Ok, i'm finally updating in real time and FINALLY I woke up somewhere other than a train station or airport. Also, FINALLY got to sleep in a real bed in an air conditoined room.

I met up with Liz last night around 5pm. We chatted at a cafe outside of my hotel over mint tea. After that we went for a stroll in the souqs. Unfortunately it was extremely crowded and not a lot of fun to navigate.

The souqs are markets where you can find just about anything you want. There is an assortment of carpets, crafts, clothing and other authentic Morrocan items. Along with all the good stuff there is a bunch of junk. I wasn't ready to try my bargaining skills just yet and really didn't see anything I liked.

After the souqs we went up to the terrace of my hotel and took pictures as the sun went down . We didn't get very good pictures sunset wasn't that impressive. I will try again.

We did a little more walking around and talked about travel. It was nice to be able to talk to someone with the same interests . She is currently on a round-the-world trip and started 2 months aog in Spain going to school in Barcelona and is heading back up to Europe after Morocco and then eventually on to South America, Asia and Australia. She is doing exactly what I hope to do in a few years. This trip is kind of a test t osee how I handle developing countries. So far so good now that i'm finally rested.

We went to eat in the night market at Djemma el-Fna at a food stall. There were lots of things to choose from but we went with some olives, bread with some kind of salsa type dip, a tomato and cucumber salad kind of like my dad makes and beef on a stick. There were many other things to try but I'll save that for tomorrow. The workers at the stand were fun and it is interesting to watch them try and get people at their stall. The overall vibe of this square is amazing. There is so much going on and now that night has fallen it has gotten even more pumped. There are story tellers, snake charmers, musicians, dancers, acrobats, mixed in with teens from all over Marrakesh and the world hanging together in what feels like one giant party.

After we ate we both decided that a nice cold beer would be great right about now so we venture out of the old city where alchohol is prohibited by muslim law. We decided to walk even though my feet were killing me. It was a long trek but I got to see the the new town and club/night district of Marrakesh outside of the medina. When night falls in Marrakesh we both agreed that the beautiful people come out. The younger urban youth come out in large groups dressed not in traditional attire like the older generation but as westerners. Other than the fact that I was American and they were all Morrocan... there was really no difference.

Ok, I lied ... there is one major difference that kind of through me off. In Morocco it is not uncommon for friends of the same sex to be extremely close and can be seen walking down the street with interlocked arms, holding hands and kissing (cheeks) and hugging. This was a major eye opening experience at how different another culture can be. Literally 2 guys who were probably about 20 years old holding hands alone walking down the street. In the west that would be considered homosexuality but here it is a sign of strong friendship. It was refreshing and one of those things that I am looking to see when I travel.

We arrived at a cafe quite a way from where we were and sat down for a few beers. Ok, we had 4 heineken each and opted away from the bitter Morrocan beer. We headed back out to the street and took a taxi back to the square where we parted. We are going to meet up again at noon today for lunch and then discuss what excursion into the desert we might do.