Journey through Morocco: a feast for the senses
Following our visit to Egypt, my spouse and I boarded a plane for the five-hour flight to Casablanca, Morocco. We had two days on our own to explore the city made famous by Humphrey Bogart before joining our tour group.
This was the third trip we have taken with the Washington County Bar Association through Travel De Novo, which organizes continuing legal education opportunities to exotic locations. Our expectations were high, and all were surpassed on this wonderful excursion.
It was impossible not to compare first impressions of Morocco with Egypt. This small country in North Africa along both the North Atlantic Ocean and Mediterranean Sea was cleaner, more modern and showed fewer signs of the abject poverty we witnessed throughout Egypt. However, Morocco is far from a western nation. The illiteracy rate in the villages is 38%. Male dominance proliferates among three distinct cultures, Arab, Berber and European.
Morocco’s coming-out party will be as co-host for the 2030 FIFA World Cup. Major construction and infrastructure projects are already being rolled out across the country. Morocco will join Spain and Portugal welcoming the world to a celebration of soccer, diversity, and heritage.
On our first night of the tour, we were treated to a welcome dinner at Rick’s Cafe, a restaurant inspired by the famous eatery in the 1942 film, “Casablanca.” The next morning a visit to the famous Hassan II Mosque was on the schedule. Artisans from all over Morocco worked to cover the building in a facade of grandeur that can accommodate 100,000 worshippers.
Our next destination was Fes. On the way we stopped for lunch at a thriving winery – a real surprise in a Moslem country.
In the morning, we took off on foot to explore the 1,000-year-old Fes Medina (old walled city) and its souks (marketplaces). Pungent aromas, unusual sounds and colorful sights of artisan goods and handmade crafts overloaded the senses. Our guides helped us with bartering for rugs, leather goods, pottery, intricately detailed clothing, and delicate metal work. A tour of the large open-air tannery and leather emporium was a highlight. Lunch featured street food in the middle of the chaotic bazaar. For dinner we divided into small groups and were welcomed into the homes of several Moroccan families, who were eager to hear about America and to enlighten us on local culture.
The featured attraction on day four was the impressive Jewish cemetery in Fes, along with its associated synagogue, now a museum. We were given a detailed explanation of religious rites in Morocco. Moroccans are among the most liberal in the Arab world. Community and togetherness are stressed over simple toleration, which can lead to conflict. After lunch at a Moroccan grill that included piles of aromatic meats, we spent several hours at a ceramic factory, where numerous purchases were made.
Day five had us on the bus to Rabat, the capital of Morocco. On the way we stopped at the well-preserved Roman ruins, a UNESCO world heritage site in the small town of Volubilis. Finally, on a bright, sunny day, we admired the Rabat skyline while lunching at a superior seafood restaurant along the waterfront.
Our final day in Rabat focused on the Moroccan Parliament, where we learned how the government is organized. It features a king for life who has unchallenged executive powers. The king’s son sits at his side and the family owns large palaces throughout the country. The elected Parliament can be dissolved at the King’s pleasure.
Day seven was spent on the bus for a long ride to the tourist mecca of Marrakesh. Our hungry group was treated to a picnic lunch at the Amal Women’s Training Center. This foundation trains young Moroccan women with culinary skills and helps place them in the workforce.
Refueled, we tackled the world-famous Jemaa el-Fna-Square. The space was packed with tourists observing an outdoor circus of snake charmers, Berber musicians, barking vendors and exotic food stalls.
On our last day we toured two of Marrakesh’s main attractions, the Bahia Palace, a showcase of Moroccan artisan skills, and the beautiful Majorelle Gardens.
The numerous legal seminars spaced throughout the trip were well received by lawyers and lay persons alike. Two discussions stand out for me. The first was a journalist reporting to a large audience on Instagram (owned by Meta) who was recently denied access to the service after reporting on the conflict in Gaza. Despite numerous attempts to learn why, no answer was provided.
The other was with an American expat attorney, now the head of a non-governmental charity, who gave a robust presentation on her efforts to improve women’s rights and to address domestic violence in Morocco. Our group was stunned and saddened to learn that only days earlier, President Donald Trump’s executive order canceling all foreign aid had terminated her small but life-affirming grant from the State Department.
What will I remember most about Morocco?
High on the list was talking with a waiter in Rabat before lunch about football, soccer and his brother in Boston. It felt close to home. Then, while napping on the hotel veranda, I heard the most holy Islamic Friday prayer, over the sound of the pool waterfall, a prayer revered by 25% of the world’s population.
These back-to-back occurrences reminded me that while our cultures are diverse, we are all more alike than most are willing to admit.