Leaving Casablanca
I took these pictures as the Oriana left Casablanca
I have not annotated them. The mosque named after Hassan II is in many of the pictures.
The Maverick
This ship was docked in front of the Oriana in Casablanca.
For whatever reason, I don’t know, it was stuck in the port, so the captain of the Oriana sent some of our food to keep the crew of The Maverick going for another few days.
The Maverick
I would assume that the owners didn’t have the money for port fees or something.
Everybody thought it was right, that the Captain took the action he did. But then it is a law of the sea to help fellow seafarers.
Summing Up Casablanca
The trip to the beach was excellent, but that couldn’t be said for the weather! I’ve been to Morocco before, and it was just as non-threatening as Marrakesh was ten years ago.
One thing that I noticed, was that a lot of the young Moroccan women, don’t bother to cover their hair, as most women do in Muslim countries. Coupled with the vast numbers of newspapers on the streets, does this show that Morocco is joining the modern world? Incidentally, I did hear a report on BBC World, that said that Morocco was one of the most welcoming countries in the world.
Let’s hope it stays that way! Or possibly gets even better!
I remember last time in Marrakesh that we had been recommended a restaurant by one of C’s colleagues in her chambers. We asked the concierge of our five star hotel, how we could get to the restaurant and he said to take a taxi, as the restaurant was difficult to find. We then asked how we got a taxi to get home and he said, that if we felt up to it the best way was to walk, as Marrakesh was a safe city.
So after an amazing meal, we walked back to the hotel!
The only interaction we had on the walk, was when a guy courteously waved us through, as he was in a hurry.
Walking Back To The Oriana
I took these pictures as I walked back to the Oriana.
They do illustrate, what I said in this post about there being a need for a good walking route from the tram to the dock.
I always photograph daisies.
The Beach At The End Of The Line
The beach was lots of flat sand, with the sort of dramatic sea, for which the Atlantic Ocean is renowned.
It was actually fairly deserted, so after my orange juice, I returned to the city centre.
But it was worth it, just for that orange juice alone, which had been freshly squeezed for my benefit. I have only ever had one orange juice anywhere near the same quality and that was in a five star hotel in probably Spain.
That would have cost me a lot more than the thirty pence or so the Casablancan one did!
The Casablanca Tram
I was about to go back to the boat, when I saw a tram, with the destination of Plage on the front.
It was a trip worth taking on the Casatram, that was only a few months old.
If the tram has a problem for cruise visitors, it is that although it goes fairly near to where the Oriana was docked, there is no walking route to the tramway, as there is a lot of dock-related buildings in the way.
It was however very easy to use, provided you had a few coins in the Morrocan currency. Instructions were in French, Arabic and English.
Casablanca In The Rain
As we started to explore the city it started to rain.
As you can see, it wasn’t just drizzle.
Arriving At Casablanca
We arrived in Casablanca early on Friday, the 22nd, which seeing as it was the day for prayers in the Muslim world, probably wasn’t the best days for those, who wanted to visit the mosque in the city.
The ship was fairly close into the centre of the city and it was about a fifteen minute walk.
The Anonymous Widower 