Before making it to Marrakesh, Ismail insisted we visit a tiny town off the beaten path at the base of the Todra Gorge. We parked the car along the road where it bends at a right angle because an immovable wall of basalt makes it impossible to do anything else. Ismail was leading us enthusiastically toward the wall when I noticed some climbers hanging like bats, methodically working their way to the sky. Several scores of local people were wandering the road and I wondered why.