Bethany In The Big City : Gardens

27.9.13

Morocco - Part 3 Marrakech

I have decided to do a blog post entirely devoted to the Majorelle Gardens because, quite frankly, they deserve it and are just too beautiful to be scrummed together with another post. The French artist Jacques Majorelle designed they gardens during the colonial period, when Morocco was a protectorate of France. Later, Yves Saint Laurent bought the garden after finding that it was a place he could enjoy peace, calm and beauty amongst the busy streets of the city. There is now a memorial to Yves Saint Laurent in the gardens which attracts faithful fashionistas in their hundreds. These botanical gardens provide a green and lush area that we do not associate with Morocco, the whole space literally is an oasis in the middle of a desert. Clever planting of bamboos and cactus creates walls of beautiful and fresh vegetation that shades the heat of the morning sun and brightly painted urns contrast refreshingly with the rich green backdrop. However, the real impact is made he with the bright cobalt blue accents, including the walls, which illuminate the gardens and just form such a simple and classic place to be.

We spent several lazy hours meandering the gardens, shaded by leafy palms and soothed with the flow and tinkle of flowing water. The garden literally surrounds you at several points, with flowers blooming overhead and tall bamboos creating corridors leading to deep blue pools of water and life. The memorial is worth a moments pause and reflection, whether you are a fashion follower on not. Just being in the garden is enough to feel an overwhelming love for art, beauty and creative minds.

The small courtyard garden cafe is worth a stop and provides the perfect viewpoint of the garden. Shaded by immense sails you can enjoy a homemade ice tea or rich fruit cocktail whilst watching the passing visitors wandering the gardens and listening to the silent peace of the garden.

In my opinion, the Majorelle gardens were my personal highlight in Marrakech, I just cannot imagine a nicer place to spend a morning. I will definitely be back!

Mood - In need of a calming place

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26.7.13

Barcelona - Part 3

Our final day in Barcelona came far to quickly, just as I was getting into the holiday mood I was waking up for the final day. After a few too many sangria's the night before we decided that a walk was the best way to clear our heads and a good way to see Barcelona city from above. We started at the Royal Palace which was incredibly impressive as we walked up the steps admiring the many levels of fountains on the way. We enjoyed the cool shade of the surrounding trees and used this moment to soak up the views of the city below, quite an incredible sight to behold. I find that looking down upon a city gives such a good sense of perspective, and especially in Barca when you have fantastic sea views added onto the city-scape.

After climbing all the way to the top we arrived at the old Olympic park. When I say old, it was nothing compared to the old arenas that I have seen in Athens but nevertheless, after spending an exciting summer at London 2012 I was surprisingly excited to see the park. We were again treated to incredible views and some pretty gardens to have a picnic.

We then walked to the castle that over looks the bay; we might have got a little lost. Maybe a couple of hours, in boiling heat, with no water, suncream or shade lost. When we finally saw the castle peaking over the hill, it was like a mirage, a sight for weary traveller eyes! I was very pleased to see that this castle was a proper castle, with a moat, a drawbridge and a couple of canons. By this point, however, my mind had fully turned towards ice cream, which was waiting for us at the top of the hill. Delicious. In fact I was so pre-occupied that I forgot to take any photos for a good few hours.

Before I knew it we were at the bottom of the mountain, having declined the idea of taking the bubble lift, we decided to walk. Still undecided about whether this was a good idea or not. We had time for a last few plates of tapas and a quick sunset swim before we packed our bags and heading back off to Paris.