Casablanca, Morocco

We have finally arrived at the much anticipated Casablanca.  

Coal and Phosphate dust linger in the air at the port of Casablanca, and containers are strategically moved like pawns on a chess board.

There are six huge piers like this one and more being built to accommodate the largest shipping port in Morocco.

The busiest port in North Africa, cargo ships were being loaded with coal and phosphorus which filled the air with black coal dust and white phosphorus, covering cars AND our deck.  I can't imagine what that would do to our lungs!  So we watched from the safety of INSIDE the suite.  No morning tea time on the deck for us today!  The port was abuzz with activity.  Containers were being strategically moved around like chess pieces, lifted from one stack of containers to a waiting ship.  I think it would be fun to run one of those machines for about 2 minutes, until I did a "Jenga" move, toppling the whole stack into the water.  Oops!!  I hate when that happens.

Our tour of Casablanca Highlights departed the ship at 1:50.  Since we had plenty of time, Haynes and I hit the gym again.  While on the treadmill, I saw our group leaving the ship.  Somehow, we missed the memo about leaving earlier to have lunch at Rick's Cafe in Casablanca ... which is frankly, the ONLY reason to be in Casablanca.   Oh well, we finished our workout, had a nice free lunch on board the ship and disembarked the ship to find out if our tour of Casablanca Highlights would take us to Rick's Cafe.  Turned out, the tour was 4 hours on a bus and it didn't even go by Rick's.  What the heck??!!  Can someone explain to me why we would want to sit on a bus for four hours??  We turned in our tour tickets and hopped in a taxi.  Off to Rick's Cafe.

Our taxi driver, Ochmed, wanted to keep us in the taxi as long as possible, so he took the long way to Rick's pointing out the sights.  Both of them.  The first was the largest Mosque in the Arabic countries, which coincidentally, is the only Mosque that allows non-muslims to visit. 

 

Largest Mosque in the Arabic countries.

Ochmed explained how the Koran doesn't tell Muslim people to kill infidels, rather to simply eradicate  anyone who doesn't believe in the Koran.  WTF.  Sounds startling similar to me.  But he had an interesting way of explaining the plan.  Luckily, he didn't ask about our beliefs.  

I'm anxious to leave these predominately Muslim countries.  It's very disconcerting, constantly wary of anyone whom might want to cash it in for his ticket to "72 virgin land" at our expense.  Morocco ... check.  Don't need to come back. 

Rick's Cafe, Casablanca

The second place of interest in Casablanca, Rick's Cafe.  

Rick's Cafe in Casablanca

Ochmed dropped us at the entrance and said he'd wait for us.  It was a pretty sure bet he'd be waiting as we hadn't paid him anything yet.  He may be Muslim, but he appreciates good ole capitalism and US cash.

Welcome to Rick's.

As we walked through the huge doors to Rick's Cafe, it was like taking a step back in time.  I honestly expected to see Humphrey Bogart puffing away on a cigarette waiting for Sam to "play it again."

Like a step back in time, Rick's Cafe felt like Casablanca.

The bar is snuggly tucked away along the far wall of Rick's.

Haynes and I made our way straight to the bar, passing the grande piano tucked into a small nook, admiring the mahogany carved palm trees surrounding the mirrored bar with the bartenders wearing cute little red Fez hats, just like the ones from the movie.

Cocktails at Rick's Cafe Bar in Casablanca complete with all the trimmings one might expect. 

 

We were soaking in the traditional Moroccan architecture's courtyard-style mansion with it's curved arches, sculpted bar, balconies, balustrades as well as beaded and stenciled brass lighting.  We were really getting into the ambiance of the place when Haynes commented on how small Rick's appeared compared to the movie.  

Where's Sam?

That's about the time a loud mouth at the other end of the bar shattered our image of Rick's Cafe.  He very arrogantly laughed at us and said this restaurant, Rick's Cafe, was built in 2004  by an American Woman, Kathy Kriger, a former diplomate in Morocco and was simply reminiscent of the film.  WHAT!!  We've been duped!  No wonder the piano was not quite right.  Sam played an upright piano in the movie.  And I remember something important being hidden in that piano, right?  Oh well, the cocktails succeeded in taking some of the sting out of the deception of fake Rick's Cafe.

Phony Rick's closed at 3:00 to set up for dinner, so we headed back to the ship, where we settled in at the pool bar for our afternoon cocktails.  We watched a gorgeous sunset from the bow while sailing away for our run up to Gibraltar, the final stop on our cruise before reaching Barcelona.

Sunset as we leave the Casablanca Port.

Fernando arranged dinner for us this evening at Pacific Rim, our favorite pan-Asian spot on the ship.  Such a lovely civilized evening after our afternoon at Rick's.

Dinner back on the ship at Pacific Rim.

Tomorrow ... Gibraltar, UK.