Chapter Five: We're On the Road to Morocco...
Dance is the hidden language of the soul.
- MARTHA GRAHAM
It was a short stroll from the streets of Paris to the Kingdom of Morocco. We found ourselves presented with not one, but two forms of entertainment there. The first was some traditional Moroccan music delivered with a contemporary twist by Mo’rockin. The popular band was enjoying the appreciative applause of a good-sized crowd that had gathered in front of their tiny stage.
The second live entertainment “act” was not one you would find listed on the
Times Guide. Next to the Tangerine Café is a fountain such as one might find in any Moroccan village. Sitting on the edge of the fountain was a man. The man was smiling broadly. Before him was a dark-haired woman in her early thirties who had become so enchanted by the rhythms of the music that she seemed unable to contain the urge to dance seductively in front of her male companion (and in front of the throng of casual onlookers.)
Perhaps she was of Middle Eastern origin herself and was exploring her cultural roots. Perhaps she had recently taken a belly-dancing class at the Y and was anxious to show off her skills. Perhaps she was just a gal with exhibitionist tendencies who had too many small plastic cups of wine during the festival.
In any case, her impromptu show rather squelched my plan to take advantage of any photo ops by the fountain! I shooed the children over to the carved stone “gateway to the city” and took a few shots of them there before we proceeded to Restaurant Marrakesh.
Sorry fellas, no pix of the Disney Girl Gone Wild...
At 5:10 I checked us in for our 5:30 ADR and was pleased to discover that they could seat us immediately. Good. The earlier we got started with dinner, the better! We were all enjoying ourselves but, to tell the truth, everyone was beginning to look a bit tired. Our plan was to return to the Wilderness Lodge right after dinner so we could check into our rooms, unpack, and relax a bit before bed. We followed the hostess into the near-empty restaurant and were given a quiet corner table. As we took our seats I admired the handsome tile work that graced the walls, floor, and ceiling.
Six months ago, when I was planning our ADRs (was it really that long ago?), I asked Ed what new restaurant he would like to try and he suggested Marrakesh. Yes, I know you’re smiling. You’re smiling because this restaurant is not so much known for its cuisine as it is known for its entertainment. I am referring, of course, to the dancers that perform several times throughout the evening. It would turn out to be the perfect choice….perfect for Tricia!
Because Tricia was missing three P.E. classes this week, she had been given a make-up assignment. The class was learning to folk dance and they would be tested during the week we returned. Her teacher felt that she would not be able to catch up and learn the dance that quickly, so she gave Tricia an assignment to learn about three different dances from around the world and make a small presentation when she returned home. She decided to find out as much as she could about the dancing she would be seeing here tonight. Her first source of information was our waiter, Anas:
After taking our orders for appetizers, Anas spent a few minutes talking to Tricia about
Rakessa, what we traditionally call belly dancing. He took out a pen and wrote out the name of the dance in his native language, then wrote out Tricia and Billy’s names as well.
He gave the paper to Tricia and she was very excited to have such a personal souvenir to add to her report.
Anas was really quite friendly and helpful. AR and I felt like having a glass of wine with dinner, so he persuaded us to try a wine that was made “just thirty miles from [his] hometown.” It was very good.
Tricia ordered a salad and the adults all chose the
Harira soup, which is made from tomatoes, lentils, and lamb. It was served with a lemon wedge, which really enhanced the flavors of the soup. I’ve never squeezed lemon into a soup before! No new food experiences for Billy tonight, he just had a great big bowl of pasta!
As we finished our first course, the musicians began playing. It really added to the exotic atmosphere of this beautiful place.
For our entrees, Ed chose Chicken Kabobs, AR had the Roast Lamb Meshoui, and Tricia and I had the Couscous. (She had hers with vegetables only; I ordered mine with vegetables and lamb.) Just as they arrived at the table, the dancing began! Tricia wanted some pictures for her report. I tried to get some good action shots, but the lighting was so low that I had a tough time. We were also seated pretty far away from the dance floor, which was great for Billy, but not so great for an amateur photographer.
