Aaaah, Casablanca. In my head, hearing that name instantly conjures up thoughts of exotic spices, spicy lamb, muslim wailing music (sorry but that's a description i made up for it, i don't know the real name!!), chillin' out with the smoking pipe, but in reality Casablanca is an old, rundown, ramshackle kind of place. The kind of place that looks like a bomb hit it - buildings neglected, boarded up,demolished. On the way into town from the airport, i passed a shanty town reminiscent of the Nairobi slums in Kenya, scrap pieces of wood and corrugated iron, jammed together to make dwellings. I guess it's a bit of a disappointment, to see something that once would have looked magnificent (also similar to Havana, Cuba) and now derelict and unloved. Although poverty may have something to do with buildings being let go to ruin....hmmmm note to self: research poverty levels in Morocco to get a better understanding of life here. What i DO know is that French is widely spoken, and I am in need of a lot of practice! I am watching the men and women wearing djallabas (long hoodie robes!) and clothing and headscarves. It fascinates me..maybe i be lucky and will meet someone who can deck me out in an outfit like that, so i know what it feels like.
