On the streets of Rabat
Rabat, the second largest city and capital of the Kingdom of Morocco - is as vibrant and colorful as I had imagined Morocco to be as a country. Comfortably noisy and lively as many Arabic cities around the world - with a warm and welcoming atmosphere. We took an interesting taxi drive (20 Dirhams - 2 Euros) to one of the main shopping areas in search for some genuine Moroccan ambiance and tasty baklavas. Interesting taxi ride, because of the fact that you share your ride with other strangers who jumps in to the car (most probably a white Mercedes from around 1985) in the middle of the busy multiple-lane roads and out wherever might be suitable.
Arabs are very loud and intense in their way of communicating and it's always a fascinating encounter to see them in action in their home environments. A special kind of chock - especially when coming from the sea, empty on people and their conversations. In the souk we visited and on the narrow surrounding streets of it, we found some of the most amazing pieces of leather bags, jewelry, shoes, home decoration, accessories, pottery, rugs and glass ware - all delicately handmade with beautiful details. We were not in a shopping mood though, more into the eating one and while strolling around in this intense and bustling environment - we ate our way around the city. Grilled meat served straight off the street with spicy flavors. Arabic pastry and baklavas served with Moroccan mint tea from the holes in the walls. The sweet flower smells from handmade soaps and perfumes shifted place with the warm scent of grilled meat, from one bustling street to the other.
We have been told that Rabat is very calm and relaxed compared to Casablanca and Marrakech - so I assume it was a good start for us coming straight from the tranquility on the sea. The winding asymmetries and the orange/reddish hue made us feeling very comfortable and relaxed and it's with pleasure we will be heading further into town to discover more parts of this interesting city. And most definitely we'll be back in the souk or one of the other ones very soon - to stock up on spices, pottery and Moroccan tea cups. All to make our little boat an even heavier one.
