08 June 2011 | By Colleen Clark

I left Marrakesh 54 pounds heavier than I hadbeen when I arrived. Somewhere betweentaking a carriage ride to the city’s mainsquare, Djemaa el Fna, and weighing myluggage on the Royal Air Maroc baggagescale, I gave myself – and my bank account –over to Morocco’s mysteries, hungry to bringhome a bit of the heady sensuality that hangsin its labyrinthine souks.

Related photo gallery: Hand-crafted

treasures in Marrakesh

The booty? Two leather bags, six necklaces, antique textiles, pillows, slippers, spices,essential oils, scarves, tassels, a ceramic tagine, a tea set and teeny silver tea spoons, allmagically tucked within the bulging seams of my suitcase.

I should have known better. No matter how savvy, how disciplined a shopper you fancyyourself to be, you are no match for Marrakesh. After all, they have been doing this forwell over a thousand years. From the city’s early days as a desert outpost for caravansfrom Timbuktu, Marrekeshis have been honing the art of the sell. They know their waresand they know exactly how to shill them (often in a dozen or more languages). But settlinginto the staccato rhythm of bargaining is part of the fun.

We’ve put together a guide to walk you through what to buy and how to buy it. Study upon these insider secrets, and you will emerge poor in dihrams but rich in hand-craftedtreasures.

LeatherHandbags, belts, luggage, shoes, poufs. Leather goods have been a hot item inMarrakesh since the 16th Century. The goods you see throughout the souks are still

The secrets to shopping inMarrakesh

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Hand-dyed wool yarns, spices, ceramicsand perfumes all make excellent gifts forfriends and family. (Colleen Clark)

largely hand-produced in the city’s sprawling tanneries from the hides of camel, cows andgoats. Prices on the higher-quality goods can be a quarter of what you would pay athome. But before you start the bargaining process, it is essential that you do two things.First, smell the item. Many of the lower priced leather goods get their suppleness viapigeon feces and urine treatments. The stench remains for months and is very difficult toget rid of, so tell the seller you want the same item without the smell. It will cost you more,but believe me, it is worth it. Secondly, dampen a cloth or tissue and rub it against thebag. Dyes used on cheaper items will often rub off, staining your skin and clothes. If theitem passes these two tests, you are good to go. Let the bargaining begin. Moroccan hair oilMoroccan oil has become all the rage for hair and skin products. They shill the stuff forupwards of $20 a bottle at Barneys and Sephora. You can get the same stuff for a quarterof the price in Marrakesh. The oil, made from the argan tree, is generally pressed andtreated in women’s cooperatives along the road between Marrakesh and Essouira. Avoidbuying bottles on the street – they are often diluted with vegetable oil – and instead visitone of the city’s many traditional pharmacies. To be sure you are getting the real deal,open the bottle – it should smell of roasted nuts. Pharmacies also stock perfumes, dyesand spices, which make great gifts. You should be able to get fresh saffron and vanillabeans for a fraction of the price you would pay in your average grocery store. Be surethe saffron is a rich orangey-red and the potent spice should keep for three-to-four years.

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08 June 2011 | By Colleen Clark

Ceramics

If you want to recreate some of your favourite Moroccan dishes at home, you will want to

pick up a tagine, a cone-lidded earthenware pot. There are countless stalls, booths and

shops shilling them, but there are a few food safety issues to be aware of before you

make a purchase. Look for plain terracotta-coloured tagines. They are the only ones that

should be used in an oven. Next, be sure the top fits snugly on the base – only well-sealed

tagines circulate the heat and retain moisture during cooking. Be sure to season the

tagine when you get home, first soaking it in water and then coating with oil and heating in

the oven for an hour or two. If you prefer the more ornately glazed tagines or ceramics,

never fear, they make great serving dishes. Just make sure to ask whether the glazes are

lead-free and beware of any ceramics glazed in metallic. They definitely provide a more

modern take on the traditional Moroccan shapes, but the glaze can be toxic if it comes in

contact with any heat. Use the pieces only for cold food like candy or fruit. Or, better yet,

think of more creative uses for them – plant flowers or store jewellery in them.

Rugs

From Technicolor kilims to unspeakably soft cream-and-chocolate Beni Ourains, Morocco

is justifiably famous for its carpets. But you need to think of a rug as an investment piece.

Expect to invest some time in getting what you want for a fair price. Our number one

magic carpet rule? Wait until the end of your vacation to attempt the purchase. The

haggling savvy you hone over the course of the trip will serve you well in this most

challenging of negotiations. Be well rested, well fed and prepared to spend at least an

hour on the adventure.

Before you enter the shop, put away that pricey camera and watch. Be friendly upon

entry, but watch your words. Sellers use your appearance and introductory chit chat – Is

this your first trip to Morocco? How long have you been here? – to get a sense of how

high they should start the bargaining. Say that you have been to the city many times

before and, if you can pull it off, that you are a student. Then settle in for some mint tea

while the shopkeepers pull down dozens of rugs for your perusal. After narrowing down

The secrets to shopping inMarrakesh

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the field, you can start the bargaining. There are no hard and fast rules for how low to go,

but I had good luck starting at a quarter or less of the price. If you expect to have to ship it

home, ask that they include taxes, service charges and shipping in the final price. Be

aware that you will often be required to pay import taxes on goods shipped from abroad.

Sellers customarily help lower those taxes by filling in a much lower price on the import

documents than you actually paid. We leave it up to your conscience as to whether you

want to correct the error. Wink, wink, nudge, nudge.

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