Rabat has an old-world charm as well as new-world sophistication. The white stucco and brick buildings in Ville Nouvelle (New Town) have a style and grandeur befitting a capital city. And the contemporary brown and red Parliament building decorated with flags of the world took our breath away. We saw as many people dressed in jeans and polo shirts walking along the palm-fringed Avenue Mohammed V as we saw in djellabahs.
A few blocks away, the medina suggests an intimacy of another era. We seemed to be the only tourists as we wandered by open-air fruit and spice stands, past children pedaling home carrying freshly made bread, a small barbershop where a man reclined for an afternoon shave, and tea houses where elderly men swapped stories over sweet mint tea.
Walking farther, past the sprawling cemetery where thousands of white gravestones lined in tidy rows face Mecca, we came to the centuries-old Kasbah des Oudaia perched on the cliffs overlooking the Bou Regreg River. After climbing steep steps, we reached a doorway that opened to a maze of narrow alleyways painted a vibrant blue and white. Under the praying hands of Fatima, the Prophet Mohammed's daughter, I realized I was lost. Perhaps with Fatima's help, my muffled call was immediately answered through thick walls, and minutes later Jonathan and I were reunited.
Later that night, we had dinner at a fairytale restaurant in the medina. A tall broad-shouldered man in Aladdin-style clothing led us with a lantern through a maze of dark alleys to an indescript door. Inside was a garden oasis, the courtyard of a traditional Moroccan riad (or stately home), where we dined beneath the stars as musicians played gently behind us.
(Happy birthday, Kerry!)
Avenue Mohammed V in Ville Nouvelle
Avenue Mohammed V in the Medina
The Rabat Cemetery
A Kasbah Alley and a Kasbah Kitty
Self Portrait in Kasbah des Oudaia
The Beautiful Hotel Villa Mandarine
Decorative Doors
Dinner!
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