Greetings Friends and Family,
We made it, Obi and I are safe, sweaty (it’s hot here) and full… In Morocco!
Let’s rewind though… Obi and I flew for the first time a Boeing 787-9 out of NYC direct to Casablanca. The plane has some new features I’d never seen before like windows that adjust electronically to get lighter or darker without pulling down a blind and the cabin air is maintained as close to sea level as possible. It’s very comfortable in that you don’t even notice the change in pressure, I was never thirsty or with a dry mouth.
Aide from these smart features and a delayed departure the flight was smooth and upon landing I started a cabin clap to thank the pilot. Obi was embarrassed;) I was laughing. The real adventure started upon landing, we knew our car rental place would close at 1am local time. We had just under an hour to clear passport control and find the Sixt car rental. It was tight and even though the customs agent seemed to like me and asked Obi if I was a good teacher (I needed to list my profession on the form) we waited on a long line which felt a bit disorganized and moved slowly. You see, it was critical we got the car otherwise we’d need to take a 45 minutes ride into the city via a taxi, then back in the morning to fetch the car… And finally drive again into the city. So needless to say I was incredibly determined to reach the desk before 1am. It wasn’t until just after 1am that we got our luggage and in some broken English I was able to learn that we needed to go upstairs for the cars. We ran. Shuffling along the way airport joggers do with their bags flopping back and forth and my mini suitcase rolling fast on the smooth floor. Then… We spotted it, and the gate was slowly being lowered. In a desperate plea I said, “please, we need our car.” The employee hard a warm heart and decided to help us, what luck we had!
After sorting the paperwork and finding the main road towards city center we were feeling good… Until we came upon a toll booth! And we quickly realized in haste to get the car we didn’t withdraw any local currency, Moroccan dirham ($1 to .10 dirham). Ack! We pulled up and I tried to communicate that we didn’t have any money. The man held up six fingers. I asked if we can given him US dollars, I don’t think he understood what we were saying but when I handed him a five dollar bill he took it, looked at it strangely and allowed us through. We over paid the toll by approximately$4.40 but we were just elated that it worked, we didn’t care!
No sooner did we celebrate our second victory of the night did we suddenly find ourselves in the midst of drivers who do not obey the traffic rules. Driving in Morocco has caused me the most concern in preparation for the trip and my fears were quickly confirmed as the cars just cruise up to the red lights and then accelerate through as if there were no light. A few stop at the lights but most don’t, and others will “stop” nearly in the middle of the intersection leaving just enough room for someone to pass. People walk everywhere, even though it’s dark, motor bikes drive along through every cranny and it seems at the roundabouts it’s an invitation to speed around and shoot out at your exit. I need to acknowledge now that Obi maintained absolute calm, was composed and alert. I felt and feel incredibly safe with him at the wheel. We have a few more driving days ahead, the adventure continues.
Our hotel is modern except the wifi network is down and so we couldn’t communicate sooner, right now we are in the hotel lobby using the only available network.
We slept about 7 hours and even though waking up felt a bit disorienting (given the cleaning crew came in and woke us up) we ventured out with a mission to get money, and buy water and breakfast. Our noses smelled a bakery and with dirham at hand and a large bottle of water we feasted or eyes on delicacies and sampled an onion bread, apple tart and croissant. We found a shaded bench and munched away. Crumbs and sticky fingers later we were ready to walk. We decided to first see the two focal points of the town, Place des Nations Unies and Place Mohammed V. In the first Place stand a clock tower which was built in 1910, later demolished in 1940 but rebuilt exactly the same way. Originally it was built to symbolize colonial time and that the clock reminded people they needed to keep in time with an industrial society. Walking in the streets of Casablanca you can feel the evolution of this port city. Being a Muslim country tethered by a monarchy and years of tradition it’s slowly being pushed (especially after the death of their most recent king in 1999, Hassan II) into a more modern city. Women are uncovered and the force of youth exploring Western values in Casablanca crestes a weathered city with a now reigning king Mohammed VI who takes a less authoritarian approach to politics. He’s more interested in listening to the people and counters the Islamic radicals.
