Tangier, Morocco!

With cheer in our hearts and a spring in our steps (abandon seriousness here), we left the hotel this morning at 6:15 and headed out on the 2.5 hr bus ride to Tarifa--the port on the Strait of Gibraltar where we would take a 35 min. ferry ride across to North Africa. Tangier was our only stop in Morocco on this one-day excursion. We marveled at the difference between the the South of Spain and Tangier. Streets were rather crowded, and Sunday is considered a light day for both tourism and commerce. The architecture reflected the strong Muslim influence on the region. We were met with kindness by the locals, although at times we were treated a bit too kindly by those peddling their wares in the streets. We visited the Kasbah, with its tightly winding streets, and the Medina, or old part of town. We had the pleasure of being treated to authentic Moroccan cuisine at the Restaurant Hammadi. Inside, we were greeted by a live instrumental quartet and treated to a four course meal consisting of tomato soup with garbanzos, veal skewers, couscous, and a honey almond pastry. We finished the meal with a famous Moroccan tradition: a cup of mint tea. The food and atmosphere of the restaurant were excellent. However, the greatest part of this stop for a meal was perhaps the dodging of the rainfall that we were anticipating. It only rained while we were inside the restaurant! Following the meal, we visited a store selling Moroccan carpets and another selling spices. We ended our time in Tangier with a little over a half hour of free time to visit the local shops before we boarded the ferry to return to Spain. Our bus ride back led us past the Rock of Gibraltar and back to Torremolinos where many of us enjoyed dinner on our own in one of the various restaurants surrounding our hotel. My breaking of the news that we would not be departing until 9 AM tomorrow was met with enthusiasm! Tomorrow we head North to the two hilltop towns of Mijas and Ronda.