We went to Tanger and it was a big city but was greatly decayed and very crowded. We went to some smaller cities and those were interesting as well but were much poorer and did not have the larger buildings Tanger has.
There were tons of people on the street and it seems like the thing for Moroccans to do is to walk around or sit around outside and stare at the tourist, more specifically the western women. It was very hard for western women to walk around and not have men flock to them.
The green mint tea is excellent, possibly the best I have had.
All the important buildings had several armed guards around with submachine guns.
We saw a fight break out between 2 locals. One was very big, around 6´4 and muscular. A cop came and threw both of them in his car in like 5 seconds. The cop was a small guy to and I saw no weapon on him. Apparently you do not argue with the police in Marruecos.
There were tons of peddlers and it was almost impossible to walk without being surrounded by them. I really felt bad because while they were very pushy they were also very friendly and obviously very poor. There was one guy that just stayed outside the hotel selling wares and I saw him several times. I noticed he was wearing the same shirt during that time.
I was curious to see how the Moroccans would treat us but was pleasantly surprised at how nice they were. It was almost like we were celebrities just for being western tourists. The non peddlers would wave to us and make kind conversation.
I was also surprised at how well they speak the different languages. A lot of the store vendors and peddlers speak English, Spanish, Italian, Arabic, German and French. I am surprised that with their mastery of the different languages that they do not get better jobs, at least translating positions. Some of the Moroccans speak better English than Americans.
Overall although the conditions were more poorer than I am accustomed to, it was a good experience to see not only a different country but a vastly different culture and not be treated dubviously but with warm anticipation.
Has anyone been to Ceuta or Melilla? They are Spanish owned cities and I am curious how they compare to a large city such as Tanger.
There were tons of people on the street and it seems like the thing for Moroccans to do is to walk around or sit around outside and stare at the tourist, more specifically the western women. It was very hard for western women to walk around and not have men flock to them.
The green mint tea is excellent, possibly the best I have had.
All the important buildings had several armed guards around with submachine guns.
We saw a fight break out between 2 locals. One was very big, around 6´4 and muscular. A cop came and threw both of them in his car in like 5 seconds. The cop was a small guy to and I saw no weapon on him. Apparently you do not argue with the police in Marruecos.
There were tons of peddlers and it was almost impossible to walk without being surrounded by them. I really felt bad because while they were very pushy they were also very friendly and obviously very poor. There was one guy that just stayed outside the hotel selling wares and I saw him several times. I noticed he was wearing the same shirt during that time.
I was curious to see how the Moroccans would treat us but was pleasantly surprised at how nice they were. It was almost like we were celebrities just for being western tourists. The non peddlers would wave to us and make kind conversation.
I was also surprised at how well they speak the different languages. A lot of the store vendors and peddlers speak English, Spanish, Italian, Arabic, German and French. I am surprised that with their mastery of the different languages that they do not get better jobs, at least translating positions. Some of the Moroccans speak better English than Americans.
Overall although the conditions were more poorer than I am accustomed to, it was a good experience to see not only a different country but a vastly different culture and not be treated dubviously but with warm anticipation.
Has anyone been to Ceuta or Melilla? They are Spanish owned cities and I am curious how they compare to a large city such as Tanger.
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