Old Medina, Casablanca

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I did not know wither to put this under things to do or to put under restaurants!!

The Saqala is part of the wall of the old town. It has a view of the Harbor; It is a watch tower that comes with its cannons. It also has a nice restaurant. It is a pleasant place to eat and the food is good, the atmosphere is superb and the service is friendly. The prices are on the upper side but the quality and the quantity are good. The food variety is good and includes authentic Moroccan dishes.

There is a little gift shop and an art exhibit that will be on display every now and then by local artist.

This place is around one km away from the Casa port train station. Once you get out of the train station turn right at the travel light and continuo until you see the cannon, the banner and the near fort like structure. It is close to the Youth Hostel too.

One of my favourite places in Casablanca is a tiny mosque in the old medina - it's just so beautiful that it's worth going to the medina just for it. It's called Chleuh mosque and it has a perfectly white mynaret that looks as if it was made of lace, not stone.

Unfortunately the mosque cannot be visited if you are not a muslim, so I had to make do with a quick glimpse through the door. Inside it looked just as beautiful as outside. To get there, as you enter the medina, don't lose sight of the mynaret, and then zig-zag the little alleys until you get there. You will get there...

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In the South eastern part of the city, at the back of the royal palace and of boulevard Victor Hugo, is the new Medina, which has maintained the name of area of the Habou. The French urbanists planned its construction starting from 1923 in order to integrate the new populations of rural origins who had been concentrated in the southern suburb of the city. With its little squares and little lanes with arcades, Medina represents a successful example of modern adaptation of the traditional characteristics of one medina.

A very little part of the old Mussulman city still exists: in fact it was destroyed by the earthquake in 1755, and in 1770 the sultan Sidi Mohammed ben Abdallah undertook its reconstruction. A long time ago, the Medina was surrounded with bastions which extended until the old souk el-Kebir. It is possible to find some traces around the place Mohammed V. In XIX century, in the Medina, they built houses (at present they have disappeared) in Arab-Mussulman style and in western stylevecchio souk el-Kebir.

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I wandered around the Souk at 10am even though everyone told me that it wasn't safe, I would be mugged, ripped off and so on. I did the sensible things, went with empty pockets and kept my camera in my hand and stayed aware of my surroundings. The souk was full of normal people going about their daily business, buying fruit and veg and meat. The spice souk was the best part with those amazing piles of spices and all those smells. Don't be afraid and don't miss it. Many touts as you approach the Souk from the Hyatt side will try and convince you to take a tour and they will follow you. Tell them no and if they continue to bother you walk towards the police station right at the entrance in the big tower and they soon disappear. Enjoy this unique part of Casablanca.

The old city of Casablanca (Ancienne Medina) is conveniently placed just off the main town square from where all avenues radiate, and close to the sea. But as you enter, you will see that it is not all that old after all in contrast to other Moroccan cities. The houses of Casablanca Ancienne Medina often have a form and size which would have made them natural elements in the "new" parts (Nouvelle city) of many other Moroccan cities.

But still, it is very nice, even if it is very small. The best parts of the old city I saw were made up of shopping areas, where all types of products were sold. I saw the less visited quarters, the areas where people lived where colours and shapes and curves brought me far away from elegance of downtown Casablanca.

If anything in Casablanca could fit the Casablanca of Bergman and Bogart, it could be the old city called Ancienne Medina (ancient medina).

Notice that the old town was largely destroyed by the earthquake of 1755. Rebuilding took place in 1770 under the reign of Sultan Sidi Mohamed Ben Abdallah. Its tiny streets are full of shops/stores and small squares.
It's small, consisting mainly of smaller houses, which all seem to be from this century, and the alleyways dominating in other old cities, are rarely found here. There is a good market there, but look around before you buy, shop keepers here know their skills. Some thousand people live here, and in some spots, true beauty occurs.

There are a few doors to enter the Medina, although this is the main door which is next to the clock tower.
Just go right or left and get lost in the tiny streets.

I recommend not to eat anything in the Medina, but shopping, you can buy as much as you want, but make sure before buying that you know that everything is fake.

There is a good coffee shop in front of the Medina, in the main square called "Cafe Roma". The Hyatt hotel is also in hte main square and has the Casablanca Bar in the ground floor.

We had a great dinner, with a live jazz band playing just for 5 or 6 people.