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Historic Koutuobia Mosque |
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Koutuobia Mosque |
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Inside Mosque |
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Clean Street to Mosque |
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A
form of city transportation |
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Greenery in the desert |
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MUSINGS FROM MARRAKECH.
Nii B. Andrews
December 26, 2014
The Royal Air Maroc Boeing 737 took off as the silver
fingers of dawn touched the sky from the east. Beneath us
was the eternal brown of Accra; the only green belt was the
remnants of the Achimota Forest to the North.
It had been a trying four hours since 2am. The KIA featured
the troubling sight of scores of Immigration Officers and
airport personnel undressed and asleep on student
mattresses.....some with their weaves in multicolored
rollers, like torn pieces of asafo flags.
"Come back down, the business class lounge is closed",
yelled one lady officer at us after we had cleared ticketing
on the ground floor. "Immigration is not yet open, you
cannot go there", she continued oblivious to all accepted
norms of courtesy.
But this is Ghana, where public officials are bullies as
they continue relentlessly with their country busting rent
seeking behavior.
"Wake them all up, immigration cannot be closed; as for the
lounge, I have paid for my ticket, I shall go and open it
myself and wake them up, madam", was my room mate's retort
and that settled it as the rent seeker slunk away to
complain about us in Twi to her compatriot saying "these
people they don't understand anything".
We just ignored her; another day, another cretin.
As we arrived upstairs an Immigration officer woke up from
his mattress, put on his clothes, then his shoes, wiped his
face and attended to us.
We then settled in the lounge, happy that the nasty carol
music machine had broken down lest we were subjected to
several hours of the same carols rendered to a kpanlogo
beat- the Christmas decorations were already revolting
enough.
And if it is important to you, yes-I am a Christian and try
hard to be a good one; please do not accuse me of demonic
possession.
After flying over the Atlas, the evidence of the tragic
Moroccan floods several weeks earlier was clear in the full
river beds and also the lush green of the fields, quite
unusual for this time of the year. So we decided to travel
from Casa to Marrakech by train instead of Taxi in order to
soak in the beauty of the countryside.
There is something idyllic about the Moroccan countryside.
When the flowers are blooming in the fields with the cattle,
goats, sheep and horses it strikes a wonderful cord in the
heart.....and it provides a reason as to why the kebab in
Accra is so tough!
There are only a few places in the world where a first class
ticket in a well appointed 6 seater compartment for a 300km
journey will cost you 25USD. And the train is on time.
Eehm, it runs on electricity, yes electricity I said for any
doubting arrogant Ghanaians.....go figure; no, they do not
have oil.....go figure; yes, they run the system by
themselves....go figure; there are trains running from
Tangier in the North to Marrakech in the south in both
directions at the same time. Any more questions?
We had shared our compartment with a South African couple
who live in England; a South Korean couple traveling
together- she, a painting undergrad from Seoul now studying
English in Ireland (it was her grandmother's birthday and
she wrote her a handwritten letter on the train), he an
undergrad architecture student in Seoul with a wicked camera
which he used frequently.
An air of expectation and excitement always grips the train
when after 3 hours of varied and inspiring scenery, the Red
City is revealed at the foot of the Atlas; the play of the
fading evening light against the adobe colored walls and the
snow of the Atlas is always spectacular; the magnificent
Koutobia, an exemplar of Almohad art still stands tall after
a thousand years and beckons the bon vivants to this great
African City.
A great city showcases excellent cuisine, great architecture
and interior decor, inspiring artwork with a vigorous art
scene, good bookshops, quirky boutiques and shops, walker
friendly and secure, classy night life, magnificent parks
and open places, interesting people and solid
infra-structure....eehm for the uninitiated this includes,
uninterrupted power and water, flowing traffic, sidewalks,
good transport links, good healthcare and education.
Definitely, no generators with diesel fumes and anyone and
everyone able to buy any amount of diesel and store it
anyhow anywhere.....haba; any dissenters should please give
reasons and not play victim.
I fell in love with Marrakech almost ten years ago. It is a
place for the open minded and soulful; no, it is not for
everybody.
Marrakech reminds me of a determined and consistent striving
for improvement and progress; there is a categoric shunning
of cant. If only, the big poo bahs where I come from
will/can learn and apply the lessons.
Alas, our political discourse has been elevated to
accusations of demonic possession and the lauding of second
rate shopping malls while our goats, sheep and cows continue
to eat refuse by the motorway, and a single train makes a
daily noisy trip from Accra to Tema while it sports the
national colors.
I wonder when Immigration opens tonight at KIA.
Nii B. ANDREWS
Marrakech.
Dec 26, 2014.
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