Adventures in Spanish Morocco

Tanger. Tetouan. Martil. Cabo Negro. M’Diq. Fnideq. Tanger Med.  I think that just about covers it all. Four days and somehow I found myself in all of these cities on our adventure to Northern Morocco aka Spanish Morocco. Let me say one thing, traveling around this country without a car it a complete pain in the ass. I am on this trip with a co-worker and miss our train to Assilah, so we end up taking another train to Tanger 2 hours later and the train overall takes 6 hours. 11 people crammed in a compartment made for 8 people. The sun is blaring into the compartment and I wonder if the AC is even on. Fun times. I can’t breathe. So what else can I do but try to sleep the entire time. We finally make it to Tanger and I am ready to see the town. As we drive through the town on our way to the Kasbah, with the famous lookout point to Spain, I see how beautiful the city is. Right on the waters, the buildings are all painted white and different shades of blue. Reminds me of Mykonos. The lookout point affords a nice view of Spain in the horizon, a mere 20 miles across the Straits of Gibraltar.

I realize here that I am screwed. I don’t speak Arabic or Spanish. And most folks here don’t really speak French or English. Once colonized by Spain, this city has a lot of Spanish influence. Reading the signs causes total confusion as they are in a mixture of Arabic, French, Spanish, and English. We ask a women on the street how to get out of the Kasbah to the city center and she is so friendly, walks with us and in those 15 minutes, proceeds to tell my friend her entire life story. Apparently many men marry like to marry women from the North (like Tanger) because they are very beautiful, yet she is unmarried. It’s funny how sometimes people are so friendly and open here. As we take a scenic taxi ride from Tanger to Tetouan, the roads are filled with Moroccan flags. If the King is in the area, the streets are decorated with tons of flags, so as the taxi driver said, the King is here, somewhere in the North. The contrast of the red flags with the blue sky, green land, white houses, and blue houses makes a remarkable color combination.

At the beach at Cabo Negro, I see a strip of rocks similar to one I used to frequent in Marseille. The last time I was there, I couldn’t get myself to walk all the way to the end, something I was rather disappointed in myself for not being able to do. Why? Not being able to walk to the end translates to a lack of independence, freedom, courage, and the right amount of risk. So this time, when I saw it, I knew nothing was stopping me. I see young boys jumping from boulder to boulder with such ease. But for me it wasn’t so. Stay focused. 15 minutes later, I made it to the end. Success.

Another city here that I really liked is Fnideq. Right on the water, there has been a lot of investment into the beautiful city. There is a pristine white and blue mosque in the center of the city.