TANGIER A CITY OF FADED GLORY

By Bob Van Leer

  (TETUAN, MOROCCO, July 3, 1992) - This was our last full day in Morocco. We left Casablanca early for a 314 kilometer trip that would end in Tetuan, the old capital of Spanish Morocco.

  Our first stop was at Rabat, capital of Morocco and a 43 kilometer drive northeast along the Atlantic coast.

  Rabat was a small town until the 20th century when it was made the capital of French Morocco. It is now a city of 800,000.

  We were taken on a tour of the city and stopped at the Tower of Hassan and the mausoleum of Mohammed V, father of the present King Hassan II.

  Between the tower and the mausoleum is a wide expanse of floor with Roman columns spaced to hold up an immense roof. It appears to be the ruins of something but it is a mosque that never happened.

  The tower and mosque were commissioned in 1184 by the Almohad sultan. The mosque was meant to be the largest in the Islamic world.

  Only the tower was ever completed. Work stopped on the death of the sultan. An earthquake in 1755 toppled the top third of the tower.

  The rest of the structure was used as a source of building materials for elsewhere in the city.

Tangier - Faded Glory

  Our next stop was Tangier, a fabled city now out of favor. Tangier is the oldest city in Morocco, active as early as 1600 B.C.

  Its location just across the Strait of Gibraltar from Europe made it a natural trading center and, over the years, was occupied by the Portuguese, English and Spanish.

  The city was designated an "international concession" in 1923 and this launched its golden age.
It had tax-free status and wealthy flocked from around the world, including from the United States. Tangier is no longer tax-free and is a part of Morocco.

  Even before this, expatriates began moving out. The city is no longer a playground for the wealthy and nothing has replaced this so it has been downhill since then.

  We were originally scheduled to spend the night but our tour company decided the hotels were getting so seedy they moved our party to Tetuan for the night.

  We spent a couple of hours in Tangier and visited its famous Medina, located below the Kasbah. It is another rabbit-warren of narrow alleys laid out with no general directions.

  These are had to describe. A public street might not be five feet wide.

  There are a lot of peddlers, but not quite as bad as Marrakesh. Kids run around, motorcycles try to make a path and donkeys and wagons do the heavy work.

Tax Haven

  Our guide, Assam, said King Hassan signed a bill last year creating a tax haven for "offshore" enterprises. No taxes will be levied by Morocco. It is an attempt to capture some of the money fleeing Hong Kong in anticipation of the Chinese takeover in 1997.

  Tetuan, just over a low ridge from Tangier, was the capital of Spanish Morocco. It has a population of 350,000 and is south of the Spanish enclave of Ceuta.

  Our dinner at the hotel where we're staying was a "dress up" with any Moroccan clothes we bought on the tour. The hotel is the Safir, fairly well appointed but with employees that are unfriendly.

  Morocco has been an interesting place to visit but has some problems for tourists. None seems to want to do anything without a trip.

Camel Rides

   In Marrakesh, camel rides were 10 dirhan. If you took a picture of one of your party riding a camel they wanted another 10. Street peddlers are so aggressive they scare the tourists from shopping. Prices are high - there are not bargains here.

  It is a country well worth a visit, but expect to pay, and pay, and pay.

  Some random observations about the country: the Muzzein's call to prayer five times a day, a call that can be heard everywhere in the city, gives an exotic feeling to Muslim cities.

  Morocco's flag is red with a single green star in the center.

  Morocco is the second largest (after France) French speaking country.

  Students whose education is financed by their government owe two years of service after completing their education.

  Gasoline is priced at 6.73 dirhan per liter, about $4.00 per gallon.

  Cactus is often used for fencing and some cactus is grown for its fruit.

  There are a lot of storks and cattle egrets, but we saw no wild mammal life, not even a roadkill.

  Donkeys are the preferred beast of burden. There are some mules and horses, and camels in the south. But the tiny donkeys are everywhere.

  Tomorrow we will leave early to catch the ferry across the strait, just a few miles north, and then cross the strait to Europe and return to our hotel in Malaga.