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MOROCCO
By Natalie Schwartz
April 2006
As a young child, I learned about a magical country called
Morocco and knew that someday I would visit there. My dream finally came true when I traveled to this exotic land recently.
Morocco is an ancient land full of mystery, combining modern conveniences and old world beliefs. Its cities are filled with Islamic culture, tombs dedicated to departed kings and glorious mosques. When you think of Morocco, you think desert, sand dunes and camels but
Morocco is also emerald green fields covered with almond, orange and olive trees, fertile mountains and valleys, snow-capped Atlas Mountains where you can ski, hike, golf at some of the most spectacular golf courses in the world, horse back ride, indulge in water sports such as surfing, windsurfing, white water rafting, fishing, sailing and yachting.
Morocco abounds with museums overflowing with treasures which go back to prehistoric times and include Roman, Berber and Arab culture.
Every city in
Morocco is composed of a new modern city and an old city called a "medina" which is the original walled city of the Kasbah. Within the medina are the souks where you can buy anything and everything you can think of. But, you must remember that bargaining is the name of the game. And a game it is!!! The streets in the medina are so narrow and winding that the only way to deliver goods to the merchants is by way of the donkey!!
Our first stop on our journey was Casablanca which stands for "White House". Once a small fishing village,
Casablanca is now a dynamic seaside city with one of the largest ports in Africa and a far cry from the
Casablanca of Bergman and Bogart. Built on the edge of the sea is the impressive Hassen II Mosque, one of the largest mosques in the world and open to the public. The prayer hall alone can accommodate 25,000 worshippers. This high-tech avant-garde city comes alive at night along the famous cornice with its night clubs, fashionable bars, beaches, restaurants and hotels.
Our next stop was Rabat, the capital of Morocco. Rabat is known as the "Garden City" for it's abundance of green spaces and landscaped gardens.
Morocco is a constitutional monarchy ruled by King Mohammed VI, who came to the throne in 1999. He is also
Morocco's religious leader. A visit to the mausoleum of Mohammed V, architect of Moroccan independence in 1956 and the Royal Palace is a must.
Fes is the oldest imperial city and is the spiritual and intellectual capital of Islam in the west.
Fes was home to Jewish immigrants that fled persecution in Spain. In the ancient Jewish quarter, you can visit the Synagogue which is still in existence but no longer used for prayer, pass the home resided in by Maimonides and visit a school created by Maimonides that is still in use today. Fes is a big, bustling city with a multitude of passages, stairways and small courtyards with stalls selling silver jewelry, copper trays, pottery painted in
Fes blue, rugs and leather works. A visit to the Dyers Tanneries is fascinating and should not be missed. Housed in a courtyard are pools of vibrant colors- blues, reds, oranges, yellows. The leather hides are dropped into these pools and the workers actually go into the pools to make sure that the leather hides are covered evenly with the dyes. The view is memorable!
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Set in the Moroccan countryside is the city of Meknes, known for its monumental gates. Bab al-Mansour is the main gate into the city and it is considered the finest in
Morocco. After a visit to the imperial stables and the granaries, we continued on to
Volubilis, an ancient Roman city that existed here for more than 2,000 years. This city is said to be the home of Sylene, daughter of Antony and Cleopatra. The ancient ruins and mosaics are surrounded by mountains in a magnificent setting almost like a movie set.
As we approached the "Pearl of the South" as Marrakech is known, we noticed a change in the scenery. The earth suddenly becomes red, the sky becomes a deeper blue, and with the backdrop of the snow-capped Atlas Mountains, the city looms ahead of us as a picture of timeless beauty. Everything in Marrakech is worth seeing from the Saadian tombs, the majestic ruins of the Badii Palace build by Ahmed el Mansour using the most precious materials such as gold, onyx and Italian marble, the Majorelle Gardens complete with its vibrant blue buildings, pools, banana trees, coconut palms, cacti and a private museum of North African artifacts. Sunset is the time to visit
Marrakech's main attraction, Djema el Fna Square filled with fortune tellers, acrobats, snake charmers, magicians, story tellers and food stalls. One could sit for hours sipping a glass of mint tea at one of the many cafes in the square and observe this wonderful way of life that has gone on for centuries in this square.
We took a side trip to a small, charming fishing port known as Essaouira. This town is lined with white houses all with blue shutters. The streets are lined with art galleries, silversmiths, craftsmen working on inlay thuja wood creating everything from small wooden boxes to large pieces of furniture and wonderful little seafood restaurants located on the docks. A day by the seaside is well worth the trip.
Marrakech is surrounded by the snow-capped Atlas Mountains and one of the most memorable days of our trip was when we crossed these mountains to visit the city of
Quarzazate on the edge of the Sahara Desert. As we drove 4,000 feet above sea level, I remember looking down at a tour bus coming up the mountain. It was the size of a match box. The drive was absolutely exhilarating! We drove past grandiose scenery and lush plateaus housing numerous Berber villages. An oasis at the edge of the Sahara Desert,
Quarzazate was once a French Foreign Legion Outpost and is a favorite with many movie directors and producers from all over the world. Standing in the middle of a field of flowering almond trees is a fabulous sand castle known as Ait Benhaddow. This Kasbah has been used as the setting for "Lawrence of Arabia". It is so exceptional that UNESCO has given it world heritage status. A truly magnificent and humbling sight!
Morocco is a land of ancient wonders and mysteries. The people are kind, considerate and friendly. We observed beautiful, happy children, running and playing in the parks, the parents never concerned for their children's safety. This was a wonderful trip that will remain in my memory bank for a long time to come.
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