Marrakech, the Medina After the Souks Close

Jemaa el-Fna square seems to change identity through the day: orange-juice stalls in the morning, snake charmers at noon, and by evening, smoke rising from a hundred food stalls.

Riad doors look plain from the street; step inside and a courtyard with a fountain and bitter-orange trees opens into another world entirely. Marrakech keeps its surprises indoors.

A day trip into the Atlas Mountains is a reminder of how sharp the air turns after the dust of the city — the program places the two back to back on purpose.