The date is May 17, 2024. Las Vegas residents sleep soundly in their homes on a quiet, still, early Friday morning, except for one group of students who have eagerly awaited this very moment for close to four years. Unlike many course capstones, the Global Entrepreneurship Experience (GEE) students don’t experience the task of final exams or projects; instead, they embark on an adventure of visiting, feeling, and embracing the spirit of entrepreneurship in another nation. I was one of those students.
Marahaban — A Moroccan Welcome!
After 14 hours of flying and layovers in Amsterdam and Paris, we finally made it to Casablanca that following Sunday! We only had enough time to eat a chicken shawarma, debrief with our tour guide, and reunite with our classmate Alex (who studied in Spain this past semester) before heading to the local train station to stop at our next destination, Tangier.
A bustling coastal town, Tangier served as a major port city during the Renaissance era and functions as the primary gateway, along the Strait of Gibraltar, to both the Mediterranean Sea and Atlantic Ocean. The streets were lined with hopeful merchants, loving families, and naive tourists alike. Any direction one looks in Tangier, they are bound to find a business selling a wide variety of products.
“The Blue Pearl” — A City Draped in Azul
After some well-needed rest, the GEE group began Day 3 of the adventure in the town of Chefchaouen, typically referred to as “The Blue Pearl,” “The City of Blue,” or even “The Most Instagrammable place on Earth.” Walking through the narrow, stair-heavy alleys felt like a task, but the picturesque views and lively town folk made the experience worth every minute. Our group toured various notable landmarks within the town, including the Medina, Plaza Uta el Hamman, Ras El Ma, The White Mosque of the Souk, and ended the day with a beautiful sunset atop the Bouzafer Mosque.
The rich-blue streets held historical significance, dating back to the time of both the Portuguese and Spanish. Shops lined every nook and cranny of the city, with customers bargaining for a better bang for their durham (local Moroccan currency), with customers having the power to not only determine their price, but find the best deal. Every portion of the city brought rich products with it, ranging from coats all the way to authentic wool blankets and rugs.
Moulay Idriss & Volubilis
Day 4 was marked with a visit to Moulay Idriss and Meknes. The rich historical streets of Meknes were filled with the sound of children playing soccer in the streets, accompanied by pale white clay homes and green-adorned tombs.
We got the chance to climb to the top of Moulay Idriss, rewarded with a picturesque sunset view of Meknes. Although the sun actively set during our descent down, the city square was bustling with shop owners and children playing soccer and tag in the streets.
Not far from Moulary Idriss lies Volubillis, an ancient Roman city, and our destination on Day 5. Volubilis served as the capital of the Kingdom of Mauretania and dates back to the third century B.C. It served as the Roman Empire’s most remote city.
Fes — A City of Scholars and Salesmen
Day 6 included a visit to Fes, the former capital of Morocco and the focal point of both artistic and scholarly activities. While we toured the largest Medina in Morocco, the narrow streets gave way to bustling markets, filled with the spirit of entrepreneurship and business. One of the oldest universities in the world lives in Fes, a gorgeous mosque-like structure, adorned with beautiful engravings and designs dating back hundreds of years. While Fes is filled with narrow, bustling markets and ancient universities, the cornerstone of the city are the tanneries.
Although they look better than they smell, the tanneries are a core function of Morocco’s finest product, leather. Here, items like leather bags, belts, jackets, wallets, etc. are hand-crafted and formed to provide customers assurance of both quality and highest authenticity. We also had the opportunity to visit a co-op, which specializes in crafting wool products like scarfs and clothing.
Merzouga & Ait Benhaddou — Living Among the Stars
Nothing says desert like rising sand dunes and hot, arid weather. No other desert lives up to that mantle quite like the Sahara, which, as it would turn out, would be our destination on Day 9 and 10. We wrapped the many scarves and other clothing we got from Fes and mounted a group of camels to hike up to the dunes. Riding a caravan of camels made us feel like ancient explorers, trekking through the desert in search of treasure.
Once at the top, we rested on the dunes and, for all of us, experienced a Saharan sunset for the first time. We stayed in small tents on the outskirts of the dunes, braving the cold and windy nights of the desert landscape. After leaving the arid wasteland of the desert, we traveled to Ait Benhaddou, a fortified city along the former caravan route between Marrakech and the Sahara. The city dates back to the Almoravid period between the 11th century and before the 17th century. The site is uphill in design and its ancient fortress design had earned it the filming location of many TV shows and movies including Game of Thrones.
Marrakech — Home Away from Home
To us Las Vegas residents, nothing says home like live entertainment and the bustling nightlife. While Vegas was thousands of miles away, the “Las Vegas of Morocco,” Marrakech, made us feel right at home. Marrakech was defined with large, the streets of its historic area, Medina, filled with similar salesmen from other cities in Morocco. Here, we had the chance to witness many Moroccan street activities, including Turkish coffeemaking (a procedure that involves creating hot coffee by rubbing it against a pan of sand).
The “markets of Marrakech” became a favorite phrase among our group as a rallying cry to save our Dirhams on the products sold there. Marrakech markets were filled with everything from hand-crafted arts all the way up to clothes and jewelry. Alongside products, we had the opportunity to try camel burgers in one of many of Marrakech’s restaurants. We closed off the trip with a celebratory goodbye and the conclusion to an excellent adventure.
ҳ| 鶹ýӳ the Global Entrepreneurship Experience
Lee Business School’s Global Entrepreneurship program is a four-year curriculum that teaches students of any discipline the necessary skills in creating and scaling a business.
