City tour today. First place to visit was the Hassan II Mosque. It is the largest mosque in Africa, and the 5th largest in the world. Its minaret is the world's tallest at 689 ft. Photos have no way of showing the immensity of the space inside. It can hold 25,000 worshipers inside, with another 80,000 outside. It's huge! Notre Dame or St. Peter's Basilica could fit inside. Every surface is carved or tiled...wonderful design ideas everywhere. Only finished in 1993, it is built partially over the ocean.
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| The end of this hall is about 600 feet away. |
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| "Come with me to the kasbah." |
Leaving the Mosque behind, we drove along the Corniche, the oceanside walk with many restaurants, and then into Casablanca itself. We ended up in the area called Harbous, which is home to a market area our guide called the kasbah of Casablanca. Much quieter than the usual souk, it was interesting walking around without having to constantly be jumping out of the way of motorcycles and horse carts.
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| Olives!!! |
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| and carpets |
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| Check out the pigeons |
Back at the Sofitel we ate on the 24th floor which has a wonderful view of the city. Food was good too. Going out later with a several others on the tour, we crossed the street (a feat in itself, no crosswalks, timing necessary to miss the traffic) to the souk area near the hotel. An hour of looking and saying "Sorry, just looking." we came back to the hotel.
Final farewell dinner tonight. Jim West is leaving tomorrow, so rather than tomorrow night we had the dinner tonight. Rabat tomorrow.
I've decided that the better of the two cities is Marrakesh. Casablanca just too big, and the vibe in Marrakesh is better, although the souk is messier.
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