DAY 3, MARCH 4, TANGIER, dinner at the port and Medina tour

                                        There are cats everywhere, here they are fat,  they can eat fish

This is the fish place at the Port in Tanger, best food ever!

             I was happily surprised when Neil and Teresa went to pick me up at the train station
             I was really happy to see them. From that moment on I had so much fun with them and
             Hendrick another friend.
             Neil took us to eat at the Port, look  what we ate, delicious!
             Neil is just the kind of guy who knows how to eat well, you will not see his picture
             he likes his privacy. But boy,  we ate until we could not eat anymore...
             This dish is for the 4 of us
            

                                                Best fish I had in Morocco

Day 3, March 4, Friday on my way to Tangier by train

                        I took the train from Casablanca to Tangier at 3 PM          

                 and I arrived in Tangier at 6:30 PM
                 First class is about 25 Dlls.

                                      I traveled very comfortable, the train is just like the ones I traveled in
                                      Europe. I noticed in Morocco that in First class you have as companions
                                      passengers who look like they have more money and in
                                      second class passengers who look more middle class.
                                      The train is clean and  punctual.

                                             View from the train

It was really green

                                                            I saw this from the train

 

View from the train

DAY 3--March 4, Friday, Casablanca COUSCUS DAY

"Every Friday we have Couscous for lunch after we come back from the Mosque",
 Naima's father said on  Thursday night. I wanted to learn how to make Couscous from Naima's
mother, she is a great cook.
When I went to bed I was very happy looking forward  to next day "Couscus day".
I went to an  Internet cafe but the keyboard was in Arabic.
I had a nice morning with my hosts and a great meal, I wrote down the recipe for Couscous.
It is served in the center of the table in one container and each person eats from her/his side with
bare hands but my hosts used spoons and gave me a spoon.
 It was so delicious!
I will make it soon!
Thanks for sharing with me such  delicious meals, Naima's mom is the best cook and
such a nice smile, always happy, always with bright light on her eyes!

                                                MANGE, MANGE, MANGE     

 This is how they keep their soup bowls, isn't so pretty?

                                                                             Lots of tiles in the kitchen

                                           Beautiful tiles adorn the walls of this traditional Moroccan
                                           home. No pictures anywhere, no superfluousness ,
                                           no knicks and knacks, no junk, just the essential, clean
                                           elegant, utilitarian.

                                          This was my first time seeing a living room in Morocco,
                                           couches are custom made according to the size of the 3 walls
                                           of the room, they can accommodate large gatherings.
                                           This is a beautiful Salon and very comfortable.
                                            Where the walls have no tiles they have a traditional
                                             Moroccan type of plaster that is done only once and lasts
                                             the life of the building, it is like polished wax, it is an art form called
                                             Tadelakt, the walls are very soft to the touch, very durable and very
                                              elegant.

Day 2- March 3- La Corniche in Casablanca

El Malecon, La Corniche, The Waterfront, The Boardwalk, it is a place to sit and have coffee
watch people, breathe the ocean air, walk, play, swim, have ice cream.

 On the  hill overlooking the Corniche there are fabulous villas,  in one of them Churchill and Roosevelt met in 1943 and decided to send the troops to Normandy. The Nazis believed they were meeting in the White House in Washington when they  hear  they were meeting in  Casa Blanca. I did not take pictures because there were guards and I did not know if I was allowed to take pictures. It was a place with many guards due to being The King's Palace there, one of many  "second homes" that he has.

                                                  Casablanca Beach

                                    Do you see the island? There is a place for pilgrims to go and ask for
                                    miracles sick people go there and woman who can not have children.
                                    it is the Shrine of  a saint, Sidi Abderrahmen  

 Nice, very nice

I saw families and woman dressed very elegantly, very nice hotels, swimming pools

outdoor cafes and a very nice atmosphere.

                    I went back there at  night with Mohamed and his friend we had a lovely time, drinking tea and

                    having a conversation about Morocco, its future, its people

 It was so nice!

                  

This is the sign for the Saint's shrine

DAY 2--March 3--downtown Casablanca

Yes, this is a cathedral in a Muslim country


I love the buildings in downtown Casablanca, the people, the energy.

I visited on day 2 the Medina, the Mosque, the Corniche, and  downtown.

At 7 Pm I met with couchurfers and had tea at the Corniche.

I had a great day! I feel so lucky to be here!

Interesting architecture all buildings are white, they  could  do with some  fresh paint

Casablanca bears little relationship to the mythical city of souks, spies and oriental mystery evoked in the Casablanca film.

It appears that here is more interest in new buildings  than restoration. There are many beautiful buildings that need restoration. I did not go to Rick’s Cafe, opened in 2004 by a former American diplomat, which I hear  does have the faithfully-restored 1930’s interior, and the piano bar.
 I could not say  “Play it again, Sam!” 

Oh well, I hope there will be a next time.

Newspapers in Arabic and French

Many French made cars, Renault, Peugot.

this man sells water, you see them in every large city using the same costume
Look at the city bus, it is very modern

The signs on the streets are bilingual Arab/French

lovely plants, nice stores

nice area with no cars, downtown Casablanca

 Selling cigarettes, this cat and his owner

Stores like in any other city
A mother and her daughter

Mohamed V Plaza, downtown Casablanca, with several government buildings

Court  building

Cathedral of Sacred Heart, it was closed and could not see it inside
I was curious to see a catholic building in a Muslim country.

 It was built in 1930. It ceased to function as a church in 1956, after the independence of Morocco, and became a cultural center.

There are around 20,000 Catholics in Morocco, most of them are European expatriates, with a big majority of French and Spanish from colonization and post-independence, the second group is composed of Sub-Saharan immigrants, mainly students.

DAY 2- March 3,- Hassan II Mosque, Casablanca

• It is a huge mosque built with the financial support of all the Moroccan people, it is the largest mosque in the country the minaret is the world's tallest. The third largest mosque in he world.
• It was inaugurated in 1993.
• Price was 800 million dollars.
• It was designed by a French architect.

It has a heated floor, electric doors, and a sliding roof.

                                                                    It is really spectacular
                                                                    it can accommodate 25,000 people

                                                      This is downstairs and is not used, it is the  Turkish bath

                                                     People from all over Morocco come to pray at this mosque
                                                     They feel very proud that it was built with their money.

                                    This is a museum in the same plaza of the Mosque

                                          The  tiled fountain in this  shape is everywhere

                                         Tallest Minaret in the world, 210 meters

                                          Part of the mosque is built in the Atlantic Ocean

                                                          It looks so beautiful, I love it!

                        

                                Outside of this huge mosque there is a big plaza, it looks humongous
                                                     It can accommodate 80, 000 people

                                    The price to get a guided tour is about 120 DH, or 15 dlls
                                    You  can not get inside without  a guided tour.
                                     Moroccans do not have to pay.
                                      It is the only mosque non Muslims can visit inside in Morocco.