From Sidi Ifni, I had to commit a couple of nights to getting back up to Casablanca and the airport. I could have done this in one long day, but I also decided I should stop in Marrakech if I was going to be heading through.

The bus ride was trying at first as I grabbed a seat near the back, putting me near some teenage girls who were having a dance party to the worst music of all time. You know that music with a whiny guy drawing out his words while whining along to a beat? Well autotune that guy, throw in some bass, then garnish with the frantic techno flute. Hoo boy, lol.

Soon enough the bus driver came to the back and I figured that would be the end of this Tiesto party, but he just smiled at the girls and was amused with them having a good time. It's then that I realized I should cheer up and pondered not being such a miserable curmudgeon.

The stunning scenery after Agadir would help brighten my spirit. The above picture shows Oued Issen, created by the Barage Abdelmoumen (Abdelmoumen Dam).

Agadir to Marrakech was new to me and this route really flattened out and grew grimy as we neared Marrakech. Our dinner stop was at a rest stop that was straight out of the American Interstate system in some place like Oklahoma.

I liked the scrubby look of the landscape behind our bus.

Arriving in Marrakech I was prepared to simply kick it for the night, having read that Marrakech isn't the safest city. My riad owner wouldn't have any part of that.

While he said I was free to do whatever I want, he also insisted that I go to the star of Marrakech, the Jemaa el-Fnaa square with its busy nightlife of markets and food stands. I knew I had booked a riad close to the square & the innkeeper confirmed it was only a short walk, one where I wouldn't have any problems or trouble.

So I headed out into the night, along a relatively wide road for a medina, with plenty of shops, activity and people going about their day. As I neared the square it was obvious, just by the backlog of traffic, horse and carriages, throngs of people, and bright lights hazy with cooking smoke illuminating the night. Okay, this was pretty cool.

The first order of business was grabbing dinner, and peering up at the restaurants surrounding the square I could see they realized where the money was - building upwards and creating as much seating overlooking the square as possible.

Randomly selecting one of the restaurants, I can't even remember what I ate because the food was so mediocre, but I was also able to walk right up to an open-air table overlooking the square. This bird's eye view over everything was fascinating as I watched the different hawkers, residents and tourists move about like ants.

I walked around the square and some side streets and it was definitely cool, but after a while it was a lot of similar things and the salesmen were like carnival barkers. Seeing one of those beautiful glass globe shops and only wanting a picture, I got roped into entering the store, blocked in physically, and having a wood lantern pushed on to me for 10 minutes. After insulting dude by insisting that I didn't want a basketball-sized lantern in my backpack, I didn't even manage to get a picture because he was so unhappy.

The shopkeeper would have made out much better simply asking for 10 dirham for a picture, haha.

I'd read about another Jemaa el-Fnaa scam where snake charmers will put snakes on you to take a picture without your permission, but then you also have to pay to get the snake taken off you.

As I'm pretty against having some crazy Moroccan snake around my neck, I kept my head on a swivel for these dudes, but thankfully failed to see any snakes at all.

Eventually I got tired of meekly window shopping from 20 feet away, so I started back towards my riad. The above picture comes from just around the corner, where I grabbed a Gatorade at the shop on the right before heading back in.

Walking back this way, my riad owner was totally right about safety & it's only when some guys started yelling and arguing that I felt the slightest bit unsafe. Back at the riad, I was ecstatic that I went out and saw Marrakech; while I also felt bad about that guy on the flight from Montreal to Morocco, who looked so disappointed when it was obvious that I was scared of Marrakech and didn't plan on spending much time there.

Part of the reason I chose this riad was because it had a TV and I quite enjoy finishing the day with TV while travelling. (I know this really bothers some people, but I find it helps with the loneliness of solo travel.) The funny thing was that this riad sure had a TV, but it was one of those satellite TVs that only picks up whatever signals are free. Considering there were about 300 channels from places like Somalia and Belarus, the only two things that were in English was a panel discussing HSBC's movement into the Asian financial market & a documentary about a Victoria's Secret model.

Watching a CEO discuss the growing Taiwanese market, I decided this factor turned out pointless.

The other reason I stayed at the riad was because of the suite name - let's call it the Frank Suite and assume my name is Frank. Where I thought this would be a funny minor joke of staying here and splurging on the room, instead the owner was like, "Good sleep Mr Frank? Mr Frank good bed? Sit down eat Mr Frank. Where are you going Mr Frank? You go left then right for square Mr Frank."

He was a really nice guy and the riad was great, I was simply amused at how much he enjoyed my name being Frank.

Following breakfast at the riad, I grabbed yet another mille-fueille from a nearby bakery, then proceeded to walk the nearby market-like street of the medina. The narrow street closed everything in, and along with vendors encroaching and motorbikes, the atmosphere was awesome in its hectic pace.

Plus, even as I tried to buy Rosie some more spices, actual citizens were busy buying their own goods and shopkeepers had little time for me. I was free to photograph and browse as I saw fit.

Finally, the requisite Moroccan picture of arranged spices. Check!

Exiting the medina's Bab Doukkala gate, I was amazed at how the Moroccans were dealing with this crosswalk across a busy arterial road. No longer was I in Corner Brook with people slamming on their brakes while going 60kmh because a healthy teenager is within 15 feet of the road and might fancy crossing, instead everyone from men with 5 bags of belongings, to families with small children, to the elderly; were all dealing with the crosswalk the same - simply walking out when the first lane was clear, then working like a game of Frogger to get across the busy road and to the other side.

It was a thing of beauty that I had to do myself, navigating through the cars going about 30 or 40kmh. On the other side was a park where oranges grew on the trees like crabapples in Canada.

Going back to my riad but taking the road outside of the medina, I came across a football game and having had Shelley & Nicole make me watch so much The Bachelor, I wondered if I should jump in and take part in the game, haha. That's what suave and desirable dudes on that show would do, right?

I can't imagine how confused those kids would be if I just jumped in and started doing my best Pavel Nedved.

Anyway, back at the riad, it was time to catch a cab up to the train station and head off to Casablanca. This is the time where I grabbed second class seats instead, seeing as I assumed I would be a seasoned African traveller by now. Throwing my giant bike bag into the empty seat beside me, I grabbed some of the delicious paprika Pringles and drinkable yogourt that was on offer from the train cart.

Marrakech ended up being alright in the end & I wouldn't mind going back.

Continue to Casablanca...