Tangier, Morocco - Sept. 19th

Tangier, Morocco - Sept. 19th

We had to have both cars loaded and ready to hit the road by 7:45am.  We had to drive south from Algeciras south to Tarifa, the port town.  We found the public parking lot and parked both cars there and walked about a half of mile to the ferry port.

The Old Castle in Tarifa, Spain - Mainland Europe's southernmost town and the perfect port to catch the ferry to 

Tangier, Morocco

 This is the 9:00am ferry we took to Tangier - a short ride of 35 minutes.  It has nice seating and a snack bar available for your comfort.

The cost of the round trip ferry ticket was 63 Euros per person.  The tickets are available right at the port in their building.  Once the tickets are bought then you line up for boarding.  There is a "security machine" you pass your bags through but everything seemed pretty easy.

Once you are on board the ferry, you need to line up at the Immigrations Window to have your passport steamed.  Everyone is given two sheets of paper, one white & one yellow.  We needed to fill out both of these papers and have our passports ready.  The Immigrations officer on board will stamp your passport and keep the white slip of paper.  We had to keep the yellow for our exit from Morocco.

We were met at the ferry port by our private guide, Said, little did we know that he would soon be our best friend.  He took Theresa in the wheelchair to go through Customs and we met them on the other side.  We had our own mini-van with driver for the whole day.

Our first stop was the see the tallest mosque in the city.  Said also pointed out what they call the German Camels, the old 240 Mercedes car.  These are really a taxi but will wait until enough people fill it up going in the same direction…

I'm not sure what everyone expected but I think we all came with low expectations.  Ed and I kept saying how lush and green everything was and how the city sitting on seven hills was beautiful.  

Our first destination was a lovely view point for the Mediterranean Sea and have a light breakfast snack because we had started so early.  Said had arranged for us to have their local crepes drizzled with Moroccan Argon Oil and sugar, served with mint tea.

We headed northwest to the Atlantic Ocean coast.  Tangier is situated on the Strait of Gibraltar, the Mediterranean Sea and also on the Atlantic Ocean.  We were going to see a grotto and caves.  But, on our way our group just had to stop and do a once in lifetime opportunity…a camel ride.

 Heck, there is even shopping as you enter the caves…gotta make money where you can.

We returned to the city and entered the "Old Town".  It is a twisty mess of narrow lanes, dead-end alleys, and lots of local life spilling out into the streets.  We started off in the Kasbah (means "fortress") area on our way to the Kasbah Museum.  The museum had been the Dar el-Makhzen, a former sultan's palace.  The building itself if beautiful with the rooms surrounding the central, open-air courtyard with fountain.

This is the old palace and on the far end had been a prison…handy if you need to keep you enemies close.

 Entrance into the Kasbah Museum - above door

 Beautiful original painted doors on display in the museum

Ceiling - was a piece of artwork…

We continued our tour of the Medina (Old Town)  I loved the old doors in this part of town…..

But, it was time for us to eat lunch…but we would shortly experience a dining experience.  Said took us to Marhaba Palace, one tour book called this place a "tourist trap" but we had the best experience.

The door leading into the restaurant.  

It was a little overwhelming the decor of the restaurant, a little over the top.  We were told it had once been a single family home and they retained the old flavor.

Said introduced us to an old friend of his nicknamed Haj (because he made two pilgrimages to Mecca while he worked for the King of Saudi Arabia).  Haj, Ed and I got to chat about our living experiences in Saudi Arabia and became fast friends.  It was Haj that suggested we do a family style lunch with several dishes and he came up with the dishes we should try.

First items were fresh bread and a wonderful soup…of veggies, chick peas, tiny noodles in a thick tomato base.  Some of the group went back for second helpings, make Haj really happy.

OK, most of us could have stopped right there and been happy, but now the three salads come out.  

Now we weren't full before, we were now.  It was then that Haj and two waiters come out with many dishes that soon took over all space on our large table.

Beef and veggies over rice in a mild curry sauce!

The same dish as the beef but with a large chicken breast…

Beef, prunes and pine nuts in a spicy saffron sauce

A mixture of ground chicken, veggies and spices in a crispy puff pastry topped with cinnamon and sugar…this had to be my all time favorite of the whole trip.

Now if all that above food wasn't enough, we had two type of cookies, a fig filled and a sugar type, to finish off the meal.  A young waited did a wonderful mint tea pouring display for us

The only thing we needed was a nap, but first we had to hire a cherry picker to haul our fat butts off the couches.   We all waddled out of there talking about what a great experience it was and how we would remember it as a highlight of the trip.

The day was still early and we had more sightseeing to do with Said.  The Old Town (Medina) is a maze of tiny streets so without our guide we never would have experienced what we did.

 These are Berbers, who ride donkeys to the city from the nearby Rif Mountains on market days on Thursday.

This was just a stand of olives of every kind

 The roses were beautiful but not nearly as large as those in Ecuador!

When Said dropped us off at our hotel, we were exhausted and still excited about our experience in Tangier.  We sat in the bar at the hotel and just talked.  No one wanted any dinner from the lunch we had enjoyed.  The following morning we would take the ferry back to Tarifa, Spain to continue our journey.

Peggy