Another train ride and a night in Rabat

Rabat was a welcome break from the hustle and bustle of Marrakech. We took a 3 hour train ride, which allowed us to see the beautiful landscape of Morocco. Unfortunately the waste management has a long way to go, so the rail line is littered with garbage. A woman on the train told us that Morocco is too poor to have a recycling program, and we have been hard-pressed to find public waste bins while walking around. Still, the distant landscape is gorgeous and the sky is a beautiful blue. Prior to our arrival there were many days of rain, so everything is lush and green. It is interesting to see pastures dotted with dense areas of apartment buildings, many that are abandoned or half-built. Along the tracks we saw a lot of shepherds tending their flocks. The outskirts of cities seems to be where the stray dogs hang out, while the cats rule the streets of towns.

After arriving in Rabat we checked into our hotel and took a few minutes to settle in, freshen up, and drop our bags off. We wandered through the souks, which were very different from the souks in Marrakech. They seemed a lot more calm. I didn't take a lot of photos just because I was exhausted and wanted to remain respectful, but there were men selling whole stingrays from carts and it was awesome! Cats waited patiently behind them hoping for a handout.

We wound our way up through the narrow alleys into the Kasbah. It was beautiful. The walls were all painted white and blue and it was quiet! Such a nice break from Marrakech. I loved the chaos of Marrakech, but I can only take so much of it.

We ended our professor-guided stroll on the edge of the fort/kasbah overlooking the Atlantic ocean. The view was incredible.

Several of us headed down from the fort together to find dinner. You can't look to Yelp for dinner suggestions here! So we wander until we find a place that looks good and has comfortable seating. We took in the sights along the way and had tagine for dinner (tagine comes in many forms and is a national specialty. I will write more on that later.) I also had an amazing banana and milk smoothie.

After dinner we called it a night. I roomed with Stefi and Ashlae and got a balcony with an incredible view. After a good night of sleep, we had breakfast in the hotel and headed to the train station once more. Our visit to Rabat was very short and sweet, but was just what the doctor ordered for our exhausted group of students. Onward to Meknes!