The Music Store
Marrakesh, Morocco
July 2008
The alleyways of the old Plaza are just miles and miles of
mazes that seem to have no exit. So my afternoon was spent looking in shops but
keeping my eye out for any clues as to how I might get back to the center of
the Plaza.
I wandered in to a small musical instrument store. Most of
the instruments were native to this area.
The small hand drums caught my eye. The merchant invited me in to his
little kiosk. It was so small, there was
barely room for the two of us. But he insisted I come in and sit on his rickety
stool. He then leaned against a shelf by the entrance.
Tea was made and that was a long process. He had to run out
and get some fuel to heat the water.
After a few minutes, he came back with fuel. Then he had to get his stove out. That was
hidden behind me and under some of the drums. We both had to work together to
retrieve the stove. The stove was old and rusted. I thought it might tip over and cause a fire.
Since I was sitting behind it, I had visions of the whole store going up in
flames with me, tripping over instruments, trying to get the hell out of there.
I tried to negotiate a deal on two drums so I could get out
of this fire trap sooner than later. But
my merchant friend was having none of that.
“Slow, slow, slow.” He told me emphatically. He gestured with his hands for me to sat
seated.
His English was limited. We both tried using our limited
French skills but that was a wasted effort. The tea was delicious. He filled my cup. I had to wait for it to cool down. When I
finished, he filled my cup again. We drank mostly in silence. He finally let me
talk about what I wanted to buy. I left
with two drums and two hand cymbals. But
right before I left, he asked me, “You have a gift for me? I give you tea”.
That was awkward. I didn’t have anything to give him.
“Excuse me, what kind of gift” I asked uneasily.
“A Chicklet or something for me”’ he responded in his meek,
little voice.
I searched through my pockets and found a mint, still in its
wrapper.
“How about this?” I
offer it to him and he takes it. He pops
it in his mouth and nods with approval.
Good, now we are even.
