Hotel Diwan Casablanca

9/17/09<br><br>Sorry for the long break, I'll try to give a good update right now to catch everyone up. A week ago today we got to Casablanca, Morocco and were pretty disappointed right away. It was lousy weather and a very crowded, dirty, and noisy port. During our cultural pre-port meeting they gave us a lot of information about what we needed to worry about, which sounded like a lot. Since it is a Muslim country most all women were very well covered ...

... just a couple blocks from the famous Marrakech central market.  There was a huge square with entertainers - cross-dressing belly dancers,  drum circles, snake charmers, guys with pet monkeys, you name it.  Every where you looked there was something going on.  And so many people!  There were mopeds, bicycles, babies (at midnight), mostly locals but still plenty of westerners looking confused like us.  Lots of smoke in the air from the grills and open air food vendors.  I heard ...

Well, I'm finally here and it's been quite an exciting couple of days. Let's start in Casablanca. I managed all my times correctly and actually made it into the city when I was supposed to. Then I had to deal with the taxi drivers. I hate the taxi drivers. They always rip me off no matter what, and I just take it. I'd say what they'd resemble in the US is probably, the devil. I feel ...

... Our Favourite Things: 1. The Food: Kebab's, Couscous, Schwarmas, Tuna Pizza, Tajine.....mmm. 2. The People: A very friendly bunch. It is funny that countries located at the northern end of most continents are so friendly (Colombia, Morocco, Canada...) 3. The Medina of Fez: Spice shops, small alleys, hidden palaces, and community bakeries; a fun place to get lost.

... told us if we thought someone was following us to turn around and scream STOP while pointing to him to make a scene and draw attention to us. It looked kind of ridiculous but it made sense and if I am being followed I will be taking his loud advice. After the safety meeting we had open mic night. A lot of people sang and played the guitar and my favorite act was a rewritten version of Jordan Sparks "No ...

... more attention to that discussion. They were the first to arrive and settle in Morocco, coming from Yemen, and today, though they comprise the majority, they seem to be a somewhat suppressed group. They seem rather like our Amish. They are very conservative, live in closed compounds with extended family and tribes, and they live very primitive lives, with donkeys and carts to go to town to do business. It's very strange to be in traffic jam full of cars and have a ...

... who worked around the clock in shifts, seven days a week.  The 750 million $US (one $US is about seven Moroccan Dirham) was 'voluntarily donated' by the people of Morocco for the construction of the mosque, and the majority of the materials used in the construction are from within Morocco, the exceptions being the Venetian glass chandeliers from Italy and the giant Russian titanium doors. The size of the mosque is quite sizable.  As stated before, it is ...

... all very cleverly and well done but just not angular or uneven enough. Worst of all the loose stone floor has been replaced by cheap looking paving slabs.....the sort you might have in your garden if you really hated all that greenay. The area is now pedestrianised to resemble a large municipal European square... But, it was un-necessary...other matters are more pressing than the gentrificaion of this once proud and unique area....ensuring that Marracech taxis ...

... waters: whatsoever hath fins and scales in the waters, in the seas, and in the rivers, them shall ye eat. 10 And all that have not fins and ...

... of locals living in the area were ´relocated´ for it´s purpose - where we saw some of the lovely cardboard walled/tin rooved establishments where they now live from our train window coming into the city. Thinking that we´d beat the tourist fan fare, we got there for the first tour and grabbed some great early morning digitals... only to be joined within minutes by the 5 busloads that were to push their way through so ...