You Can Stand Under My Umbrella

I've lived in Morocco long enough now to know that Moroccan Walmart is called Marijane. Cub Foods is LabelVie, and the medina is the equivalent of an American mall combined with the Family Dollar combined with Goodwill combined with a farmers market.

Today I took my second trip to the medina in Meknes. The medina is the old part of the city. The streets wind around in no particular pattern, stores spill out onto the street, and people are everywhere. It's a giant market, a stage for snake charmers, musicians, and dancers, and a dream for people watchers and adventure seekers. It seems as if there is never a dull moment in the medina.

I went to the medina today with my host mother and my little brother. The only thing I was really interested in buying was an umbrella. I didn't bring an umbrella, and rainy season is just around the corner. I wasn't successful. I am pretty sure I saw everything else in the medina. I saw rings, necklaces, rolex watches, gucci sunglasses, beach towels, guess tshirts, huka, tajines, lamps, swords, carpets, dresses, backpacks, books, fabric, doughnuts, olives, meat slabs, dates, and the list goes on. We saw a guy steal a box of shirts and the Moroccan police tackle him. We saw a snake charmer with 6 different snakes. We saw a water man or two. We saw everything... except for my umbrella.

The medina really is fascinating. It is a mixture of everyday life with those things that you feel must be put there just for tourists, but then, upon closer inspection, you realize that it is locals that crowd around. Everywhere you look there are people. The people span all age groups, and all degrees of modesty. There are young women in capris and tank tops and then in front of her is a lady with only her eyes visible.

There are different quarters or districts if you will--jewelry, fabric, food. Within the district stores deal almost exclusively in those products. Then there are the streets that are just a conglomeration of every kind of store. You could wander for hours, you could get lost for days, and you could buy anything your heart desires-except an umbrella.