Casablanca, Morocco

This was another new port for us.

A double rainbow started the day off on a high note.

We walked about a mile to the train station and we bought tickets to Marrakech.

 
This was the same famous Marrakech Express train as in the 1969 Crosby, Stills and Nash song, from Casablanca to Marrakech.

 
We opted for 2nd class seating where we shared a compartment with six other people. It was not easy to take good photos of the scenery unless you were next to the window or got up and took photos through the hall windows. There was limited storage in the compartments so most people left their luggage in the hall.

 
Actually we shared the compartment with seven people if you count the cute kid who thought we were weird. The ride was a couple of hours, so there was time for naps for the mom and the kid.

We whisked by mostly rural, bucolic landscapes along he way.

This was the end of the line.

A water-gathering set of inverted umbrellas at the inside entrance to train station for harvesting what little rain they receive. We saw a similar setup near the Singapore Botanic Garden.

The exterior of the the train station includes lacy grill work and fancy tile work. We marked this spot on our map so getting back would be easy.

 
Impressive street art and a guy who wanted to be our new best friend for a price. We declined.

An impressive bougainvillea!

Lots of horse-drawn carriages waited for tourists.

We were getting closer to the market spaces that this city is so well-known for.

Here you could purchase a modern HD TV along with an assortment of ancient herbs and spices.

That's a lot of mint.

This was quite a balancing act.

 
Out in the middle of the plaza were several sets of snake charmers who were utterly lacking in charm themselves. Although there were many people roaming around the markets, there were not many watching these hucksters

 
We stopped for lunch and sat on a low curb because all the benches were filled in this park. Dean shared his sandwich with a cat. We headed back toward the train station and noticed this guy had probably found an easy mark for his goods.

We had a bit of extra time and so stopped to take photos in this sculpture park.

Nature modified to resemble art...

A closer look at that globe reveals that it's made from bicycle wheels and more.

 
And a lovely succulent garden along the way...

 
We got back early enough that we upgraded to first class. It was more pleasant.

From the train...

It was unusual to see a sheep herder riding a donkey.

It was tricky to take photos from the train because it traveled at more than 80mph.

When we got back to the ship, we had walked more than ten miles, even with the two long train rides. Hot showers felt really good and then we geared up for another new port for us the next day: Tangier, Morocco.