APR-03: Tangier, Morocco

We passed through the Straits of Gibraltar at 0400 this morning.  We got up to look at the Rock of Gibraltar.  Given that we have been to Gibraltar, getting up to see it was anti-climatic.  It was a blob of black in the darkness with a few lights at its base.  Within less than a minute of arising it was back to bed to dream of the Tantalizing Tetouan tour in the morning.   

Tour Description:  Tantalizing Tetouan

Begin your tour with a 35-mile drive over a gently winding road directly to the city of Tetouan, crossing the beautiful Rif Mountains. Along the way, keep an eye out for peasants in local dress as they sell their goat cheese at the side of the road. Arriving in Tetouan, known as the White Dove due to the color of its buildings, you will discover a town that was once a haven for pirates and a shelter for the Arabian refugees from Andalusia after the fall of Arabian rule in Spain. Tetouan still exhibits a profoundly Spanish influence as it was a Territory of Spain until asserting independence in 1956. Some administrative offices’ names are still in Spanish. Visit the outside of the Royal Palace of Tetouan, taking in its wide esplanade, Arab-Islamic architecture and its magnificently decorated gate. Cross on foot the ancient medina (Old Town) complete with narrow alleys and streets, popular shops, colorful souks (markets) with vendors of goat cheese, vegetables and spices dressed in traditional costume. The medina is home to a Jewish minority living in harmony with Muslims. Walk through the gate to the Museum of Moroccan Handicrafts. A variety of handicrafts are on display here, including embroidery, woodwork and woolen garments. The museum is also a school, where apprentices are taught how to make such items. Next, stop to savor the local musical entertainment and watch a belly dance as you sip mint tea. Return to the coach and head back to the port at Tangier.

Tour Experience

Little did we know that seeing Gibraltar in the dark would be the highlight of today’s  sightseeing.  

Our guide was arrogant bordering on adversarial.  The bus was old with leaky door seals, at least one broken seat, etc.  We drove for an hour to get to the crafts school where not much was going on.  No one explained anything beyond some sweeping generalizations.  It was not an auspicious start to Tantalizing Tetouan.

We were lulled into a false sense of things getting better when we entered the medina and started weaving our way through its narrow alleys and passageways.  This was the Morocco we remembered particularly enjoying on our last trip. 

Too soon we came to a restaurant where we were greeted with music.  We were given a cup of the traditional sweet tea and some small cakes.  Once seated, there was a thankfully brief floor show.  We discovered that belly-dancing loses a certain something when the dancer is fully clothed, middle-aged, a bit overweight and less than attractive.  The next entertainer was a man who did a series of stunts with candles on his head.  I subsequently discovered on a visit to the men's room that his other job was to clean the toilets.  The stunts with candles was a freebie, a clean toilet was not.  The performance ended with two musicians, not to be confused with the other four musicians who had provided accompaniment for the belly dancer and the talented toilet cleaner.  Dropping coins like rain as tokens of (alleged) appreciation, we escaped the restaurant.   

Speaking of rain, it was.

Our next stop was a carpet “exhibition”.  It was a hard soft-sell that went on too long.  The carpets themselves really were extremely nice.  Had we had more time and less pressure, Pam & I might have been tempted. 

Back outside, with the rain organizing itself into a steady shower, we wandered through more of the medina, coming out at the local palace of the sultan.  The sultan was not there.  The palace was closed to the public.  It had the curb appeal of Joe’s All-You-Can-Eat Moroccan Restaurant in Muscatine, Iowa.  Trying to photograph anything meant exposing my camera to the rain, so I snapped one quick, boring picture on this architectural dude and tucked my camera back in my raincoat.  

Our tour concluded with a 30-minute walk in the rain down some streets full of merchants, then back through the medina to get to our bus.  In fairness to that part of the itinerary, it could well have been interesting if we were permitted to walk slower and focus on what we were passing rather march along trying to stay dry.  Staying dry was particularly challenging on the return trip through the medina.  Many of the venders had rigged dilapidated tarps over their small stands.  This tarps collected water that periodically dropped on unsuspecting passers-by.  Pam & I each had several near-misses.

“Well, that’s over.” rather than “Well, that was interesting.” was the prevalent sentiment as we boarded the bus for the return trip to Tangier. 

The door seals still leaked.  So did a roof hatch, dribbling water on a man two rows behind me.  The bus windows fogged up.  ALL the windows.  The bus driver used a cloth to keep his window clear, driving with one hand while doing so.  In spite of this, Pam commented favorably on the care the driver was taking in navigating the bus.  She did not like my alternative take that given the age of the bus he might be concerned about the brakes.  Whichever of us with correct, and perhaps we both were, the bus delivered us safely to ROTTERDAM, ending what was without doubt the worse tour of our trip. 

Had the weather, guide and bus been better we would have likely scored this tour as mediocre instead of poor, but they were not so we did not.  “Tetouan” may mean “white dove” in Arabic, but this tour was more on the order of a motley pigeon.  Other groups on other buses with other guides reported a better experience.

Departing the harbor, a windmill farm was visible in the distance (left middle).  This is one of several we saw during the day. 

Through the haze we could also see in the distance the Straits of Gibraltar with Europe to the north (left) and Africa to the sound (right).

Just after sunset we looked out our stateroom window and saw what at first looked like the mirror image of ROTTERDAM.  Ruling out that impossibility we determined it was the NOORDAM on a passage to Malaga, Spain having left our next port of call – Cadiz, Spain – earlier today.