"Take the train from Casablanca, going south" sang Graham Nash on his Marrakesh Express, the first hit single from Crosby, Stills & Nash. It's an instantly appealing song that became one of my favourites when I was still at school. While Crosby, Stills & Nash would go on to release much weightier material, Marrakesh Express stayed a personal favourite. I liked it because it offered a vision of freedom, of a place one could escape to.
It was, of course, in retrospect, a grass-fed hippie dream that never held true. And so when the hippies cut their hair in the 1970s and went to work for IBM, Marrakesh ceased to be the sort of flower-power destination.
But it found new identities. It had always been a favourite of French people. (Morocco used to be a French colony and French is widely spoken in Marrakesh). It was where Yves St Laurent would hide out when the pressure got too much for his delicate creative sensibility. It is still the place French people go to when they want to dream.
The Marrakesh that flourishes today is much more the city of Yves St Laurent than it is the city of Crosby, Stills & Nash. Its smells still make you a little heady, it is filled with gardens and there are still people "charming cobras in the square", as the song has it.
This story is from the {{IssueName}} edition of {{MagazineName}}.
Start your 7-day Magzter GOLD free trial to access thousands of curated premium stories, and 9,000+ magazines and newspapers.
Already a subscriber ? Sign In
This story is from the {{IssueName}} edition of {{MagazineName}}.
Start your 7-day Magzter GOLD free trial to access thousands of curated premium stories, and 9,000+ magazines and newspapers.
Already a subscriber? Sign In
Let's tri all the angles
BFFs falling for the same girl, kidnap twists, murders, bromances. These 10 three-way love stories play with geometry and our feelings
Should you Q up for this?
Audi's luxury SUV, the Q8, has had a refresh. But a sleeker grille and headlight tech don't make up for what's still missing
How to plan a great escape
It's getting colder. It's already hard to breathe. Why not plan a winter vacation that's a world away but not too far away?
Kababs, yes, but khandvi too
Mughlai cuisine has as many vegetarian dishes as meaty ones. A new translation of a 16th century manuscript shows how we ate, and why modern labels are pointless
I can be your hero
Gurfateh Pirzada, only afewroles old, is the green flag we didn't know we needed. He's learning from women. He wants to be more thana lover and a fighter. He's hoping we all do better. No wonder everyone's crushing on him
Meet the export experts
Khadi crop-tops in Spain, faux-leather hoodies in London, fairytale wedding gowns in the UAE. See how some desi labels are killing it on foreign shores
Why we're all feeling Blue
Coco Mellors's new novel is about grief, sisterhood, and of course, addiction and unlikeable women. How does she make it work?
This week, we're...
Changing the momo game, listening to kids, starting a new business, and supporting pro waxxers
Rohit Chawla
Photographer, artist, @RohitChawlaPhotography_
Congratulations, it's a goal
Lakeside vows, pastel palettes, bayous, backyards and boats. These celeb weddings are what modern fairytales are made of