Mi Casa est Su Casablanca

So here we are in not so romantic Casa as the locals call it. After the first taxi refused to take us to town we got a little worried but the next taxi agreed - they run meters here so maybe we wont get ripped off. The taxi dropped us off across from the tourist info but when we finally made it across the street - which has no sensible way to cross - it was closed. So we turned to our trusty guidebook for a place to stay - closest and cleanest hotel - Gallia here we go. Luckily Casa is a small city and we found the hotel sooner than we expected. No cockroaches - its a winner!

No Nap :( off to wander the streets of Casa. Ok gross does not begin to describe the trash on the street but it gets better the further you go from our hotel. Found the pedestrian zone - again Sharmin's navigating. Ate some burgers - definitely not McDonald's but definitely not coming back. Lots of fresh fruit juice stands - we had kiwi and banana - not combined. walked some more saw a billboard for McDonald's - halal McDonald's - if we ever find the actual restaurant I think all bets are off. Found a sculpture of a pair of breasts. Impressionistic but they were definitely breasts. No one seems to realize this because men and women are all over just chilling like it was not even there. Back to the hotel just in time to see a bar fight from our balcony. Gotta love Casa!

Checked out of good old Gallia and headed for breakfast and the mosque in that order. Lo and behold, halal McDonald's is right down the street! Ok so breakfast consisted of burgers and fries but we were hungry and it was halal!! (we asked). Walking along we got lost in the old Medina - no map can help you here - no street signs or real streets. Finally caught a glimpse of the famous Hassan 2 Mosque and headed in the approximate direction. Had to ask directions at the Fuji store but we found it. Really beautiful - very modern - only 12 years old. The mosque is the 3rd largest in the world - and right on the Atlantic! Ok cool points - retractable roof, heated floors in the winter, speakers hidden in the pillars, wudhu room is a bunch of fountains, almost all materials are from within Morocco, built in 6 years with 10,000 craftsmen working 24-7. Not so cool - architect was French, cant pray in the main prayer hall - even if you're Muslim!!!

Taxi to the "beach" - 20dhm no meter - so much for not getting ripped off. Beaches are artificial built on cliffs at the edge of the ocean - all privately owned. Saw Prince Abdullah's palace - more like a vacation house - right next to the fancy Saudi mosque, and across the street from none other than McDonald's. See even the Arab Prince can't resist halal burgers!

Truth be told we stopped at McDonald's again - its our last chance before we go back to Spain, plus they really do have the cleanest bathrooms!