Jardin Majorelle in Marrakech

Since I am due to catch a train tomorrow morning at 6:20 am, I decided to walk over to the station to check it all out. It's only a 15 minute walk so I will probably not take a taxi. The problem with arranging a pickup is that the taxi may not arrive on time. I like to be in control when catching trains.

But first the view from my hotel window. This part of Marrakech is modern and most buildings have this colour. The Moroccans believe that the colour results in a cooler building than if white is used.

The Beatles did not walk across this pedestrian crossing in front of the hotel.

The rather spiffy train station.

View of the platforms. This station is a terminus.

Curiously, all of the clocks were five minutes fast. It will be interesting to see if the train leaves five minutes early tomorrow. And yes, I am getting my time from my cell phone that should be correct.

The route I walked from the station at the lower left to the garden at the top right.

A grand boulevard with not much traffic.

Most buildings are modern.

I took note of this cafe for a possible visit later.

I reached the Majorelle Garden that was initially created in 1923 and was purchased by Yves Saint-Laurent in the 1980's. It was eventually opened to the public.

The queue was long and with only two ticket windows, it took about 30 minutes to get a ticket. It cost about $7 to visit the gardens and $3 to see a Berber Museum. For an additional $8 you can see a museum about Yves Saint-Laurent. I paid $10 for the garden and Berber museum.

The garden was crowded but I managed to take some photos.

Mostly, the garden consists of cacti, bamboo and palm trees.

There are some water features.

This painted wall was part of a building that contained the Berber Museum. The museum contained many costumes and artifacts used by Berbers but photography was not allowed. It had one room that took my breath away. It contained cases with large ornamental necklaces but they were not the main feature. The room was lined with mirrors and with lights in the ceiling, you had the impression of being under a star-lit night time sky.

Most man made objects are painted blue.

If you wait long enough the path is empty.

A memorial to Yves Saint-Laurent and Pierre Bergé who restored the garden.

A section of the garden with bamboo.

A covered pool with gold fish.

Of course, the garden had to have a cat.

I found a quiet area with an empty seat and rested for a while. Most of the visitors appeared to be French or Spanish, but a group of English tourists enjoyed a break.

I enjoyed the garden despite the crowd. I suspect  that later in the day might be a better time to visit with fewer people.

On my way back to the hotel, I stopped off at the cafe for a $1 cup of espresso. It was all very French and very civilized.

I suspect that most of the tour group will have a relaxed day in preparation for leaving tomorrow. It has been a great trip but I think we are all suffering from sensory overload.