September 23, 1980

RABAT, MOROCCO
Dragged myself out of bed to try to buy a roadmap of Northwest Africa. The American Embassy bookstore didn’t have any, but what it did have was a pretty , young American salesclerk, the first American I’ve spoken to in five days. I fell in love, naturally.

The Archaeological Museum was closed today, so I followed my second choice and went to the Handicrafts Museum—a really dreary place, but full of great stuff on display. I’d almost made it home when a student grabbed me to give me a guided tour of the Kasbah. The Kasbah is the original city of Rabat, older than the medina, built in the 12th century. At various times, it housed Arabs, European corsairs, and local Moroccans. The tiny area amazingly crowds 3,000 people together, though I saw few of them. It also contains such modern additions as a museum (closed today), a French café, and the inescapable Coke stand.

From the terrace, I saw the gorgeous beach of Salé, across the river and went there after lunch. This is more beaching than I did all summer, but after Algiers, I won’t be seeing oceans for a while—or much water of any kind. It was terrific, playing in the waves and jumping into the deep water off the rocky pier. Another non-profit-oriented student chatted me for a while.

If the visa is taken care of early tomorrow, I’ll leave for Meknes—otherwise loaf around one more day.

PHOTO CREDIT 1
PHOTO CREDIT 2