April 16, 2023 – Casablanca, Morocco

It’s Sunday morning and I had a rough night coughing.  I was too sick to go on tour today and asked Bob to go without me.  You never want to enter a country as a visitor and sound or look like you have a contagious disease. 

Casablanca.  My plan from the beginning of this trip was to buy a Moroccan lantern here as a souvenir.  I guess I’ll have to go to the Moroccan pavilion at EPCOT and buy one there.  Lol.

Casablanca, Morocco rests on the Chawiya plain that touches both the Atlantic and Mediterranean of North Africa.  Due to the cool currents off the Atlantic, the city enjoys a mild Mediterranean climate.  Temperatures rarely vary from season to season.  Summer days usually average 81F while winter months see daily highs around 67F.  Moroccan Arabic is their language, but French is widely spoken.  Casablanca is the largest city in the country and has less tourism than business.  Marrakech would be a city to visit if you had more time.  

Bob took a tour this morning that was a short city tour.  It’s a sunny day with pleasant temperatures.  He said the gardens and flowers were beautiful.  The highlight of the tour was the Hassan II Mosque.  Contemporary technology and traditional Moroccan architecture meet in this vast mosque and esplanade, built in 1993 at the sea’s edge.  It boasts the world’s tallest minaret, towering over 650 feet. It’s the world’s second largest mosque and can accommodate 25,000 worshippers in its interior and 85,000 on the esplanade.  It’s topped with a laser beam that shines at night in the direction of Mecca.  Bob said the view from the sea side was quite stunning.  They continued driving through the city and stopped at the Habous Quarter.  Narrow streets lead to lively souks (bazaars) and open markets, brimming with local wares, colorful fruits, figs, olive vendors and great spice shops.  He said the nice part was, not a lot of junkie souvenir vendors because this city is not really about tourism.  It’s about day to day life.  The market was very busy because it’s the end of Ramadan.  He was told tradition is at the end of Ramadan, the family purchases new clothing (maybe like ‘going back to school’ sales at home – lol).  Bob said he really enjoyed seeing and smelling the fragrance of the spices.

To a romantic, Casablanca is a mythical place inspired by the 1942 film starring Ingrid Bergman and Humphrey Bogart.  Truth be told, none of it was filmed in Casablanca, just a movie set in Hollywood.  There is actually a Rick’s Cafe in Casablanca.  Developed by former American diplomat Kathy Kroger from a restored mansion.  Rick’s opened in 2004 and was redesigned to look exactly, inside and out, like the piano bar in the famous movie and of course, popular with American tourists.  

“You must remember this….a kiss is just a kiss” (made famous by the movie Casablanca)…….is it? I think not 😉