As my flight from Paris slowly flew closer and closer to Rabat, the capital of Morocco, details of the city started to emerge. The greens and browns of plants stood out against the whites and blues of buildings. Cars raced along the streets, and markets hustled and bustled. I had no idea what to expect from my two weeks there, but I never expected all of the rich culture and countryside that I would experience.
A driver picked the other students from my university and I up from the airport, and we sped away with our suitcases crammed between us. We arrived at the Hotel Dakar about 20 minutes later, located just outside the medina, which is the original, walled-in part of Rabat.
Hungry after our long flights, we ventured out to Dar Naji, a traditional Moroccan restaurant just around the corner. After we rinsed and dried our hands in the doorway (a tradition before you eat), we clambered up the cool tile stairs to find a colorful oasis of pillows and benches awaiting us.
Tile arches and Moroccan lanterns surrounded us as we looked over the menu, trying to remember our high school French as we struggled to decode the various dishes.
We dug into tajines (Moroccan stews cooked in the clay pot above) and traditional bread. This one's Kefta, or beef meatballs with a poached egg and olives in a tomato and cheese sauce. So yummy!
And here's a chicken and potato tajine with radishes. The chicken was cooked in a lemony sauce that went really well with the chips. We laughed as we struggled to eat with our hands..
And for dessert, some Moroccan gateau, or cookies. Some were sweet and others were savory- a light finish to a heavy dinner. We paid the bill and realized that we didn't know what the cultural norm for tipping was, which we later found out should be about 5 dirhams per person (which is less than $1). Before heading back to the hotel, we decided to take a walk around the Bab el Had square that Dar Naji was located on, which was also the entrance to the medina.
Here's the market that takes place on weekends to the right of the square. This wall is a continuation of the one that houses the media, although this section is surrounded by the modern shops and roads instead of the old ones. We walked back to the hotel and wondered what the rest of our trip would bring.