April 9 – 10

As mentioned in the earlier post, we were scheduled to meet with our tour group at 6:00pm in Cities, the hotel restaurant.  Joanna and I went downstairs a few minutes early and finding seats at one of the tables, ordered a drink apiece while we waited to start.  Mine would be a Jack Daniels and Coke Zero, a choice that would become more difficult to exercise as we continued our journey in country.

At the appointed time our group filtered in along with our guide, Hicham, who for this tour, Intrepid Classic Morocco, would prove to be as excellent a choice as the guides we had enjoyed during our previous tours (The Nile and Peru) with this outfit.  There would be nine of us on the tour, Frances and Rob from England, Aleisha and Rob (traveling separately) from Australia, Hanna from Germany by way of London, Kim, Marty, Joanna and myself. 

The tour would last seven nights with stops in Fes, a Sahra Desert campground, Todra Gorge, Ait Benhaddou, and finally Marrakech.  We were supposed to get 7 breakfasts, 1 lunch, and 3 dinners (but would end up with one or two more) and including almost all excursions and transportation our cost would be $1,545 per person, quite reasonable when compared to what other tour companies may charge for a trip of this nature. 

After introductions and receiving information about the next few days, we headed out to dinner, a couple of blocks from the hotel to Restaurant Des Fleurs.  I was still full from our late lunch, and thinking I might have picked up a bug there cautiously ordered a bowl of the Moroccan soup while Joanna had a nice-looking omelet.  This would be our first encounter with a restaurant that didn’t serve alcohol of any sort, this being a Muslim country, and we would continue to run into as the days passed.  The tab for our meal would be 113 Dirhams or a little less than $18.

The next morning, we gathered early in the restaurant with our bags packed for what would be full day until our arrival in Fes.  We were just finishing up breakfast when I reached into the right back pocket of my travel pants (Zip off Kuhls) to pull out my wallet only to discover it wasn’t there.  Panic set in, as it would, and I rushed up to our room to see if it had fallen out.  It wasn’t there and heading back to the restaurant I tore apart my suitcase, to no avail.  Shifting into damage control, I began began to calculate who I would need to contact to report it stolen.  It was then that Joanna pointed to my left rear pocket and reaching around, there was the wallet.  I’d switched from my shorts to my pants earlier and inadvertently put it into the wrong place.  So much for highly experienced travelers. 

Our transport now packed we made our way to the Hassan II Mosque, our one and only important stop in Casablanca.  Hicham mentioned that the only reason that Intrepid starts its tours here was American’s fascination with Rick’s bar and the movie it was famous for.  And we would have to agree.  But, the mosque is impressive, the second largest functioning one in Africa and it is the 13th largest in the world (the largest is Masjid al-Haram also known as the Sacred Mosque or the Great Mosque of Mecca) and its minaret is the world’s second tallest at 689 ft.

Designed by Michel Pinseau, the mosque rises above the Atlantic Ocean, built partially on land and partially over the ocean.  This siting was accomplished by creating a platform linking a natural rock outcrop reclaimed from the sea.  Two large breakwaters were also built, to protect the mosque from the erosive action of the ocean waves, which can be up to 33 ft in height.  Its environmental advantage is that it is free of noise and pollution and receives a fresh breeze from the sea. 

The historical context of the mosque began with the death of King Mohammed V in 1961.  King Hassan II had requested that the best of the country’s artisans come forward and submit plans for a mausoleum to honor the departed king.  Work commenced in 1986 and was conducted over a seven-year period, with completion in 1993.  Construction was scheduled to be completed in 1989 ready for Hassan II’s 60th birthday and during the most intense period of construction, 1,400 men worked during the day and another 1,100 during the night.  In addition, 10,000 artists and craftsmen participated in building and beautifying the mosque.   

Like all great temples to a god, it is breathtaking and yet always leads me to question the amount of money that was spent to construct it.  How much support could this amount of money be distributed to the poorer citizens of the country.  Construction costs, estimated to be about 585 million euro, were an issue of debate in Morocco, a lower mid-income country.  Much of the financing was by public subscription, supposedly voluntary, but according Hicham Morocco being somewhat of a police state, there wasn’t much voluntary about it.  In addition to public donations and those from business establishments as well as other countries, western countries provided construction loans, which Morocco repaid.

We finished at the mosque and boarding our van began the three plus hour drive to Fes.  We stopped briefly in Meknes to the wall surrounding its Medina, then drove onto Moulay Idriss for the first of our in-home meals, that is lunch provided by a family at their house.  These meals are usually a highlight of the trip, offering an interior view of homes kept hidden behind walls and doors. 

We were served an abundance of food, including a cold vegetable dish, meatballs in tomato sauce covered in cheese, chicken tagine, pita bread, and couscous.  For dessert sliced oranges sprinkled with cinnamon (a surprise and delicious) and all the tea and water we could drink. 

We lingered for a while letting the food settle (indeed, I’d be full for the rest of the day) before bidding our hosts farewell and continuing by foot through the maze-like pedestrian only streets of town before reaching a viewpoint of the rest of the city spread before us.  We then walked back to the van and began the journey to our next stop, the Roman ruins at Volubilis.  We’ll cover that and Fes in the next post. 

Links

Intrepid Classic Morocco: https://www.intrepidtravel.com/us/morocco/classic-morocco-159494

Restaurant Des Fleurs: https://www.facebook.com/aurestaurantdesfleurs/

Hassan II Mosque: https://www.fmh2.ma/en