Moroocco Trip Day 2 - 24 Dec 2008
Trip Start
Dec 23, 2007
1
2
16
Trip End
Jan 07, 2008
Rabat, Morocco
Tuesday, February 5, 2008
In what seemed like only 5 minutes, my alarm went off and I felt awful. Looked around the shabby hotel room, which didn't take long considering it's size (or lack of it), and felt even worse. Thank God I only had to spend a couple of hours in this dump. I dragged myself into the cupboard called the en suite, nearly breaking my neck on the slippery tiled floor - no mat. Had the quickest shower of my life - the room was freezing, before venturing downstairs to the lounge where the rest of the group had assembled. A mediocre breakfast offering of coffee, bread and some yogurt was displayed, albeit haphazardly, across a wonky table which was embellished with a heavily stained tablecloth. As you may have gathered, I wasn't exactly enamoured with Hotel Guynemer and I think you would be hard pressed to find someone who was. I studied my fellow group members, 17 people of various nationalities, while Mohammed delivered the tour brief. They looked a varied and interesting bunch
Brass lamp in the hammam
. I looked forward to acquainting myself with them, single travellers always have interesting tales to tell. Thankfully, we then boarded the coach to visit the Kings Hassan II mosque, and the hotel from hell was history.My mood was low, the result of the hassle getting to the airport, 6 hour delay, and hardly any sleep in a horrible hotel and to cap it all, it was raining. Things could only get better, I told myself, as the coach pulled up alongside the huge paved area in front of the mosque. As I stepped off the coach and studied the huge, beautiful building silhouetted by the sea, the sun came out and my bad mood evaporated. The mosque was impressive, built to withstand earthquakes and it boasted heated floors, electric doors, sliding roof not to mention the Zelij tiles adorning the front walls which took my breath away. It's reputed to be the second largest mosque in the world after Mecca, with room for 25000 worshippers and a further 80,000 can be accommodated in the courtyard. It's Minaret is the world's tallest at 210m. Building started in 1986 and it was finished in 1993. 6000 traditional Moroccan artisans produced beautiful mosaics, stone and marble floors and carved and painted ceilings. Interesting to note that it was built on reclaimed land and almost half the surface lies over the Atlantic Ocean.This was inspired by the verse in the Koran which states 'The throne of God was built on the water.' Part of the floor is glass so worshippers can kneel directly on the sea.This feature was requested by King Hassan II who declared "I want to build this mosque on the water, because God's throne is on the water
Christmas Eve Drinks
. The faithful who go there to pray, to praise the creator on firm soil, can contemplate God's sky and ocean."This and the Tin Mal mosque in the High Atlas are the only two mosques in Morocco open to non Muslims.
Our local guide escorted us inside and requested we remove our shoes. . We could leave them in the entrance area where there was already a vast collection of footwear, or carry them around. I elected to carry mine. Having paid £110 for my trainers, I was hesitant to leave them there, only coming back to find them gone and a rabid pair of flip flops left in replacement.
My eyes were drawn to the ceiling, beautifully ornate with vast brass light fittings hanging down, each displaying so many tiny lights they looked like stars. The roof opens up to keep the temperature bearable for the worshippers during the hot summer months.
Beneath the mosque is a fabulous Hammam which is never used. Built purely to show visitors what a traditional Hamman is like.
Hamman Ceiling
After a good hour we boarded the bus and drove out of Casablanca, passing the famous 'Rick's Bar' immortalised in the film. Can't say that Casablanca was a place I would want to hang around in for long - apart from the mosque, it all looked pretty grim.
We were heading for the modern capital, Rabat. By now, I was starting to get to know some of my companions. Kim, the Aussie and I had already formed a good bond, probably due to the fact that we were very similar - extrovert and fun loving.
Cara was a sweetheart but a typical teacher, bossy and talking to everyone as if they were 5 years old, but in a nice way! Ann, the Brit who had lived and taught in Spain for 20 years, who was developing a nasty cold. Barbara from Toronto who looked very mysterious dressed head to toe in black who chain smoked when she had the chance and was skinnier that a piece of string. Kaska, the Polish lady who's luggage had been lost also came from Toronto. The second unfortunate luggage loser - both travelled with BA, was Liz, another Aussie. She was particularly concerned as she was embarking on an Antarctic trip immediately after this trip, and needed all the cold weather gear in her missing luggage.
The weather was really beautiful now as we arrived in Rabat at the Hassan Tower and Mausoleum of Mohammed V
Hassan Tower
. The Hassan Tower is the minaret of an unfinished mosque which was intended to be the largest minaret and mosque in the world. Building began in 1195 AD but in 1199AD, Sultan Yacoub Al-mansour died and construction ended. The tower stands at 44m instead of the intended 86m. The Mausoleum contains the tombs of Mohammed V and his two sons. Pretty impressive and worth a look. A quick drive to view the Royal Palace and then back into the city centre where we strolled around the top of the city wall and looked down to the beach below before enjoying a walk around the Kasbah des Oudaias which was originally a fortified town, and possesses a distinctly Andalucian influence. It was wonderful walking around the pretty blue and white houses in the sunshine, very picturesque. We stopped for mint tea in a beautiful courtyard overlooking the sea and it was perfect. The waiters appeared offering almond pastries which most people accepted, but I had seen one of the waiters picking his nose prior to handing out the pastries and my appetite disappeared - strange that!It had been a long day and I was happy to get to Hotel Bouregreg to shower and change before dinner. This was a standard 3 star hotel but it was like staying at the Ritz after Hotel Guynemer. And it had heating! Nights in Morocco are chilly this time of year.We found a traditional Moroccan restaurant down the road where I sampled one of the fabulous tagines. Delicious. Even better was the fact that it was a licenced restautant which as I was to discover, was a rare treat in this 'dry' country.It was a nice end to the day, everyone was chilled and getting to know each other so we toasted the first day of the tour and Christmas Eve, and looked forward to experiencing Christmas Day in Morocco tomorrow.
