Part 2:  The weather was gorgeous.  Days in low 70's and evenings chilly 50's.  And as it is North Africa it's extremely dry.  Marrakesh, where we spent the first 3 days, is in the middle of the desert.  In the distance you can see the Atlas mountains, (snow topped), but we didn't make it out there as time was limited.  Our hotel was a short way outside of the Medina, the walled center.  We walked or took a cab back and forth everyday.  Both are equally hazardous.  Walking, because though Morocco is a growing economy with new apartment blocks and shopping districts going up all over, the concept of public safety and or public-space maintenance hasn't quite caught on.  Building sites have no fencing or "beware! hazard!" signs around them.  Equipment is left where last used, sitting on a pile of rubble usually.  Any damage done to sidewalks or roads due to building projects or "upgrading" (Ha Ha) is not repaired or finished.  There are huge gaping holes everywhere you walk, manholes left open, (the smell of which I cannot possibly describe), piles of rubble and trash all over.  The only reason there isn't an epidemic of rats is because there are so many cats.  There are cats in all the shops, restaurants under tables, hotels in the lobbies, every street corner and alley.  Ratty cats, skinny cats, fat sleek cats.  The cabs are a danger because they are death traps on wheels.  They rattle and squeal and shake as they zoom through traffic.  They share the roads with every conceivable vehicle.  There are fancy cars, buses and taxis like all big cities, but also wagons pulled by mules and bikes and motorbikes.  There are horse drawn carriages and Tuk-tuks, (motorbikes with little covered seating spaces), hand-pedaled bikes and teeny little pick-ups used for people transport, (and one camel?).  Oh yes, and camels.  Outside the Medina the roads are wide and in fairly good repair, but inside is like returning to the middle ages.  Many of the roads aren't paved.  The ones that are, are cobbled and missing half their stones.  If it ever rained it would be a disgusting mire but now it's just very dusty.  Once into the Souks, the roads become tiny narrow alleys where nothing larger than a bike should pass though they try.  The huge, huge, huge central square, Jemaa el-Fnaa, is the largest square in Africa and yet somehow it is packed!  There are thousands of people selling foods and goods, entertainers, (even snake charmers!), tourists and people just hanging around.  There is a lot of just hanging around there and in the most unlikely places.  Many people we

saw just sitting on cement blocks in abandoned lots or on the side of the road in the middle of the desert.  Huh?  xxoo me

building site

in Medina

typical road in Medina

traffic jam

Medina outer wall