How rare it is, how hard it is to harvest, how much labor goes into making the actual oil, and how it is often called liquid gold because its rare nature. Locals used to eat it at breakfast with their bread, or drizzle it on couscous or pasta.

Since 2020 it has increasingly been used in cosmetics. There is a considerable amount of discussion about its effect on the environment and on the people in the industry. Apparently, like truffle oil, it is mixed with lower cost ingredients, but still sold at higher prices. The talk they gave us made me feel like we were at an Amway Meeting. Is it snake oil? Or, something that works? All I can say at this point is that we have some to test.

After the “meeting” we walked back towards the central market and stopped at the Kutubiyya Mosque. Can’t go in, not Muslim and it is Friday the holiday. The Kutubiyya Mosque or Koutoubia Mosque is the largest mosque in Marrakesh. It is located in the southwest medina quarter of Marrakesh, near the Jemaa el-Fnaa market place, and is flanked by large gardens.

The mosque was founded in 1147 by the Almohad caliph Abd al-Mu'min right after he conquered Marrakesh from the Almoravids. A second version of the mosque was entirely rebuilt by Abd al-Mu'min around 1158, with Ya'qub al-Mansur possibly finalizing construction of the minaret around 1195. This second mosque is the structure that stands today. It is an important example of Almohad architecture and of Moroccan mosque architecture generally. The minaret tower, 77 meters (253 ft) in height, is decorated with varying geometric arch motifs and topped by a spire and metal orbs. It likely inspired other buildings such as the Giralda of Seville and the Hassan Tower of Rabat, which were built shortly after in the same era. The minaret is also considered an important landmark and symbol of Marrakesh.

The minaret will also serve as a direction point and meeting place for tour excursion into the Jemaa el-Fnaa market. It is impressive and one would have to believe the interior is really nice. We get our photo taken in front of the minaret as a group and then get back on the motor coach for a short ride to the Bahia Palace.

The Bahia Palace was completed in 1867 by Si Moussa. Si Moussa was a black slave who rose to power and wealth and eventually became the grand vizir of SultanHassan I. The name of the Bahia Palace means “brilliance” in Arabic. The palace was intended to capture the essence of the Islamic and Moroccan style of the time. It is huge and extremely complex. Several different rooms opening on to several different courtyards each with a different purpose.

When Morocco gained independence from France in 1956, the Bahia Palace was used as a royal residence, until King Hassan II transferred it to the custody of the Moroccan Ministry of Culture, so the building could serve as a cultural icon and tourist attraction.  Honestly it is on par with many of the 19th century homes and palaces we have seen in Europe.

After visiting the Bahia Palace we walked to the Jemaa el-Fnaa market. Here we were given free time to shop and just explore the market. However it was greeting on to 13:00 and we were hungry. Aziz pointed out Restaurant Chegrouni as a good place to eat next to the market. So, we took off for there immediately. We were followed by about half the group who were also apparently hungry.

Mary had a chicken targine with olives, while I went with the pastilla I had once before. They were both very good. We sat and talked with some of our fellow travelers, then headed to the meeting point for the return on the 1st coach.

It had gone 14:00 when we got to the meeting point. Both of us were really tired. Aziz showed up at 14:15 to take us to the coach. He had a little trouble rounding up the group that wanted to take the early coach, so he told the group that showed up on time, to meet him closer to where the coach was able to stop. We walked though the square towards the Koutoubia Mosque. He caught up with the group a little later with the stragglers.

The coach dropped us off at the hotel just before it had gone 15:00. We headed to the room for a nap. The truth is it was after it had gone 16:00 that we woke up. I sat in bed and read a little, then started in on today’s blog entry. Just before 19:00 we headed off to dinner, which is included on the tour tonight. Nothing special about dinner. Just a buffet.

After dinner we came back to the room. Mary took a shower, and I worked on the blog entry for today. Then we packed, as we leave for Casablanca tomorrow morning at 08:30. Sunday we return to Milan. Monday we are on to Torino.

That’s all folks, Buonanotte e ciao, Enrico e Maria.