After our slow entry into Rabat, we had a chilled day and went to see the medina/market of the town. The marina was very new and like in Tanger, next to a promenade with a lot of restaurants where people go to hang out in the evenings. There was again a lot of security around the pontoons as apparently one dock is reserved for the boats of the royal family.
The marina was located on the river Bouregreg, which separates Rabat from the smaller town of Sale on the eastern side. Our first excursion was not really voluntary. We went for breakfast at one of the cafes next to the marina and we couldn’t pay by card or with euros and we were low on dirham, so one of the waitresses took us to the medina in Sale to find an ATM. The medina there was not a touristy one but just the regular market people go to. But still, the town was surrounded by an ancient looking red wall with pointy towers and big gates, the houses were old and square, and it was a good way to get to see the town on one of our first days.
We also buddied up with some friends from other boats and went to see the medina in Rabat. A fancy new tram took us right from the marina into the town, which saved us a 40 minute walk in the sun. The medina in Rabat was more touristy, but more chilled than in Tanger and we were not really approached by sellers, which was nice. The shops were all selling the same kind of stuff, a lot of leather goods and spices etc. We went into one of the spice shops and what looked like a small store from the front had about 5 backrooms, one bigger than the other, open to the sky and filled with all sorts of powders, herbs ointment, beauty oils and even hyena skins.
We continued walking and came pasts many more shops, some mosques, and every once in a while there were public fountains with really pretty mosaic backdrops.
Once we walked all across the medina, we arrived at the fortified part of town, the kasbah of the Udayas which we had seen on our arrival at the port. The kasbah is like its own walled off little town, a berber-era royal fort with a pretty garden.
Further up there was the village with nice little alleys and a big terrace at the top overlooking the surfbreak and entry into the harbour.
I uploaded this from Arrecife in Lanzarote in very slow restaurant wifi so the rest will be coming in a few days :)