Why Can't We Be Friends?

The jury is still out on our romance with Morocco. After 10 days in this country we have a mix of feelings, some good, some not so good. While their history is interesting and encapsulated in the lovely architecture of their mosques and former palaces, each of the four cities we have visited so far seem to mirror the others, and beyond the inability to access many of their treasured buildings (closed to non-Muslims) we have come across some inbred personal behaviours that are not attractive for a country trying to lure in tourists. We have still met many nice people along the way but it has taken us longer than normal to trust strangers who approach us because of the other half who attempt several different strategies to try to scam us, more so than any other country we have travelled to. Hopefully our negative first impressions will be a faded memory by the time we finish our 3 weeks here.

Since we left you last, we have been to Fes, Meknes and Rabat/Sale where we are just finishing a 3 night stay. All 3 cities featured a busy medina (old walled town) within a larger city. The medinas feature former palaces, numerous ancient mosques and many souks (market areas), all contained within a labyrinth of narrow alleyways. They are interesting to visit but it is often difficult to get around with so many people moving in different directions and suppliers bringing in goods on carts or mules. Fes highlights included the Chouwara Tannery where we were able to watch animal skins going through the process of cleaning, dying and drying, and Place de Seffarine where coppersmiths made beautiful copper and brass items in the middle of a small square. In Meknes, we made a day trip to Volubilis to see some Roman ruins that dated back to the first two centuries. Our private driver for the day, a taxi we shared with a nice Spanish couple, also drove us to the holy Muslim city of Moulay Idriss where we had a delicious meal on a rooftop terrace overlooking the city. In Rabat we decided to find lovely riad accommodations (bedroom in a renovated older home) across the Oued Bou Regreg River in Sale. We are moving back and forth between Rabat and Sale either using their new tram system (above ground light rail transit), or today via a rowboat taxi service for .35 cents each. The Mohammed V Mausoleum (former king's fancy burial site) and a massive unfinished 12th century mosque and minaret tower were featured.

Tomorrow we will be moving on to Casablanca using the ONCF train system which has worked well for us so far. We know Casa will be a highlight for us because our daughter Rachel, and Pascal, will be flying in from Basel to spend 4 days with us.

Comfortable travel in our first class seats. Fortunately for us, 4 other people didn't book into our 6 person compartment for the 5 hour train ride, which only cost $23 pp.

The Chouwara Tannery in Fes. The animal skins first go into the white coloured tanks (lime, salt, water, pigeon feces) for 2-3 days to soften up the leather. Then they are moved to the coloured tanks to absorb the dye colour, and finally dried before being made into a purse, shoes, jacket, etc. It is a total manual process as it has been since medieval times.

Walking through the Fes medina with the shopkeepers waiting for someone to take a glance at their products. There were no empty stalls in the medina so they must all be doing well. There were quieter and even smaller side alleys leading to homes and a potential shortcut to your destination......if you were lucky enough to find your way out of the maze.

Place de Seffarine in the Fes medina. There there were tools in the small square that the coppersmiths shared to make the goods that were for sale in their stalls.

The site of the Volubilis Roman ruins which dated back to the 1st century. The local tribes let the Romans have their way for 3 centuries and when they had finished building the city, they moved in and took over a place that was too far away from Rome to defend.

One of the many tiled floors still in relatively good shape in the former housing area at Volubilis.

The Muslim holy city of Moulay Idriss. It was considered so holy that non-Muslims were not allowed to visit the town until 1912, and they weren't allowed to stay overnight until 2005!

This is the main lobby area of the riad that we are staying at in Sale, the twin city of Rabat. On each side of the pool there are welcome areas and dining tables. The bedrooms are upstairs (2 more floors, 4-5 rooms in total) and above that is a rooftop terrace for relaxing or dining. It is similar to the other riads we have been enjoying for our overnight stays.

The Mohammed V Mausoleum which has guards at all the doors on the above floor where the viewing takes place. My wife has told me to expect much less.

The Madersa des Merenids in Sale. A madersa is an ancient school for young people to be introduced to Islam. While the tile work and mosaics were exceptional (in all the madersa's we have visited so far), the rooms above where the students slept were tiny, windowless and similar to a jail cell.....an interesting way to spend money.

A look back from our rowboat of the Rabat Kasbah  (ancient fortified area for an elite neighbourhood) and the Le Dhow galleon where we had lunch following our walk through the medina and kasbah. The galleon was built in India in 2008-9 and then brought to Rabat to serve as a riverside restaurant.