Cal and VA | Adventures | Morocco

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Monday - 7 November 2022 - Up early to arrive at Bahia Palace before the crowds - we arrived prior to opening, and there was a line - but we moved quickly to get in and take pictures without the crowds.

The Bahia Palace is a mid - late 19th-century palace. The palace was first begun by Si Musa, grand vizier of Alaouite sultan Muhammad ibn Abd al-Rahman, in 1859 and then continued and expanded by his son Si Ba Ahmed ibn Musa, grand vizier of Sultan Moulay Abdelaziz between 1894 and 1900.

morocco2022 — The ceiling over the walkway between rooms.

morocco2022 — Exquisite stucco decoration in the courtyard of the first riad.

morocco2022 — The view from one room to the next. This is into the office of the vizier.

The palace was built piecemeal over many years - adding on as needed.

morocco2022 — Detail of the painted ceiling in the office.

morocco2022 — The "Small Courtyard" of the palace (located between the First Riad and the Grand Courtyard)

morocco2022 — Painted wooden ceiling in one of the rooms around the courtyard

morocco2022 — A skylight with sculpted and painted ceiling.

morocco2022 — Beautiful ceilings in every room.

morocco2022 — Mosaic tile work on the wall.

morocco2022 — The ceilings are so pretty.

morocco2022 — The Grand Courtyard - around which are the concubines' rooms.

morocco2022 — From the Grand Courtyard we entered the private quarters of the family. The growing palace housed Ba Ahmed's servants and his harem. The name al-Bahia, meaning "the Brilliant", was reportedly the name of his favorite wife.

Detail of the wood work.

morocco2022 — Sculpted stucco.

morocco2022 — Amazing ceilings sculpted and painted wood.

morocco2022 — Sculpted stucco wall.

morocco2022 — An alcove in the Grand Riad.

The entire palace was built on one level, possibly as Ba Ahmed's own physique (which was described as stout and obese) made it more difficult for him to go up and down stairs.

morocco2022 — Painted stucco wall.

morocco2022 — Detail of a small painted portion of a wall.

morocco2022 — Tile surrounding a fountain in the Grand Riad garden.

morocco2022 — An alcove in the garden.

morocco2022 — Virginia Ann in the garden.

morocco2022 — The pretty ceiling holding a chandelier.

morocco2022 — We walked from the Bahia Palace through Marakesh.

Bags of spices for sale in the market.

Walking through the Medina we spotted this guy - very fun...

morocco2022 — The Bab Doukkala Mosque, which is a major neighborhood mosque. Construction of the mosque began in 1557.

morocco2022 — One of several great doors into the mosque.

morocco2022 — A short walk to Saadian Tombs

The Chamber of the Twelve Columns. Of the three large tombstones in the center, the one in the middle belongs to Ahmad al-Mansur (the sixth and most famous of all rulers of the Saadis), the one on the right belongs to Sultan Moulay Zidan (Ahmad al-Mansur's son), and the one on the left belongs to Sultan Muhammad al-Sheikh al-Saghir.

morocco2022 — The Saadian Tombs are a royal necropolis and date to the time of the Saadian dynasty during the reign of Ahmad al-Mansur (1578-1603), though members of Morocco's monarchy continued to be buried here for a time afterward. The complex is regarded by many art historians as the high point of Moroccan architecture in the Saadian period due to its luxurious decoration and careful interior design.

morocco2022 — A smaller (lessor) tomb.

morocco2022 — The twelve columns of Carrara marble symmetrically arranged in groups of three around the center of the room.

morocco2022 — Beautiful tile work surrounds the tombs.

morocco2022 — A grave outside in the open courtyard.

morocco2022 — The Chamber of the Three Niches is an annex to the main mausoleum chamber and houses more tombs.

morocco2022 — Beautiful mosaic tile work.

morocco2022 — Another short walk to the largest mosque in Marrakesh - Kutubiyya Mosque.

The mosque was founded in 1147 by the Almohad caliph Abd al-Mu'min right after he conquered Marrakesh. The same caliph entirely rebuilt a second version of the mosque in 1158. This second mosque is the structure that stands today. It is considered a classic and important example of Almohad architecture and of Moroccan mosque architecture generally.

morocco2022 — Then we plunged into the Marrakesh Medina with hundreds of shops. This Medina is far more accessible than the Fez Medina and easier to navigate and move about.

Virginia Ann is in the hat talking to our guide.

morocco2022 — A woman working on a carpet in a local shop specializing in Amazigh rugs. Virginia Ann purchased a couple of small rugs there.

morocco2022 — As we were walking in the Medina we suddenly stopped at a small entrance to the Secret Garden. Virginia Ann taking a picture of the garden.

The origins of Secret Garden (Le Jardin Secret) hark back to the second half of the sixteenth century, when the Saadian Sultan Moulay 'Abd-Allah began upon the urbanization of what is now the Mouassine district. There was a palace, but it was demolished in the seventeenth century.

morocco2022 — The garden passed through many hands and fell into disrepair - in 2016, after 8 years of renovation it opened to the public.

morocco2022 — Back in the streets of Marrakesh walking through the Medina.

morocco2022 — Rose buds for sale.

morocco2022 — More roses - now purple.

morocco2022 — Colorful shoes (babouches) for sale at street vendor.

morocco2022 — Herbs, spices, soaps... We stopped at a herbalist to browse. We did end up with some incredible spices from this shop.

morocco2022 — Snake charmers in the central square Jemaa El Fnaa. Taken from above while Cal waited for sunset.

morocco2022 — Jemaa El Fnaa as the sun sets.

morocco2022 — The sun setting behind Kutubiyya Mosque at the entrance to Jemaa El Fnaa.

morocco2022 — Cal, sipping mint tea, waiting for sunset on a rooftop cafe. The main square in Marrakesh, Jemaa El Fnaa, laid out below.

The busy Jemaa El Fnaa market.

morocco2022 — Night falls over Jemaa El Fnaa and all the shops are lit. The shops are mostly food vendors with all sorts of eclectic fares.

morocco2022 — Another part of the Jemaa El Fnaa at night.

morocco2022 — In the midst of the food vendors - this one serving goat brains.

morocco2022 — This little restaurant is serving "normal" meals.

morocco2022 — Lamp vendors would light their lamps to increase sales - they look great in the square.

morocco2022 — Kutubiyya Mosque lit up at night as we head back to the Riad.

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