A Call to Marrakesh | Sada Elbalad

opinion .

It is impossible to talk about Moroccan cities such as Fes, Tangier, and Marrakesh without discussing their relations to poets, writers, authors and historians. This requires hundreds of volumes to narrate them.

We have already talked about Fes enough, and there is no need to repeat the discussion. Now, we are going to address other cities such as Tangier to meet prominent writers, who mentioned it in their books, memoirs and writings. Among those writers are William S. Burroughs, Truman Capote, Mark Twain, Tennessee Williams, Paul Bowles and Jean Genet.

Some people, interested in contemporary history, believe that "Tangier is a city founded by writers and the port.” Likewise, a number of writers and artists became heritage guardians of Marrakesh, a city that obsessed the writers’ minds and mesmerized the artists.

Global innovators, from various fields, come to the city due to its ability to provide them with a suitable atmosphere to stir the imagination, in addition to providing chances for great creativity.

Arab and Western innovators were fascinated by its charm and warmth. In this sense, they dedicated a huge part of their writings to this magical city.

Prominent writers and authors such as; Syrian poet Adonis, Iraqi poet and author Saadi Youssef, Spanish novelist Juan Goytisolo, German painter Hans Werner Gerdts, the French painter Jacques Majorelle, the German author Elias Canetti and the French painter Claude Lorrain.

In the same vein, we cannot ignore other writers and artists who made it their homeland to produce culture. Those writers include Dutchman Bert Flint, the American Patti Cadby Birch, Swiss Susanna Biedermann, and French Yves Saint Laurent. However, the most remarkable poet who settled in it is, undoubtedly, Dr. Mana Al Otaiba.

Michele Capasso, president of the Mediterranean Foundation in Italy, has previously given the organization’s annual award to international personalities like Parliament Deputy Speaker Mohamed Abou El-Enein for his great efforts in the Mediterranean, and Al Otaiba for his considerable efforts in achieving peace and building the one human family.

Therefore, I have the honor of directing several foundations supervised by the organization- President Capasso alongside several experts always consider Marrakesh as a magnificent city; once you visit the city, you will like to reside in it that’s why thousands of international figures live in the city today although they come from perse races, social classes, religions, and ideologies.

Yes, it is Marrakesh. The city that Mohamed Ibn Abdulah El Mawkat (1849-1949) in his “El Rehla El Marakesheya” (Journey to Marrakesh).

He said: “One of the most beautiful sceneries the visitor of Marakesh catches are smiling magnificent nature and cheerful faces of the city’s people as well as its surroundings.”

He pointed out: “It is the only city that has natural beauty, attracting features that fascinate the people although it doesn’t carry the same qualities of development, decoration, and modern organization.

As if it is aware of its outstanding elegance, and extraordinary grace obviating it from beautification.”

One of the pieces of evidence is the naming of Marrakesh’s famous gardens with Jacques Majorelle’s name.

Majorelle, who was born in Nancy, France in 1886, arrived in Marrakesh in 1919 and he found the required magic and stability to continue his career as a painter before he bought a piece of land in 1924 to establish a garden that became later a celebrated destination in the Red City.

I specifically mentioned the name of Al Otaiba because he wrote more than 130 poetry volumes about all fields of life, and discussed thousands of topics; all of these reflect his own poetry tendencies.

Recently, he sent mesmerizing verse lines to be which he wrote in Abu Dhabi, these lines are dedicated to Marrakesh, the city he loves, and lives in. Unfortunately, the Coronavirus resulted in decreasing the number of journeys and widening the space between lovers.

Dr. Mana Al Otaiba