Foggy along the coast. Seatbelts required by law.

While driving along the highway, Mustapha our CEO, filled in some info:

Rabat… capital city… French chosen capital. Independence in 1961….Kept Rabat as capital.

Almost every city has a King’s palace.

As we turn inland, we see a national park. There are a forest of oak cork. The bark has been stripped for the cork. Other side has eucalyptus for making paper. This is the green part of country… is rainy part… the breadbasket. Most farms are not irrigated… dependent on the rains that start in October. Lot veggies are exported. They also have vineyards. Major citrus producers. Pomegranates.

There are 12 states.

Little Atlas Mountains we pass today….

Middle Atlas Mountains used for grazing…. After we visit Fez.

High Atlas ….highest mountains in North Africa… prevents at 13,600 feet, the Sahara desert from moving further into Morocco. It gets to 50 +C in desert in summer but freezes and has snow in winter.

Anti-Atlas…. South of High Atlas… volcanic…. No snow, lots of minerals

Berber are the natives… speak Arabic but also own language… are Moslems. 68% of population have some Berber. Large Jewish sector… there are Jewish community centres near kings palace in every city….they brought economic prosperity to the areas

Berber and Arabic are 2 official languages. Although French is widely spoken, is the business language, it is not official. 2011 was when Berber language (a combination of 3 dialects) after being neglected for centuries, was made official and now taught in school. (Looks Greek and is written from left to right unlike Arabic)

There doesn’t seem to be much in the way of garbage. Actually I saw someone picking up garbage with those pinchy things for picking up stuff. The farms are very organized… could be somewhere in North America (or Australia) although I did see “a” farmer using a horse and hand plow. Better that than the poor women with hoes hacking the dirt on the mountainsides in Uganda.

4th producer of olive oil in Mediterranean. Meknes state

Volubilis -had been inhabited since 3rd C BC-is a world heritage site …. Roman. Only inland site. 350 kms from sea. Limestone twisted pillars.

First populated by Berbers, then Romans and finally Arabs… Islam was first introduced here in the 8th century. Earthquake in 18th century buried it. It was discovered by French starting in 1915.

The surrounding area looks like Italy and Sicily. “Suburb” means the outside for poor people. Inside for patricians. 1755 earthquake, Volubilis was intact until then. Volubilis means morning glory. Agave has been planted to prevent soil erosion not for producing tequila. The city centre is the Temple. Storks nest is been taken over by sparrows. The guide said they are “squatters that took over the condominium”. It was occupied by the Romans from 25bc -285 ad.

4000 lived inside city. The 15,000 Berber slaves lived outside….In the suburbs. The Citadel or basilica … was most important

Agora… or forum means open place. (agoraphobia meaning “fear of open spaces”). There were 7 gates with 2.5 kms walls. Volubilis was famous for the mosaic floors of the Peristyle houses…. They were for the aristocracy…… to show off.

It is another scorcher again….39C or 102 F plus humidity.

The olive trees at the site were all dried and shrivelled because of drought the previous year…. Causes the cost of olives to rise.

We stopped for lunch at Association for women and children. It is a GAdventures sponsored Women’s workshop at M’haya

Meknes-1 million population. It was imperial city in the 17th century

Cement plant…. Export to other northern African countries.

2nd longest reigning kingdom in world …. Is the richest family in Morocco at 2.5,000,000,000 dirhams.

Medina, means walled old city. Each must have a souk meaning market, central square, casbah (seat of power) plus Jewish section. Residual area has bakery, public bath & Mosque. King used 60,000 sub-Saharan slaves to build it. Almost 45 kms of wall …. built in 17th Century.

Meknes Medina has had world heritage status since 1996.

French came in 1912

Fez was 1st capital …