The Zuiderdam arrived to the port of Tangier, Morocco, to a windy but clear and sunny morning. The temperature outside was a nippy 58 degrees, a huge difference from a week ago when we visited the Canary Islands. Tangier is the second largest city in Morocco and has a population of 95,000 people. The city is located across from the Gibraltar Strait, a mere 10 miles between the continents. Gibraltar, a UK territory, has a population of 28,000 living in 7 square kilometers. It is a little corner of England on the shores of the Mediterranean Sea. From the top of The Rock, there are spectacular views, and an interesting fact is that the city houses a colony of Barbary macaques, Europe's only primates. Later this evening, we should be passing the Rock on the portside as we enter the Mediterranean Sea on our way to Malaga, Spain.
We had company with two other ships in port. One was Oceania Sirena, launched in 1999, but re-done in 2019. It is described as having English-style charm suitable for older couples. The ship accommodates 648 guests and is 30,277 gross tons. As of 2019, all of their multi-choice dining venues were free of charge, and bottled water, sodas, and beer were included. The other ship was the Silver Dawn, an ultra-luxury vessel with up to 596 passengers and a crew of 411. Launched in 2021, it is a 40,700 gross ton ship. Having sailed with Silver Seas before, we can say they deserve the 5 star rating for sure. Except for tours, they are all-inclusive.
At breakfast this morning, our waiters brought us hot cross buns, something we always see around Easter time. They were so good, we opted out of the English muffins we usually order. Now that the ports are happening about every day, the President's Club breakfast group has been coming later and later. Those with tours have not come at all.
We hung around until music began pouring throughout the ship at 10:30am for one hour. This was done to work on broken speakers inside and outside. Good time to leave because the crew were cleaning our veranda as well. The walk to get to the shuttle bus was not as long as yesterday's port. Being that this was our first time visit, we felt it a good idea to take the bus to get our bearings. Without a printed map, it's hard to navigate a good route to take. Ian's talks do help, but he even recommends taking a photo of the local maps on the TV screen. We hate that much of the world is going paperless.
Anyway, the trip to Mandoubia Garden took about 20 minutes uphill most of the way. This park was located directly across from the maze of the old souk. Once off the coach, we wandered down the street and entered the souk at the best place we could have. It was the food section that held all of the fresh fruit and veggies, along with a number of seasonings and spices sold from sacks. We could see that some of the items such as bananas were imported. There were plenty of plastic baskets full of ripe raspberries too. Funny thing, they were packaged in the identical clear containers we buy at home. Here they cost 50 dirham or the equivalent of $5 USD. We pay up to $6. at home for the same amount of fruit.
The next items for sale were the chickens, which looked very fresh. Then we came upon what looked like lamb or possibly goat meat. The prices were posted at each stall, but it was all in Arabic….no English. And the vendors did not speak English, so we do not know for sure what the meat was. Finally, we entered the fish market, which was quite clean and not even smelly. Most of the catch had already been sold, but we did see tons of anchovies, small shrimp, octopus, crabs, and smaller fish. It appeared they were beginning to clean up for the day.
Going back outside this area, we entered through another portal, and into the souvenir souk. What we saw pretty much was the same as in Casablanca, but far less to choose from. The souk in Casablanca was far better, we thought. This one with multiple alleyways and streets, we still managed to get lost. Much of this market was set up for the locals, who filled the streets. Most all of the women wore robes and head scarves, while most of the men were dressed in traditional clothing too.
Few restaurants were opened, and we figured that was due to Ramadan happening now.
We had spent an hour here exploring, and thought we had seen all we needed. Somehow or another, we had made our way downhill, passing through the artist and carpet section. This part of the market appeared to be newer with much nicer stalls. However, the last thing we needed was to go to any carpet demonstration. That could go on for hours, and after their presentation, they expect you to buy something. The carpets we saw hanging on the walls of the stalls were good enough for photos, but we sure do not need to own one.
It came as a surprise to us that by the time we made our way downhill a little at a time, we had successfully come out near the port area. And we did all of the exploring without buying anything. The souvenirs we saw yesterday were much nicer we thought. As we were exiting the final archway, we heard someone behind us saying hello. It turned out to be Greg, Heo, Ginni and Rich. They happened to be leaving at the same time we were. It is a mystery how we got that timing just right as there were hundreds of folks in that souk going this way and that. They ended up taking a taxi for a tour, and we headed up the side of the hill to the old fort.
Thinking we might be able to see the insides of this fortress, it ended up being a museum and we were at the back door. Oh well, it was a nice hike up there. Going back down, we took a left turn to follow the coastline highway. The landscaped cliffside followed the fortress around the corner, then ended with clifftop housing and other buildings. Good spot for a hotel, the views of the Atlantic Ocean must be spectacular from there. The fishing boat harbor was along this stretch of road, as well as trails through the park-like setting. Pathways from the very top brought locals down to the road. We walked far enough to sit on the seawall for a while, catching the stiff breeze that was blowing. Looking down on the water side, there was a wall of concrete blocks, reminding us of being in Cadiz, Spain, not far from here. A similar wall there houses a bevy of feral cats. Just as we thought about that, we began seeing cats coming out from under the large rocks. They had made a home in here. Now in Cadiz, these feral cats are trapped, neutered, and returned to the wild. They serve a purpose and that is ridding the city of rodents. The souk and marketplace were full of them today.
From there, we headed back to the port gate, going around a mosque that was in session. It was full of men only and we could hear the Iman preaching from the inside. Locating the correct road to access the port gate, we made our way to the ship. We got back around 1:30pm, wind-blown, but happy to have gotten some good exercise.
We ordered lunch of salad, soup, and shared sandwich. One chicken quesadilla on the side and a few cookies completed our meal. As the afternoon progressed, it got colder outside. All aboard was at 4:30pm, but we did not leave until about 5:45pm, as we waited for the Oceania Sirena to leave first. We are very close to the next port of Malaga, Spain, so we will be going slow.
Once we got halfway across the opening to the Mediterranean Sea, the winds actually blew the mist right at us. These have to be extremely turbulent waters as the two seas meet. Captain Frank had said that we would be passing Gibraltar around 7pm, but we were still far from shore, and had difficulty seeing it. Once we leave Malaga, we will be passing this area again, so chances of spotting the Rock of Gibraltar may be better.
Dinner found everyone present but Susie, as she is still not feeling well. Under the doctor's care, we hope she gets better soon. The guys shared their amusing stories from the last two days, one of which they spent in Marrakesh. Long ride, but worth it they said. They are fans of Moroccan food and enjoyed the exotic meal they were served on the tour. Heo had taken many great photos and even a video of a belly dancer. They did get back to the ship after 8:30pm, but they had kept the Lido open after that time. They said there were four bus-loads of guests that took the 13 hour tour.
The dinner menu had three choices of fish entrees. One of us had the salmon, and the other tuna (more well done). Both were pretty good. Now Barb had the Club Orange special, which was shrimp fettucine, and it tasted great she said. But it is served in the bowl where your forks and knives drop in the bowl. From now on, she has asked for that pastas to be served on a regular plate. Will see how that works. Desserts were a chocolate mousse slice and one frozen peach yogurt.
Now the strangest thing happened with the time change for tonight. It went forward 2 hours so we will be on the correct time for Spain. Our waiters suggested going to bed early, but that's not always an option. As this is being typed, the time is 12:55am. We will not notice the difference until it is time for breakfast tomorrow. We will not worry, since we do not have a tour booked and can sleep a bit later and still not miss the dining room breakfast.
Finally leaving the continent of Africa, we are looking forward to the ports in Spain.
Bill & Mary Ann
