Travel Tuesday - The Man's 50th Birthday Trip - Morocco

 Our first port once on the ship was Casablanca. We were very excited about this port as it was our first entry to Africa. Sadly, we were a bit disappointed, mainly because we had a terrible guide. Instead of telling us anything, he was too busy talking to other tour guides and taking selfies. We learned more about Casablanca talking to Chris who did a hald day tour, then our full day tour to Casablanca and Rabat.  While we complain about our tour guide, we met an American man, it was his first time leaving the US, he was traveling alone (I am guessing he was in his late 50s, early 60s) and it was his guide who did the whole, pretend to put the money in your pocket but take it trick. So at least our guide didn't rob us! (Thankfully for him it was only $15). 

Now onto our tour.

A fake Rick's cafe built a few years ago by an American

Our first stop was to the Hassan II Mosque. We have never been to a mosque, and this was the only place our guide did his job! This is the 2nd largest mosque in Africa and 14th largest in the world. 25 000 people (only 5000 women) can pray inside and the square can hold another 80 000. The mosque was built over 7 years, with crews working 24 hours a day. 

The area above for women

Not pictured, the part of the roof that opens to help keep it cool when it is full

All my squats have paid of, I could still use this! 

To wash before prayers

Our next stop was Notre Dame De Lourdes Catholic Church, which is known for the stained glass.

This was my favourite one

We then took a short walk around a neighbourhood through a market that sold skins of endangered animals (not pictured for safety reasons).  We then went to learn about Moroccan rugs, which while a sales pitch, was also informative as we learned a lot about the process. Then we had a very delicious Moroccan buffet, which would have been better if they told us what we were eating. Don't worry, guide of the year was first in line and had at least 4ths.

Moroccan tea - it was soooooooooo good

After lunch I had a nap on the drive to Rabat, the capital of Morocco.

We stopped in the royal palace complex, where because the national band was playing, got even less attention from our guide.

The orchestra

A building in the palace

Then we had a stop at Mausoleum of  Mohammed V and the Hassan Tower.

People enjoying the old pillars of an old mosque

Our last stop before returning to the ship was the Kasbah of Udayas. When asked, our guide could tell us about this Kasbah, as my knowledge was limited to rocking it (if you know you know). This fort was built in the 10th century. Like all forts it has a long history. 

I rocked the Kasbah

It was full of cats so we called it the Cats-bah

Across from the Kasbah was a huge cemetery I would have liked to explore. 

That brings us to the end of our first visit to Africa. The Man and I are usually very generous with tour guides, but we didn't tip this one. Someone from shore excursions with the ship was on our tour, and when Man went to lodge the complaint, he said it had already been done. At any rate, it was an experience, we made the best of it, and thankfully it was all up hill from here! 

Next week we will stop by the Canary Islands, probably my favourite port this trip. 

Mischief Monday - Weather

Last year all winter we got about 72 cm or 28 inches of snow. Callie's Man's snow removal company plowed the driveway 6 times. 

November 29

This year is going to be different. 

December 5

December 8

So far we have gotten about 60 cm/23 inches and the driveway has been plowed 3 times.  We got about 1.5 feet of it in one night, which we know is nothing compared to some places, but enough for us!

It may be a long winter . . . . 

Nature Friday - Wild Weather

 It was the first Friday we were home. It was lunch and Lady and Man, who were sick, were in the sitting area between our kitchen and dining room, doing lunch things. It had be a relatively sunny day. 

Out of nowhere, it got dark and windy.

As Man was saying "wow, it is windy, trees are going to fall" Lady, who was facing the window, saw these trees fall.

Less than 5 minutes later, it was sunny again. One of Callie's trees, right beside our driveway also fell on the road, and Hydro moved it to our driveway and Callie's Man had to cut it up so we could get out. 

Apparently, although Lady has never been able to confirm this, it was a small tornado that had come through our yard. 

Fortunately we were without power for only 5.5 hours. Not bad for a tornado. 

Thanks to Rosy and Sunny for hosting this event. 

Nursing

As we have mentioned, the people came back from their trip sick. They were lucky on the trip to not be too sick, more like a cold. Lady says maybe they drank a little less and went to bed a little earlier, nothing that really impacted there adventures. For Man, he started to get really sick on the last day of the trip, for Lady it was the first night home.

Man had a terrible cough and a sinus infection and was very exhausted. 5 weeks later, he is mostly better. He had to take an extra week off for being sick. Almost 3 weeks after getting sick, he had to go to the doctor for a steroid inhaler and a different nasal spray. The doctor said it was not Covid, but just some respiratory virus he caught in Europe. 

Lady worked from home a day she should have gone in. She had to end work a bit early 2 days because she was too tired. She had the cough, a little fever and her throat was so swollen she couldn't eat solid food for a week. She has never had that before.  However, after a 11 nights on a cruise ship, perhaps not eating much was a good choice. 

Not to worry, we were good caregivers while our people recovered.

The Man slept in the guest room so his coughing wouldn't keep Lady awake (she stayed with us in our bedroom)

Wordless Wednesday - Listen Up

 

Travel Tuesday - Man's 50th Birthday - Day 2 - More Barcelona

The second day of the trip was also in Barcelona. As we didn't have to get onto the ship until about 3 pm, we did tour to 2 specific sites.

Our first stop was to Park Guell. This was originally planned to be a private park where some of Barcelona's elite were to live. The public parts of the park were designed by Gaudi, an architect and designer, who was greatly inspired by nature and religion. In the end only 2 houses were built in the park (neither designed by Gaudi, however he moved into one of them). The rich just didn't want to move so far from downtown Barcelona in the early 1900s. 

It is currently a municipal garden and UNESCO World Heritage Site.  Locals can enjoy the park for free and tourists pay to enjoy the space (which helps pay for the upkeep). It was interesting and is well worth the visit. Here are some random pictures from our tour of it.

The second stop on our tour (after some time to grab lunch in a cafe), and reason for taking this tour was a visit to Sagrada Familia (we couldn't get a ticket in another way). The Basilica i Temple Expiatori de la Sagrada Familia, is a church that is under construction in Barcelona. It was also designed by Gaudi and is a Unesco World Heritage Site. Construction began in 1882. It was only a quarter finished when Gaudi died in 1926. It was consecrated in 2010 and construction is expected to be done in 2026, with the details finishing in 2034. The church has never received public or church money, it has relied on ticket sales and private donations to cover the costs. It is is being built at an estimated cost of 25 million euros per year at this time, and no one can estimate how much it has cost. 

The completed exterior of the church is stunning and has amazing details.

This is in contrast to the interior, where the details are simple and the stained glass is stunning. 

The light from the stained glass making the floor glow 

We took the elevator to the top of the Passion Tower and walked down. 

I enjoyed the exterior of this building and loved the light on the inside. However, I will admit, it was not my favourite churches, as I personally prefer the tombs and art I have seen in other Catholic churches. I am really glad to have had the opportunity to explore the church. 

After our climb down the tower, it was time to head to our ship and start the next part of our adventure. Come back next week where we enter Morocco and our first visit to Africa.