Our final destination, on our Morocco trip, was from Chefchaouen to Rabat.  We had purchased a ticket on the local bus as the private bus, CMT office was closed when we arrived and their only bus was at 7:00 AM.  I wasn’t overly excited about taking a local bus but figured it would be all part of the cultural experience.  Fortunately, for us, we met a lady in our B&B who was going to Rabat.  She suggested that we share a private taxi…what an excellent suggestion!  It was $120 split 3-ways and saved about an hour and a half extra travel on the bus.  Also, the driver took us directly to the apartment that we had rented for our 2 nights stay.

Rabat is the capital of Morocco. It is located on the Atlantic Ocean and the river Bou Regreg.  The rain continued to plague us so we really didn’t explore Rabat to the fullest.  There is a lovely beach and the river area looked interesting…we drove by on our way to our apartment.  There were some boats moored on the river that would have made great pictures.  The vibe in Rabat is different compared to Marrakech and Fez.  It isn’t as touristy.  There were more men running around in business suits. Whenever we mentioned that we were going to visit Rabat, the common reply was about the “stuffy” men in their business suits.  Rabat is known as the business and political center for the country.  It was interesting, too, that most people we tried to speak with, didn’t know any English….even the younger ones.

Our apartment looked better in the pictures than it did in person.  I think that if we had been planning to stay any longer, we would have gone to a hotel.  Again, I credited it to  experiencing the culture.

This was the living room.  The pattern on the couch was done with silver thread.  Certainly gave us enough room to really “stretch” out.  I have never been invited in a Muslim home but I believe that it is common to have lots of relatives over and when entertaining, I imagine, that the tables are laden with plenty of food.  

This is the wall that surrounds the medina…what we saw of the medina, the shops offered more practical, everyday living items rather than souvenirs.

One of the main streets in Rabat, Avenue Mohammed V.  It was a very clean city and along this street were several cafes with outdoor seating.  Also, Rabat had a tram system. 

This building housed a bank. I liked the trimming on the facade.

About the only touristy thing we did was visit the modern art museum.  I am not a fan of abstract art but the museum is at the end of this avenue and so we decided to venture in.  I was pleasantly surprised by some of the art.  The museum has only been open since 2014.  It offers art by famous Moroccan artist from the 1950s to present and also, offers international traveling exhibits by big-named artist.

The lobby for the Museum Mohamed VI of Modern and Contemporary Art.

This piece is my favorite of all the exhibits.

It was made in collaboration of 25 women. I just love all the texture that is offered.

Clever and whimsical!

One room was a display of various paper mache figures.  Sorry but I didn’t get the name of the artist!

I love the detail in this painting.  It was painted in 1950 by Meriem Meziane.

Loved the colors but again, didn’t get the artist name.

This was by the stairs going up to the second floor.  What you do with all your chipped dishes?

This wasn’t my favorite but caught my attention because of the US dollars.  Wish I knew what it represented….it is titled “The Seven Doors” by Faouzi Laatiris in 2016.  Maybe something like “All bankers go to heaven?”  or “The way to heaven is paved with US dollars?”  I honestly don’t have a clue!

These photos are stunning….

The Guest by Nour Eddine el Ghoumari, 2004

My Aunt Fatima by Nour Eddine el Ghoumari, 1992

My final photo of the museum is from the basement and the various exhibits there.

I really enjoyed our visit to this museum.  It offered a variety of art and was a great way to spend a rainy day.  If you visit Rabat, I highly recommend a visit to this museum.

After our stay in Rabat, we took the train for an hour ride south to Casablanca, where our trip began.  Our last night in Morocco, we stayed at an hotel by the airport as I had an early flight out the next morning.   David didn’t leave until noontime.  I thought the flowers on the bed were a nice touch!

I flew from Casablanca and had a layover in Paris.  From Paris to NYC, I flew on an Airbus.  An Airbus has two levels for passengers and is a huge airplane!  I can’t remember if I had flown on an Airbus before but if I did, it was on the lower level.  This time, I flew on the upper level….which was a novelty  but once seated, it wasn’t really anything special.  I was just on another flight headed home.  

Next trip is London for the holidays….Until then, I wish you blessings….