Whirling dervishes, pastilla (with whole pigeons baked in), and a swirl of languages made up our New Year's Eve celebration at the riad that I was staying Dec 2004/Jan 2005. Friends Chris and Hannah had journeyed on to Essouria on the Moroccan coast for a few days by themselves. I wandered through the Marrekesh medina and Jemaa el F'na. Occasionally, I'd find myself in a slightly anxious position, with the men of Morocco trying to identify me. Was I English? French? American? I wouldn't answer to the shouts on the square, a little fearful that in those heated days of the American invasion and occupation of Iraq I might become a target.
Still, I walked around comfortably enough. One afternoon, I took a long, early dinner at a well-known cafe. The Argana. It's in the guidebooks. It overlooks the Jemaa el F'na. It's Western-oriented enough that the waitstaff included pleasant young women. They brought me wine, which is a little hard to find in many Marrakech establishments, and it wasn't clear to me that it was even on the menu. Also, in a week in Morocco, I had grown tired of only interacting with men and boys. I read my book, looked at the square, drank my glass, picked at the tagine dish. A pleasant and relaxing afternoon for this tourist.
No one detonated a bomb in the Argana that afternoon. But someone did this week, killing fourteen in the blast. I hope the pleasant young serving women are still OK, Inshallah.
Still, I walked around comfortably enough. One afternoon, I took a long, early dinner at a well-known cafe. The Argana. It's in the guidebooks. It overlooks the Jemaa el F'na. It's Western-oriented enough that the waitstaff included pleasant young women. They brought me wine, which is a little hard to find in many Marrakech establishments, and it wasn't clear to me that it was even on the menu. Also, in a week in Morocco, I had grown tired of only interacting with men and boys. I read my book, looked at the square, drank my glass, picked at the tagine dish. A pleasant and relaxing afternoon for this tourist.
No one detonated a bomb in the Argana that afternoon. But someone did this week, killing fourteen in the blast. I hope the pleasant young serving women are still OK, Inshallah.
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