As the sunrise casts its beams on the roof tops of the ”medina” to the compelling sound of an imam’s prayers, a new day dawns for our travelers.
After having finished our delicious Moroccan breakfast on the terrace, there was no time for second breakfast. We swiftly gathered outside the entrance to our little surfing hostel, and with joyful minds we strolled down the colorful alleys of the medina to find ourselves searching for cabs.
Fifteen minutes of invigorating taxi driving later we arrived at our first destination: Chellah. We were all charmed by the lushness of the venue as we walked into what seemed to take the form of a large garden.
But ahead of all this brisk vegetation lay the main attraction of Chellah: The ancient Roman and Marinid ruins. Consequently, the tourists within ourselves came to life as we immediately began exploring the remains of a Roman bath (thermae) and other Marinid civil buildings.
Furthermore, after having leaving Chellah we decided to head into the center of Rabat, to find the Hassan Tower and the mausoleum of Mohammed V.
Apart from all the lonely kitties, who broke all our hearts and the seemingly suicidal sprints across the heavily crowded streets, nothing peculiar really happened.
Eventually, we arrived to the Hassan Tower and the mausoleum of Mohammed V, which with their beautiful architecture and well-dressed guards were perfect spots for pictures. Several group photos later and some moments of enjoying the sun, we all felt it was time for lunch and started heading back toward the busy city centre.
After lunch and a very hasty breather, it was time to get professional again! A meeting with the Moroccan EU-delegation was in our schedules and as usual we took off to our regular taxi-spot to find our transportation. The EU-delegation gave us an interesting insight to how the relations between the European Union and Morocco have been developing the past few years and will continue to develop in the future.
The one and only study visit for the day was brief but full of information and when it ended we were ready for some more well-deserved free-time. Everyone went on their own adventures for a while, many of us chose checking out the markets and shopping for beautifully painted bowls and plates, before we had to get ready for our special dinner plans with Ludvig, the intern at the Swedish embassy that we had met on our first day in Rabat.
Slightly tired feet after two full days of walking set off from the hostel toward the same area of the town that we had our first dinner. Ludvig showed us to an authentic Syrian restaurant where we all ordered fruit juices from his recommendation and shared three big plates of the finest Syrian food. Personally, I had never tried this cuisine before and was especially amazed by how the falafels managed to be so crispy and juicy at the same time.
Many falafels and some dessert later it was time to say goodbye to our new-found friend and walk back to the hostel and get some sleep to prepare for another full-packed day of study visits that lay ahead of us!
This post was written by Jonatan and Anna, members of the Rabat 2017 travel committee.