Day 4: Seeing the Sights of Rabat!

Sunday was another great day of sightseeing in Rabat. We started the morning at a leisurely pace, eating breakfast and sunning until Rita called with directions. Then we headed out for a long walk that led us past some of the consulates from around the world and the UN building. They were all beautiful buildings behind lovely walls that were often covered in flowers. The sun was shining, it was cool, and though the walk was long no one was complaining. Soon enough we heard beeping and turned around to find Rita and Amine pulling up in their car.

The Moroccan flag waving as we headed out of the training complex on our adventure.

Looking down the road outside of the training center where we are staying.

Everyone was much more excited for Pizza Hut in Arabic than for the UN Building.

Amine offered to take a few of us in the car with him while the rest completed the walk, and Jane, Sophia, Kana and I took him up on it. We got to the restaurant early, made our reservations, and spent some time walking around observing and talking before everyone else arrived. Once they got there we made our way back to the restaurant where we had a delicious late lunch (I had white olive and lemon chicken that had been slow cooked in a tajine and fantastically spiced vegetables. I ate an olive for the first time...do not love.). Once lunch was finished we walked up and hopped on the tram that took us down to the waterfront. We started at one of the more famous historical sites in Rabat, the Mausoleum of Mohammed V, where the current king's father and grandfather are buried. There is the remains of an old mosque (Hassan Tower) nearby and everything was so beautiful as it caught the slowly dying light of approaching evening. The stones warmed up to a beautiful orange color...I loved it. The mausoleum itself actually reminded me a lot of the Taj Mahal inside, with intricately carved marble and a beautiful dome ceiling. It was great. There was a bit of a commotion at the beginning with guards closing off an entrance and Amine suspected that the king was coming, but sadly we did not see him. After taking some hilarious photos of team members on columns, we were off to our next destination: PIRATE TOWN.

Catching up on the news in Arabic.

Mmmm, lunch! This picture is making me so hungry right now.

Mike, Kana and Sameera on the tram.

Hassan Tower, as viewed through the walls of the old mosque.

Stunning carvings in the stone.

Told you he was in a boy band. (Mark)

Jane getting centered.

Although it sounds like an awesome mini-golf course, Pirate Town is actually home to some of the most expensive homes in Rabat. On a small hilly peninsula overlooking the harbor, it was home to...you guessed it...pirates in the old days. We walked and walked through the town and eventually stopped at a lovely little restaurant overlooking the water where we indulged in the best mint tea I've had since arriving (with huge, full mint leaves on top) and tasty Moroccan pastries. As we left to walk through the town some more, the headache I had been nursing all day worsened greatly, and I started to feel really sick. While the rest of the group bought postcards, I sat down, popped some pain medication and chugged water. I think a big part of it was dehydration. When it is so cool you don't think about constantly rehydrating like you would if you were sweating, but Morocco is fairly dry during the day and we had been doing a LOT of walking around.

That is Pirate Town.

My favorite mode of transportation!

Afi, Jane, Sophia, Rachel, Kana, Asumi, Veronika and Marisa

Cheers! Best mint tea we have had yet...and I am fast becoming an expert in Moroccan mint tea.

Moonrise over Pirate Town

Rita and I ended up taking a cab back to the car while the rest of the team walked the ends of the earth through the souk (market) and over the river to Sale (sahLAY). Just after Rita and I picked up the car and returned to the hotel we got a call that the group was going to eat at the waterfront in Sale and since I was feeling better by that point we headed out. When we arrived at the pretty little waterfront with boats bobbing along, we found a place to eat (based on outdoor heaters that turned out were not functioning...) and had a very tasty dinner. By that point everyone was EXHAUSTED, so we headed home soon after (some in Rita's car, some by tram and taxi) and called it a night.

I can't believe we leave in less than a week! Time has been flying by and it has all been so incredibly interesting. I think I can speak for the whole team when I say that we are having a wonderful time and learning an incredible amount about this beautiful country. So happy to have the opportunity to do so!