FRIDAY!  AUGUST 1ST DAY!  WEEKEND BEGINNING DAY!  Even though we got here to Marrakech yesterday morning we spent much of the day resting inside our riad for a variety of reasons.  First, it was hot outside.  Okay, we know that in the United States we live in a desert, but this is Africa hot!  It was 46 degrees Celsius (let's see if we remember this from high school:  Fahrenheit = 9/5 x Celsius + 32... that would be...122 degrees on your thermometers!).  Second, even though we slept on the overnight Marrakech Express, it was a fitful sleep and not restful so we needed a nap.  Finally, we just lke laying around in bed in the middle of the afternoon because it reminds us of being home in our trailer.

But as the sun set we ventured out into the "souks" (little alleys that TOTALLY confuse your sense of direction and mess with your mind worse than any acid trip!).  After a wandering for what seemed like hours (it was probably only 10 minutes but we pawned our watch in Barcelona last week for some quick cash to spend at a strip club) we ended up in the Marrakech Public Square - HOLY F'ING CHRIST!  Okay, there really is no way to explain it and pictures or videos don't do it justice (even though we have both for your viewing pleasure!), but just imagine 20,000 people in a giant square with horns blowing, snake charmers yelling, acrobats jumping, belly dancers swaying, drums beating and literally hundreds of food stalls with open flames cooking things like whole sheep's heads and goat intestines.  Add to that wonderful combination of sounds and smells the fact that it was still 100 degrees!  Folks, we are Definitely not in Kansas!

MARRAKECH ROCKS, BABY!  We had plans to move on today towards the desert city of Fez and then north to Casablanca, but there's no way we're leaving this crazy place yet!  Folks, we been to some pretty wild places, and we've seen and done some pretty crazy things (trust us, we have), but nothing we've ever experienced is like Marrakech.  We just hope that Budweiser (our loving sponsor of the 2008 Riding4Beer World Tour)  appreciates the fact that we're having so much fun in a Muslim country where beer (of any type) is not sold or served publically!  Okay, now we have a reason to consider moving on, but in the meantime there's plenty more belly dancing to watch...

                 4 PICS AND 3 VIDEOS!  THANK YOU AL-MAGHRIB BANK FOR LETTING US USE YOUR INTERNET!

      
Stacy in the souk in front of our riad.                                     The Public Square - wretched hive of scum and villany!

      
The snake charmers work their magic!                                    It's not FDIC insured but their internet is REALLY fast!

                        THREE VIDEOS TODAY THANKS TO THE INTERNET CONNECTION OF AL-MAGHRIB BANK

                                               #1 - THE PUBLIC SQUARE IN MARRAKECH AT SUNDOWN!
                                         

                               #2 - ANYONE CARE TO DANCE?  THE VEILED ONES ARE MEN (NOT KIDDING!)
                                        
            
                                          #3 - IF YOU CAN CHARM A SNAKE YOU CAN CHARM ANYTHING!