Straight-shooting Marrakech

As one of the most popular tourist destination, I was excited to experience a weekend in Marrakech. At first, I didn’t understand what was so fascinating about this city until we were bombarded by countless palm trees and camels, the scorching 50°C heat, and the vibrant and populated ‘suk’ (marketplace) that seemed to amplify the Morocco’s exoticness.

Unlike Rabat, the trip to Marrakech was purely for pleasure, despite the unbearable heat and 2-day bus ride from Ifrane. As part of the tour, we visited the Bahia Palace designed by the architect Muhammad al-Mekki of Marrakech, the Royal Tomb, the olive garden, and the Medersa Ben Youseff. The architecture of the Medersa Ben Youseff mosque was incredibly beautiful. The traditional Islamic art sculpting of the walls and ceilings truly added an ornate feeling to the already serene and beautiful monument.

Apart from the traditional sightseeing offered by Marrakech, I felt intrigued to explore the famous suk – the Jamaa-El Fna Square, where you can watch snake charmers, storytellers, henna artists and musicians. We came here twice, once in the dead heat of the afternoon and then in the more comfortable evening, which was when the marketplace came to life. A quick walk through the square would take 20 minutes on average with the constant distraction of local traders desperately seeking attention away from their competing neighbours. As a country that is extremely reliant on the tourist trade, the suk is the perfect tourist trap. We were warned by our tutors that Marrakech would be filled with imitators who pretend to be the Blue Men of the Desert, like the man I met in Chefchaoen, and to not buy items blindly without haggling down the price.

Considering that I live in a London borough scattered with Indian fashion stores, negotiating prices for goods wasn’t a new concept for me. However I recognised that my British upbringing in being polite to avoid confrontation made me an ineffective haggler. Although the prices of many items were jacked up for tourist, I felt guilty in persuading traders to knock off £2-5 off my purchase when I knew I could afford it. My colleague, Anca Sol from Romania, had a very different approach in to negotiating, which I have dubbed the ‘straight-shooter negotiation technique’.

The ‘straight shooter’ technique is a very direct approach – you name a price without any room for negotiation, full stop! If the trader disagrees with the price, you walk away and look elsewhere. The advantage of this technique is that it is 100% effective if the right pressure is applied. However, such a technique can quickly lead to an ill-feeling of anger by the other party to the point where they will never want to do business with you again. The ‘straight shooter’ technique isn’t for everyone – and it most certainly wasn’t for me.