Taourirt kasbah is a magnificent sight, a complex interweaving of walls made of red ochre adobe and crenulated towers that form a fortified sanctuary. The former residence of the pasha of Marrakech, Thami El Glaoui, it has received support from a Unesco restoration programme. Those who have seen the film The Sheltering Sky, adapted from the novel by Paul Bowles, may enjoy playing “John Malkovich for a day” here, where the film (among others) was shot.