The dancer invited the young girls to come dance, but Tricia was too shy.
(Sorry its so dark!)
Anas saw that we were having difficulty getting good pictures, so he invited Tricia to meet the dancer after the set and have a picture taken with her. Tricia wanted to ask her some more questions about the dancing, but several other children were anxious to get pictures taken with her, too, so unfortunately she didn’t get the chance.
It was nearing the end of our evening, so I didn’t mind one bit that AR was lingering over her food. We were having a pleasant meal and were in no rush to be anywhere. Nevertheless, when the musicians and dancer reappeared for
another set, I knew that we had been there for almost two hours. A quick time check confirmed it: it was 7pm already! When Anas came around and asked if we would like dessert, we decided to split an order of
Bastilla for Two amongst the four of us. (Billy would munch on a chocolate chip cookie when we got settled into our rooms.)
The dessert was a perfect choice: thin, crisp pastry topped with vanilla ice cream and sprinkled with toasted almonds. It was sweet, but not too heavy, and we all enjoyed it very much.
As we left the restaurant, we decided that a rest room break would be in order. The two guys got through this task quickly, but we gals found ourselves at the end of a long, slow-moving line. (The rest rooms inside the restaurant are very small.) We abandoned the line and decided to walk back through France and over the bridge to the UK where we found much larger facilities. As we passed the terrace area near the bridge I noticed a fancy private party where all the guests were dressed up and drinking their wine out of real glass!! It must have been one of those special festival events for the serious foodies.
After our stop, we enjoyed a stroll along the darkened, but now much less congested promenade. We meandered past the Rose & Crown and could hear The British Invasion playing
I Wanna Hold Your Hand as they entertained their fans in the garden. Guests were already staking out the best viewing spots for
Illuminations. It was tempting to stay, but we stuck to the plan, not wanting to tire ourselves out too much on the first day.
We breezed past the Hotel du Canada, as well as the Rocky Mountains, and finished our mini world tour by stopping to admire the large WS Christmas tree and all it’s multi-culturally inspired decorations. We then set our course for the main gate, via Future World. I had the strangest sensation as we walked through Future World, like I was driving the wrong way up a one-way street! Guests were streaming toward World Showcase just as we were making for the exit.
As we passed Mouse Gears, Tricia begged to stop so she could search for the one remaining plush princess doll she needed for her collection: Ariel. Aunt Rae perked up at the prospect of a little shopping, too, so we left Ed and Billy to watch the lighted water show at the Fountain of Nations (after being given strict orders to make it snappy and not get “lost” in the store!)
We obeyed the command and stayed long enough for Tricia to find Ariel and for me to pick out a couple of hats for Frank the driver’s two children. (Frank had very generously charged us the same price to drive us to Laguardia as he usually charged to take us to Newark, so we wanted to get them a little something.) It took some doing, but I just pretended to put blinders on and avoided looking at all the tempting items on display. We made our purchases and left the store quickly before our resistance could be worn down!
We collected the boys at the fountain and Ed related how much Billy had enjoyed the music and the dancing water. I could also see that he was relieved we didn’t “get lost” in the store. We ambled along toward the exit and the kids did their traditional dance on the fiber-optic light patterns embedded in the pavement. Spaceship Earth looked just grand:
As we passed through the turnstiles, I reflected that our first day was already at a close and my thoughts turned to our resort. I crossed my fingers and said a quick prayer that our villa location would be a good one! “Not the dumpster view…oh please…not the dumpster view!”
Next up: We put the key card in and open the door….
Kathy
I hope Billy was okay with the crowds.
Thanks for updating so often! And please keep giving us all the details; when I read your posts it's like I have a movie playing in my head because I know exactly where you are as you go along.
Me thinks something deep fat fried. 
