Where do the donkeys go at night?

Donkeys and mules are the medina's freight system — cars can't fit, trolleys can't climb the steps, and a working mule carries 150 kilos through alleys a metre wide. They haul gas bottles, building rubble, fruit crates, sacks of mint, hotel laundry, and most of the rubbish. Marrakech's medina alone supports several thousand working animals.

The stables (rwa, plural arwah) cluster just inside Bab Doukkala, Bab el-Khemis, and Bab Aghmat in Marrakech, where the streets are wide enough to take a truck delivering hay. Animals leave their stable around 6 am, work through the day, and are walked back at sunset. By 9 pm the medina is donkey-quiet.

SPANA (since 1925) runs the world's largest equine clinic in Marrakech — free veterinary care, dental work, and harness fitting for working animals. The blue ankle band on a calèche horse means the same vets have certified it. A handful of carrots for a tired-looking mule is welcomed; the owner will not refuse.