Casablanca

What an incredible day in Morocco.

We met up with our group around 10:30AM and were off to see Casablanca. 

Typical Moroccan market

First we stopped a local market, mostly full of fish.  Sarah's favorite part was the cat stealing fish from a crate, absolutely adorable! (probably not so cute for the man selling the fish)  The fish were amazing though too; huge tuna just laying on the ground, oysters, lobsters, sting rays, fish that I will probably never recognize and more.  Turns out though that most of the fish is exported and therefore costs are higher for the locals.

We also learned that Morocco has banned the use of plastic bags to help save the environment! Very cool.  (good thing they sell woven baskets and bags)

Prickly pears were being sold on carts on the street and the sellers could peel them with three strokes of a knife.  We saw these pears all around Morocco.

Our second stop was the Hassan II Mosque, the building we saw from our hotel room and had been hoping to visit.  

We were thrilled when we found out that we were allowed to go inside (not something that typically happens for non muslims). It was an extraordinary opportunity to see such beauty. 

We had to remove our shoes before entering.

It was even more impressive than we imagined.  The tower is enormous and stands out in the City.  Once we got there, we learned that the Mosque is on 9 hectares and can hold 100,000 people at capacity.  It's built mostly of marble from southern Morocco and has the most intricately detailed designs.  Some designs are carved in cedar, some in plaster, some in titanium and some are mosaics, but they are all just phenomenal. 

The bathing area, with a prescribed process.

Next we stopped for coffee and saw the local beaches and pools.  

We then stopped at Notre Dame of Casablanca, built by the French.  It was such a different looking cathedral, but still paid homage to Notre Dame in Paris in the stained glass windows.

Notice the "mini" Notre Dame in the stained glass.

On to lunch, and what a delicious meal it was.  We're going to skip telling you how much we ate :)

In the afternoon we had a meeting with a local music teacher at a private school that has been in business for a couple years.  Music is not taught in the public school system in Morocco.

After the meeting we hopped back in the van and headed to Rabat, just about an hour and a half drive.  After checking in, we had a nice dinner and are getting ready for our tour of Rabat.

The Journey begins . . . . .

My daughter traveled with me this summer to Barcelona and Morocco.  Here are a few highlights from our visit to Barcelona.

Picasso Museum 

My daughter, Sarah going up the steps to enter the museum.

This museum provided an interesting view into Picasso’s life.  The tour started with early paintings from Picasso when he was studying art at age 14 and ended with some of the final paintings of his life. It was fascinating to watch him grow from a more technical art student to a master of modernism.  

The Piano

One of our favorites was his study of the Velasquez painting, Las Meninans.  Near the end of his life he painted his interpretation on Las Medians and a series of paintings of some of the subjects in the original.  "The Piano" was one of my favorites.  

Here is a link if you're interested in learning more about the Velasquez painting, Las Meninans . . . .

https://www.khanacademy.org/humanities/monarchy-enlightenment/baroque-art1/spain/v/vel-zquez-las-meninas-c-1656

Outside of the the museum

Narrow Streets

Our second stop of the day was Park Güell. Gaudi designed the park as a planned/gated community in the early 1900s. The benefactor decided the original idea wouldn’t work and the land was eventually given to the City of Barcelona.  How wonderful that it is now a space to be enjoyed by all.  The park is just magical and a UNESCO (United Nations Educational and Scientific Cultural Organization) world heritage site.

Park Entrance

Guard Station

View from one of the garden walks

The park sits up on a hill near the edge of the city and when you get to the top of the park there are beautiful views of the Mediterranean Sea and the city itself.

We were excited to see the Sagrada Familia (our next stop)

Sagrada Familia is another Gaudi designed building, seen by many as his ultimate masterpiece.  The city began construction of this church more than 100 years ago and are still working to complete it because of Gaudi’s complicated designs.  The building is absolutely stunning.  

The sun shining through the stained glass windows is breathtaking. 

Note the detail, bugs and all.

The front of the building shows the celebration of the Nativity and the back focuses on the Crucifixion and Resurrection. Inside the building you feel as though you are standing under a massive tree canopy as the church was designed to intertwine with spirituality and nature.  You are surrounded by huge stained glass windows that reflect bright colors around the church.  This space is hard to describe in words and photos.  

The organ pipes, one of the first things I look for in a cathedral. 

Next stop, Morocco!