Vehicles flow through Marrakech very much like a river: the buildings that line the busy streets are the banks that funnel cars, buses and lorries along with a swarm of mopeds and bicycles from one part of the city to another. Traffic lights are the log jams, only temporary though, which even before the red gives way to green have begun to succumb to the pressure from the traffic pushing and honking from the rear. Even as the electricity begins to flow into the green the flood begins across the junction, seemingly engulfing the solitary policeman whose strident whistle barely pieces the maelstrom of sound and smoke!!

Eventually vehicles need to park and their occupants themselves flood out onto La Place or Le Jardin de Majorelle. To anyone from Europe our “ruled” car parks are but a memory as here in Marrakech there would not be enough room at all for an orderly line of cars to park: The Solution: very simple and far more effective and a lot more fun than our way.

It all revolves around Le Gardien. They each have a section of street, pavements in all, under their control. As you arrive at your destination Le Gardien will appear from between the already parked cars or from out of a café and beckon very enthusiastically for you to squeeze your car into what seems an impossible gap. They have already worked out its width, turning circle and length with a precision that would make an engineer proud. You may only just be able to squeeze yourself out of the door between the gaps but you have arrived and are safely and securely parked.

The next part of the story is a revelation to most as you pay upon your return a very small sum that seems to have no bearing at all to the time you have spent away in the narrow streets and numerous café’s of The Medina. It is in fact so safe here that you can even leave the doors unlocked and a thousand Dirham’s on the dashboard and it would still be there upon your return.

As you leave Le Gardien will ease your way back into the “flow of the river” urging you to visit again soon.