Casablanca Two
Well, we're back in Casablanca. And the attitude of the tour seems to be "so what?". We were here for an exceptionally short time when we arrived. In fact we were in Casablanca for only hours - the time it took to greet us, load us on a buss, and drive through the town to go to Rabat. Now we're back, and for what amounts to less than a day.
It appears that the only things to see are the water front and the Hassan II Mosque. While both were well worth seeing, it appears these are the only places worth visiting in the entire city. We had heard that Casablanca has little to offer and is the least safe, clean and friendly of all places to visit in Morocco. I guess the dearth of opportunities to visit prove the point.
Casablanca
Casablanca
(Arabic: "ad-Dār al-Bayḍāʼ")
is a city in western Morocco, located on the Atlantic Ocean. It is the capital
of the Grand Casablanka region.
Casablanca is Morocco's largest
city as well as its chief port. It is also the biggest city in the Maghreb. The
2004 census recorded a population of 2,949,805 in the prefecture of Casablanca.
Casablanca is considered the economic and business center of Morocco, while the
political capital city of Morocco is Rabat.
Casablanca hosts headquarters
and main industrial facilities for the leading Moroccan and international
companies based in Morocco. Industrial statistics show Casablanca retains its
historical position as the main industrial zone of the country. The Port of
Casablanca is one of the largest artificial ports in the world, and the largest
port of North Africa. It is also the primary naval base for the Royal Moroccan
Navy.
The Latinized name of the city
is a Spanish word combination meaning 'White House' (blanca, 'white;' casa,
'house'). It is thought that the Spaniards adopted the name from Portuguese Casa
Branca. The city is now nicknamed Casa
by many locals.
The Berber original name,
(meaning: "hill" in English), was used by the local, and
Berber-speaking, city dwellers until the French occupation army entered the city
in 1907 and adopted the Spanish name, Casablanca. "Anfa" now refers to
the original old city quarters of Casablanca.
The area which is today
Casablanca was settled by Berbers by at least the 7th century BC.
It was used as a port by the
Phoenicians and later the Romans.
A small independent kingdom, in
the area then named Anfa, arose around late Roman time in response to Arab
Muslim rule, and continued until it was conquered by the Almoravids in 1068.
During the 14th century, under
the Merinids, Anfa rose in importance as a port. In the early 15th century, the
town became an independent state once again, and emerged as a safe harbor for
pirates and privateers, leading to it being targeted by the Portuguese, who
destroyed the town in 1468.
The Portuguese used the ruins of
Anfa to build a military fortress in 1515. The town that grew up around it was
called "Casa Branca", meaning "white house" in Portuguese.
Between 1580-1640, Casablanca
was part of Spain, and later it became part of Portugal again. The Europeans
eventually abandoned the area completely in 1755 following an earthquake which
destroyed most of the town.
The town was finally
reconstructed by Sultan Mohammed ben Abdallah (1756–1790), the grandson of
Moulay Ismail and ally of George Washington with the help of Spaniards from the
nearby emporium. The town was called ad-Dār al-Bayḍāʼ,
the Arabic translation of the Spanish Casa Blanca, meaning "white
house").
In the 19th century, the area's
population began to grow as it became a major supplier of wool to the booming
textile industry in Britain and shipping traffic increased (the British, in
return, began importing Morocco's now famous national drink, gunpowder tea). By
the 1860s, there were around 5,000 residents, and the population grew to around
10,000 by the late 1880s. Casablanca remained a modestly sized port, with a
population reaching around 12,000 within a few years of the French conquest and
arrival of French colonialists in the town, at first administrators within a
sovereign sultanate, in 1906. By 1921, this was to rise to 110,000, largely
through the development of bidonvilles.
The Hassan II Mosque the
largest mosque in the country and the fifth largest mosque in the world after
the Masjid al-Haram (Grand Mosque) of Mecca and the Al-Masjid al-Nabawi
(Prophet's Mosque) in Medina. It was designed by the French architect Michael
Pinseau and built by Bouygues. It stands on a promontory looking out to the
Atlantic. ,
It has a main floor with room
for 25,000 worshippers. A further 80,000 can be accommodated in the mosque's
adjoining grounds for a total of 105,000 worshippers present at any given time
at the Hassan II mosque. Its minaret is the world's tallest at 689 feet).
Built on reclaimed land, almost
half of the surface of the mosque lies over the Atlantic water. This was
inspired by the verse of the Qur’an that states "the throne of Allah was
built on water." While some say part of this floor is glass and overlooks
the sea, this is not the case; above, spotlights shine at night from the top of
the minaret toward Mecca. These features were specifically requested by King
Hassan II, who declared, "I want to build this mosque on the water, because
God's throne is on the water. Therefore, the faithful who go there to pray, to
praise the Creator on firm soil, can contemplate God's sky and ocean."
It also includes a number of
modern touches: it was built to withstand earthquakes and has a heated floor,
electric doors, and a sliding roof.
The mosque displays strong
Moorish influence and the architecture of the building is similar to that of the
Alhambra and the Great Mosque of Coedoba in Spain. This and the old Tin Mal
Mosque are the only mosques in Morocco open to non-Muslims. Non-Muslims may view
the interior on hour-long guided tours that depart several times daily
Work on the mosque was commenced
on 12 July 1986, and was intended to be completed for the 60th birthday of the
former Moroccan king, Hassan II, in 1989. However, the building was not
inaugurated until 30 August 1993. It took 2,500 construction workers and 10,000
artists and craftsman to build the mosque.
All of the granite, plaster,
marble, wood, and other materials used in its construction were taken from
around Morocco, with the sole exceptions of some white granite columns and the
glass chandeliers, both of which come from Italy. Six thousand traditional
Moroccan artisans worked for five years to turn these raw materials into
abundant and incredibly beautiful mosaics, stone and marble floors and columns,
sculpted plaster moldings, and carved and painted wood ceilings.
Place Mohammed V is the grand centerpiece of the French regeneration scheme.
The vast square is surrounded by an impressive array of august administrative
buildings, mostly designed by Henri Prost and Robert Marrast. The ancienne préfecture
(old police headquarters), dating from 1930, dominates the south side of the
square and is topped by a modernist clock tower.
The nearby Palais de Justice (law courts) was built in 1925. The huge main
door and entrance was inspired by the Persian iwan, a vaulted hall that usually
opens into the central court of the medersa (theological college) of a mosque.
Stroll across the grand square and admire the 1918 main post office, a wonderful
building fronted by arches and stone columns and decorated with bold mosaics.
More in the style of traditional Moroccan architecture is the Banque al-Maghrib,
on Blvd de Paris. Fronted with decorative stonework, it was the last building
constructed on the square.