Morocco

If you normally follow my blog, you know that I write tons of details. This trip was different because I truly didn't have much time to type. Therefore, you will see more pictures and videos than writing below. It was fascinating to me to visit another country where religion played a huge part of everyday life. I learned a great deal about the mosque (not a church or temple, but still a place to pray), and the Muslim people.


Morocco (4/16-4/27)

I will be leaving in a couple hours for Casablanca with my friend Kerry. I am so excited to travel to Morocco and even more enthused that Kerry is joining me. Kerry and I attended East Stroudsburg University together and she was actually my first friend there. We met on the elevator at orientation back in 1994. I saw the word Rutherford below her name on her HELLO tag and the rest, as they say, was history.

We are taking a private tour with a group for 10 nights. A motorcoach (travel bus) will drive us all over Morocco. Some of the stops include: Casablanca, Rabat,Fez, Erfoud, and Marrakech.
I look forward to updating you when I can.

Our tour bus at one of the many stops in Morocco.

So long,
KMF

Starting the journey was a bit interesting. Kerry didnt realize her passport expired 3 days prior to our departure. The morning of our trip she actually received it at 10 am. I thought that was enough of a crazy start. Later I experienced a bit of unexpected rt. 17 traffic at 3pm. Then after two hours of driving to JFK, there were no signs for Royal Air Maroc, the airline we were flying with. Even the JFK workers did not know. After being directed to terminals 3 and then 4, we finally found someone who had a better idea of the layout and we made it to terminal 1.

The great news is after all of our minor setbacks, our 6 hour flight was right on schedule and our luggage was waiting for us on the carosel.

CASABLANCA
Kerry and I were exhausted when we arrived at 8 am in the morning. Sleeping was definitely apart of our first day in Casablanca. We met our tour group and tour leader in the late afternoon. So far there are 7 people total in our group. Apparently there are 13 more people arriving tomorrow.

I had my first Moroccan treat, friend dough (looks like a closed hamburger roll) with honey in the middle and then dipped in sugar. We also met two people from New York and ended up having dinner together. There is a four hour time difference between NJ and Morocco.

Top/Middle-Arabic writing, Bottom- Mint tea (a crowd favorite)

Okay- Morocco keyboards are different than our keyboards and all of the ones I used in the Spanish speaking countries that I have visited. The a,q, w, and m are in different locations and it makes a huge difference. I will be typing a lot less and also am quite busy with the tour that I dont have much time to go to internet cafes.

The language that most Moroccans speak is Arabic. However, because the Moroccans were once under France's protective control from 1912-1956, French is also spoken frequently. The currency is dirhams. One US dollar is a little over 8 dirham.

RABAT (capital of Morocco)
morning tour
- first stop: Palace of the King
- second stop: ancient ruins of Chellah

Chellah video

- third stop: mausoleums of past kings of Morocco
- fourth stop:Kasbah (a special type of building used when under attack)

Top-outside of mausoleum, Left-coffin of Mohammed V, Right-door inside mausolem

Minaret - the call to prayer is traditionally given at the top of the minaret.

MEKNES
afternoon tour
- Medina and visit Mausoleum of another famous king

Top-Moroccan spices, Middle/Bottom- square in Meknes

FEZ(FES)
-pottery store and factory
-sightseeing tour of a maze of narrow streets and alleys that make up the medina (meaning the old area of a city)

Pottery Visit

Top-candy for sale in the medina alley, Middle- Tannery, Bottom-view of Fes' Medina

Top-satellites in the Medina, Middle-meat for sale, Bottom- Visit carpet shop

Tannery Video

Walking through the alleys of the medina (Fes)

Dinner and performance in Fes video

A beautiful, but quick stop to the oasis of Ziz Valley.

ERFOUD
-right near the Sahara Desert and sand dunes
-went on a camel ride and enjoyed the sunset
-met some Berber people (the original inhabitants Morocco) who live in the desert

Today all 20 members of our tour group went on the optional excursion. We left around 4 pm in a bunch of 4 wheel drive vehicles to see the Sahara Desert. It was definitely bumpy, but not as terrible as the bog in the Falkland Islands. Our first stop included a short visit to see a Berber shepard and his wife who live in the desert. They are literally in the middle of nowhere with their tent and small dwelling. They don't own many possessions, but they do have one cell phone. That is how our tour director commuticated with the family to let them know we would be stopping by. We were all taking pictures and excited to see the inside of the tent and their small home.

