Well most people I have spoke to said don't go to Casablanca, it's horrible. But I kind of wanted to go there just based on the fame Bogart brought to it & obviously to see it for myself.
After catching the CTM bus up the coast for 7 hours, we finally arrived into Casablanca. From here we decided to walk to our hotel, Hotel Cental. Our map said it was just down the road near the Medina so we thought we'd walk as it would be quicker than arguing over the price of a taxi. As we rounded the final corner of the Medina our hotel came into sight. Hmmm.... that's nice I think??? Our hotel stood at the end of a small park looking over all the other buildings. It looked exceptionally old & in need of a restoration but we figured we should see inside before making any comments.
We were greated by the Hotel manager with a one arm grab & a Harlem lean. After giving us our keys we made for the top floor to check it out. Not to bad. It was old & smelt like mothballs but it was better than it looked from the outside. It was basiclly as good as any of the other hostels we had stayed in. Best of all we had a TV to cath up on what was happening in the reat of the world. That eveing we just took it easy with a meal & a drink on the sidewalk followed by a 9.00pm screening of Goldfinger in our room.
That night we went to bed with a large gathering of drunk people 3 stories below us on the street. We just decided to close our doors & try to get some sleep. At about 2.00am we were woke by chairs & tables being dragged along the floor which just happened to be our roof. The drunk tour group decided to move from the street & sit on the roof. This went on until 4.45am which is about the time we figured we were changing hotels the next day.
After lmited sleep we head down the road with all our stuff & checked in to the Hotel Ibis which was only a three star but completly new & plus. Best of all all the rooms were soundproof. At only 650 Dirhims there was nothing stopping us. Today was new day! We showered in our new lovely room & got ready for a day of sight seeing. We picked up some breakfast/lunch at 1.00pm & then headed for the Mosque of Hassan II.
The mosque can be seen from all over Casablanca & is the 3rd biggest in the world behind a mosquw in Mecca & Medina. It's also the only mosque in the world to have a lift to the top of the 200 meter minaret. But the bling did come at a cost for the King, approximatley 800 million was spent which includes the retractable roof. Our tour started at 3.00pm & ran for an hour. They took us inside the prayer hall, abolution rooms & through the Hammam pools which is not part of the mosque but a social gathering area for Muslims & Non-Muslims to meet.
After several hours walking around the Mosque we decided to call it an end to a good day & head back to our luxiourious hotel. But before we could get back to our hotel we walked through quite a few slum areas where one small boy of about 6 thought it would be a good idea to flash & wave his penis about before throwing rocks. If he was mine I would of flogged him but really what do you do in a Muslim country?
Casablanca is nowhere near as bad as people say. Sure it's a bit gritty & just a big Islamic city but it is a nice change to all the Medina's & mudbrick homes. The Mosque of Hassan II is definatly worth visiting especially if you have never been in a mosque before. It is the only Mosque in Morocco that a Non-Muslim can enter. I probably wouldn't suggest any more that 2 nights as there isn't that much to see once you've seen the mosque & taken a walk around the city, but it's a good stop on any long driving itinerary.
We left the next day (22nd June 08) on the CTM bus for Fes, our last stop before Europe.