Obi and I wanted to see the ancient Medina a spiderweb of small narrow streets through very old buildings covered with tarps and fabric to shield the sun from the products on sale. There were countless shoe stands no wider than three feet, clothing stores with traditional and modern, even some revealing clothing, gadgets, plastic toys, belts, sunglasses, oils, perfume and sprinkled throughout were food stands selling ground almond paste with honey, making fresh argon oil, ice cream, and then there were the fish stands. The very pungent fish stands. Small wooden blue push cart structures packed with melting ice which drips from the cracks cooling small silver fish. The fish water was everywhere and at one point Obi and I found ourselves weaving through a fresh food market with spices, grains, tomatoes, melons of different varieties, plums, peaches, bread, so much baked bread, cakes and muffins, and meat! Lots of raw red meat aggressively placed on chopping blocks for customers to purchase. Flies feasting, blood dripping and many stands included live ducks and chickens for slaughter. The smell was strong side from the fish which weighs heavy in the air, garbage clusters everywhere. Everywhere, dead fish, bones, fruit rind, egg shells, dirty diapers, gravel, wires, plastic, mounds of what might be animal or human feces splattered around… But then you get lucky and a wiff of fresh mint wafts through the air into your nostrils. There were many mint stands with men and women sitting in piles of picked mint. The mint is used in cooking but mostly for the famous and delicious Moroccan mint sweet tea (I tried some with dinner;). At one point we stepped into a curb to take it all in, to stand and watch it all unfold. I also should mention the hundreds of children we saw. Running, playing soccer, bouncing bouncy balls, eating ice cream and even a duo sharing a pair of roller blades, shopping with their parents, or cleaning dishes and collecting water at the shared water fountains. They were clearly at ease here, in there home, but it was hard not to notice how many children we saw. We came out of the Medina revitalized and ready for more.
We ventured on to the second largest religious building, aside from Mecca the Hassan II Mosque. This was in all of its glory a truly incredible building. To give you a sense of scale, during Ramadan it can house 25,000 worshipers, with 80,000 gathered on the grounds just outside. The outside doors are made from titanium so that they don’t oxidize in the salt water air and the main ceiling can open up like a sun roof which allows for the worshipers to have acess to the three holy elements air, water and the earth. Inside the main hall they pump water from the ablution room which is downstairs to rivets in the floor upstairs. The women sit on a cedar wood balcony above the men. Their balcony can hold 5 thousand women. We luckily learned about a tour beginning at 3pm, purchased tickets and surprisingly were allowed to enter both men and women side by side. I think I was the only tourist who covered her shoulders and head. I brought a scarf for the religious areas we’d visit. We removed our shoes and had a chance to take in the glory in this incredible place. The mosque was completed in 6 years with approximately 11,000 people paid billions of dollars to complete the space. We learned about the building materials and various marble minded in Morocco and the chandeliers from Italy. It was hard not to feel something powerful in this space. The design is clean with a mix of warm and cool colored mosiac tile details and fountains, hidden speakers, woodcarving and 41 lotus flowered stone fountains in the ablution room. Despite the complexity of the space and the details it brings you to a calm reflective space. With your feet touching the ground, it’s easy to feel centered. I did have many moments though when I thought about the extreme poverty just bock’s away from a space in which billions of dirham were invested. The reality of inequality is obvious and raw. And yet, despite this given that the mosque intentionally was built on water (exactly 2/3 of it is) just outside the religious walls are rocky cliffs and beaches covered with people. I’m talking thousands of people, mostly boys and men climbing down the rocks swimming into the waves or jumping from the incredibly high mosque wall into the ocean. The security guards though present don’t even bother redirecting the teens, the youth rule the wall. The women sit and watch with some of the younger girls splashing in or being teased by the boys encouraged to jump off the wall. Obi and I walked in and through the crowds happily taking in the scene. The heat was fierce and the sun sparkled on the water edge. We could hear so much laughter, barking stray dogs which had been taken in by the young boys chained to one another and again, the smell of fish raged. This was for me the highlight of the day, the visit to the mosque and observations of the ocean dwellers. We had unbeknownst to us stumbled into the mecca of Casablanca. With a religious root at it’s core and young life everywhere.
Typing this in my phone is wearing on my sun kissed hand, Obi and I have been each journaling about the day. He’s at my left side and I’m so curious to know what he’s written. I’ll find out soon, but I’ll end here with one final note. We ate dinner in a restaurant that provided delicious vegetable tagine with couscous. Our meals were very flavourful and exactly what we needed after a day of exploring. I ended my meal with Moroccan tea;)
Tomorrow we’re heading to Fes, which is a 3.5 hour drive. We’re hoping to stop briefly in the country’s capital, Rabat and pass through Meknes.
For now, it’s time for a shower.
With care, Franziska
PS. I also need to apologize for any typos, again the phone is not that easy;)
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