Basking in the clear light of the south, Marrakesh has an entirely different feel from its sister cities to the north. It remains unmistakably more African than cosmopolitan Casablanca, more Moroccan than sanitized Rabat, and more Berber than proud and aloof Fes. It is still regarded as the southern capital, and as such attracts merchants and traders from the surrounding plains, High Atlas and the Sahara. Just as the color blue is synonymous with Fes, green with Meknes and white with Casablanca, red is the color of Marrakesh. A local Berber legend has it that when the Koutoubia was planted in the city’s heart, it poured so much blood that all the walls, houses and roads turned this color.