European Stars and Stripes (Newspaper) - September 12, 1991, Darmstadt, Hesse                                Residents and visitors pack the Market at the a maa i fan the main Square of Marrakesh Morocco. Mfr Rel a amps Gary Miller a cd a City of mystery la a and contradictions by Miriam Pawel new Day one is never quite certain what the shapeless folds of the Djel Laba conceal. Under the hooded cloak that is the traditional moroccan garb May be a three piece suit an earthenware pot a Watermelon a or All three. The same sense of pleasant mystery applies to Marrakesh the moroccan City where much lies just beneath the surface and first impressions Are often deceiving a like the beautifully designed leather bags that turn out to be coloured in with Bic pens. It is a City filled with the smells of fresh spices and Orange Trees the Sweet taste of Green mint Tea the soft padding of feet Clad in worn leather scuffs with pointy toes. But underneath the Orange Trees a Young woman is afraid to walk Home alone after dark. Outside the cafes is a noisy never ending procession of guides Sellers and beggars hawking their services. And the shoes Are made by Small children working to the Only classroom they know a Market stall where generations have made and sold leather goods. Marrakesh is an amalgam of the familiar and the exotic but it is a very accessible sort of allure and therein lies much of its Appeal. Tourists have Long been attracted to this desert Oasis for one reason or another be it bargains food climate Solitude or drugs. It has been celebrated in literature As Quot the Pink City Quot Bec Ause of its Reddish tinged Stone and in music As Quot the Marrakesh express Quot for its allure to a generation of hippies. Though Morocco has catered More to europeans than americans the country has been trying recently to Market its attractions including Beautiful beaches Mountain resorts ancient monuments and colourful markets. Although the Effort was dealt a temporary setback during the persian Gulf War when the . Government advised americans against travelling there the advisory has since been lifted and officials say tourism is picking up. Marrakesh is a City where the More you look the More the chaos dissolves into order. It is a City that lulls you seductively into its rhythms and moods Only to bring you abruptly up Short again a in Accord with an elaborate unwritten code of rules and rationales. In a City full of Well tended gardens and Groves there is even a Garden for students to study in each afternoon. There it is in the Center of the City set aside for the High school students who wander its Olive lined paths each afternoon lips moving As they memorize lessons As if parts in a play. They glance up curiously at one who is so moroccans in various styles of dress go about their business outside a Marrakesh mosque. A amps file clearly lost clearly not a student someone who must have made a wrong turn and meant perhaps to go to the other Park just Down the Road the one for eating lunch. A everywhere there Are scenes like this where sense blooms from nonsense. There Are the endless winding alleyways of the souk a Market so Maze like that one needs a guide just to find the Way out again. But to those who routinely navigate the narrow streets of Palm thatched roofs it is carefully and logically designed everything has a place everything has a Quarter. One area has nothing but stall after stall Selling leather another carpets and another a the area moroccans have dubbed Quot the Japan Quarter Quot a has shops offering radios and cheap appliances and television sets mostly Black and White. Any tourist approaching the huge main Square Demaa Elfna or the Market is besieged by students offering to act As guide insisting each and every Day they must show you the Quot Only once a week Quot berber Market. And if All that fails making the pragmatic argument Quot hire me and i la keep everyone else away Quot but there is Refuge. Walk into one of the cafes that line the Square a several with rooftop terraces affording mesmerizing views of the antics in the Square below a and the guides and beggars vanish because following you into the cafe is against the unwritten rules of the land Morocco is big on codes and contradictions both Are present in everything from food and drink to dress although Morocco is an islamic country whose religion forbids muslims to drink it has a thriving win making Industry that produces new varieties each year. Moroccan women covered head to toe with just their eyes showing walk past Modem hotels where separated Only by a line of Palm Trees european women sunbathe topless by the Pool. And in the Street businessmen in three piece suits hop on mopeds and ride past women in mini skirts there is a great variety in How local women dress and work. It All combines to make Marrakesh a fascinating City one that a visitor should wander about in and savor its mysteries and contradictions. 24 stripes Magazine september 12, 1991 and