Sahara Desert

Ride in the desert

Visit to Berber Shepard's tent and home, bottom- kitchen area

Sahara Desert Video

About an hour and a half after our departure from Erfoud, we reached the amazing sand dunes of the Sahara Desert. It is just as I imagined, however there were so many camels and people visiting the dunes. It was a bit touristy to be honest, but it didn't take away from the experience. The option with the camel ride was to go either by yourself or with another person. The cost was 200 dirhams and Kerry and I decided to go together and split the cost. I only had to pay 100 dirhams which is about 12 dollars. On the 30 minute ride up the dunes, I sat in the front. Our camel was quite delightful and our journey was enjoyable. I wasn't nervous about falling off or that the camel would make a sudden movement. Also, a Berber man was leading the camel through the dunes with a rope. We reached the top of the dune and had 45 minutes to watch the sunset. We were able to get fantastic pictures and sat in the now cool, orange/red sand. This sand was extemely dry and fine. It easily fell off with one brush or wipe of my hand.

Top-Kerry and I with our Berber friend, Middle/Bottom- Erg Chebbi sand dunes

The only video of Kerry and I and our camel ride

On the 30 minute ride back, Kerry and I switched spots and so I was sitting on the back part of the camel (not as comfortable as the front). We held on tight to the bars attached to the saddle and enjoyed our last couple of moments on the camel. The only scary or sudden part of the camel experience was when the camel was instructed to kneel down for our dismount. In order for us to get off the camel, it would kneel down on its front legs first. Even though the Berber warned us, it was a abrupt movement that made us lean forward almost over the camel;s head. With our combined weight it was if we were going to be shot forward into the air. Thankfully we held on tight and the camel was only doing what it normally did.

On top of sand dunes, sunset


OUARZAZATE
-visit the area that is famous for being in Hollywood movies: Gladiator and Lawrence of Arabia

Top-Camel, Middle/Bottom- Ait Benhaddou Kasbah

Top-Inside of a mosque, Bottom- Todra Gorge

MARRAKESH


Top-Minaret, Bottom- souks (shops) in the Marrakesh Medina

Call to prayer video (from minaret)

Top-Jemaael-Fna Square at night, Bottom- Snake charmer

Jaamel-Fna Square at night Video

Snake Charmer- What do you think???

CASABLANCA

In Casablanca I had the opportunity to visit the inside of mosque. This was the only mosque that I or any other tourist, who is not Muslim, is allowed in to visit. All of the other mosques I have viewed from outside the main door. In addition, 2pm is the only time non-Muslims may tour the mosque.

The Hassan II Mosque was quite impressive. It was absolutely massive inside. Our tour guide informed us that this is one of the 3 largest mosques in the world. The video below is only a view of the main floor.

This mosque was specifically built to bring more visitors to Casablanca. Many Muslims would visit other areas of Morocco, but Casablanca only offered the airport. The King at the time decided that building a grand mosque would attract more people (which it has).

Built from 1987-1993

People that worked on the project -800 engineers, 10,000 craftsmen, 3,000 workers

Work shifts (24 hours) 8 am-12pm , 12pm- 8pm, 8pm-8 am

3 main parts of the mosque- religious, social, cultural

Left-View of Casablanca, Right- Hassan the II mosque with minaret

Inside Hassan the II mosque- prayer room and wash room

I had to take my shoes off when I entered the mosque. It was not for religious reasons, rather for good hygiene. When Muslims pray, there are moments when they place their head on the floor. Therefore carrying in dirt from the ground and such would not be clean. Even before Muslims enter the religious part of the mosque, they must either wash at home or wash certain body parts(hands, arms, feet, legs, etc.) in the downstairs wash area of the mosque.

I did learn that the holy day for Muslims is Friday (also couscous day). The minaret is a tower that has ramps leading up to the very top. At the top, the call to prayer is given 5 times a day using a mega phone (see above video from Marrakesh). In the old days a horse would take the caller up to the top of the minaret. Only devout Muslims pray 5 times a day. Most others pray once a day.

Ramadan- is a month where Muslims fast during daylight hours. This means only before the sun rises and after the sun sets, they may eat and drink. Devout Muslims don't even swallow their saliva during Ramadan. I was told that spitting is looked upon as being extremely holy.

The beautiful inside of Hassan II Mosque

SCENIC DRIVE THROUGH MOROCCO

Traveling by bus from one city to another was quite beautiful. Here are some fantastic shots of Morocco's many landscapes.