Opulence

Casablanca 74 F sunny. The cruise line included 15 tours at various ports as part of the cruise package. Casablanca was the first included tour and as I am on a budget, free is a good choice! It is my first visit to Casablanca so I was looking forward to this day. This tour started with a look into the older section of the town, a visit to the Hassan II mosque, then a drive through the more tourist seaside portion of Casablanca.

Casablanca is the largest city in Morocco (5 million) though it is not the capital (Rabat). It is considered the financial center of the country and is the major port of the country. The port is a combination of tourist and goods traffic. We docked in between stacks of cargo containers with the loading and unloading continuously occurring. It was quite interesting to watch all the activity.

As all other countries in the region, Morocco has a varied history. Established in the 7th century BC by Berbers as a monarchy, the location and wealth of the area became a target of other lands which includes a history of being conquered, independent and conquered again. France was the last country to govern Morocco with independence occurring in 1956 after years or riots and battles. The French influence is seen in the Art Deco architecture that is out of place in an Arabic country. In certain areas, the shop signs and advertisements are in French.

We started the tour in the governmental or older part of Morocco, walking through the streets, old markets and the royal palace. Residential areas are divided into regions and every region has its own school, mosque, stores and park with the intent that daily needs are met close to home.

The residential streets looked like alleys - very simple and plain. It was explained that houses are kept plain to the street view but inside are built around a courtyard. The windows, decorative details and balconies we would associate with housing all face the courtyard.

Aside from flower pots at the door, nothing would indicate housing on the left and right.

We then walked through a series of arched streets to a small olive market. From the street it wasnt visble but a couple of turns and there were stalls and stalls of olives in a multitude of colors, preserved lemons, bins of spices and other related goods.

It was fairly early in the morning and they were still setting up the stalls. This was not a tourist market - you needed drachmas to pay, no credit cards. But the experience to watch, hear, wander and smell, was very interesting.

Yellow olives - who knew (in the back around the preserved lemons). Containers and containers of olives in the market.

From there we walked to the Kings Palace stopping first at a side entrance. Pretty fancy for a side entrance.

I wanted to include a close up of the intricacies of the doors as this is a prime example of many official doors in the Moroccan architecture style. When the French restored Morocco's independence there was/is a big push in teaching this architectural style so it is not a forgotten art.

Important doors are always Bronze - hand hammered or styled/embellished. The white at the top is plaster again painstaking hand chiseled (more on that later) and below the plaster is the tile work, handset piece by piece.

And what does that mean for the official front door? More of the same only bigger, more dramatic. You get an idea of the size of the doors by the gentlemen standing off to the left. The plaster at the top, tile below and the doors again of bronze.

The closer detail shows the intricacy and size of the doors.

From the older part of town, we were taken to the Hassan II mosque. The mosque is the third largest mosque in the world. For special events, it can hold 25,000 people inside the mosque and more than 80,000 outside the mosque. It took 6 years to build the complex funded by 'universal' donations and not only is it at the edge of the sea, but part of it is built over the sea. The entire complex covers 9 hectaires or approximately 22 acres. We were able to visit the main prayer hall. The guide conveyed at several points that Casablanca as a city is very accepting of differences. For example, there is no law that defines how a woman should dress, all religions and sects of Islam are welcome to visit the mosques. Visiting women aren't requested to cover their hair or wear a robe as in other mosques. Everyone must take off their shoes is the only rule to enter when prayers are not in progress.

I have tried again to load a video of the area as you walk into the mosque. I'm trying to find a way that is quick and reliable. I'm sure there is a better way but for now - I hope the link works. www.youtube.com/shorts/BW4uLuwYakY

Following is a picture of the length of the main prayer hall followed by a picture of the ceiling and a close up of the plaster work on the columns. As you look at the pictures, some interesting points

-Women worship in the upstairs areas that are lined with wood screens - 'for privacy'. They have a separate entrance/exit from the main mosque doors. (seen best in the video)

-in good weather during special events, the roof can retract and has a weight of 'tons'

-if it is cold, the floor is heated

-the large chandeliers are Murano glass

-the plaster sections on the columns were made from a mold then hand chiseled to remove the cutout sections - it actually reminds me of lace. The guide said the craftsmen took 3-4 days to carve, place and install 1 sq meter.

-There is a lower level that contains multiple fountains where people can wash before the prayer

They were cleaning a chandalier while we visited. They lower the light to the ground, clean it and then hoist it up. It gives you an idea as to the size of the lights.

This is my personal reaction - it was stunning to start to grasp the enormity of the mosque. But as I feel with every religion - is the opulence necessary - who is it serving?

Naouarak (See you later!)