The first stop in Marrakech we walked near the cities largest medina, Koutoubia Mosque. The Moorish Médina’s are less intricate and each side is a little different from the other. I also learned today that a Médina should be 5 times high as it is wide.

From there we went to the Méchouar Kasbah (citadel or walled city), which included tours of:

El Badi Palace: a palace in ruins which was commissioned by the sultan Ahmad al-Mansur of the Saadian dynasty sometime shortly after his accession in 1578. The palace’s construction was funded by a substantial ransom paid by the Portuguese after the Battle of the Three Kings. There were some very old reminates, including a very old chair they called a minbar, which we were not allowed to take pictures of. Most of the palace was pillaged in the 17th century.

Bahia Palace which was built in the 19th century and consisted of many courtyards and gardens as well as many beautiful mosaics.

Next was the Saadian tombs which date to time of the Saadian dynasty sultan Ahmad al-Mansur (1578-1603). The tombs were discovered in 1917 by World War I pilots. The mausoleum comprises the interments of about sixty members of the Saadi Dynasty. Among the graves are those of Ahmad al-Mansur and his family. The building is composed of three rooms. The most famous is the room with the twelve columns. This room contains the grave of the son of the sultan’s son, Ahmad al-Mansur. The stele is in finely worked cedar wood and stucco work. The monuments are made of Italian Carrara marble.

It was then on to the spice house.

After lunch we strolled through the Djemaa el-Fna square and through many of the old winding streets. There were snake charmers and people with monkeys in the square.

As we were walking the winding streets, I finally heard the call to prayer. We then saw men get up and walk to the mosque which had a door to it within all the shops.

We then took a horse drawn carriage.