Riads

One of my favorite things about Morocco:

Getting to stay in the Riads there.

Riads were former palaces or private residences that are now run as guesthouses. Every one I went to was restored beautifully and opulently decorated.

Every single one of them was a surprising find. You might be wandering a really dilapidated alleyway in the medina with a sinking fear that your hotel is on this street. They are generally marked with just a small plaque on a big, heavy door. Once you open the giant door and step inside, it's magic.

Traditionally, women were not meant to be seen, so the courtyards are facing inward to avoid any chance of interaction. This ends up being a modern blessing as well since you are now isolated from the noise and smog from an outside-facing window. Many of the riads had a pool, and most of them had a rooftop garden and patio as well. Because winters are a brief affair, the courtyards are either open to the elements or protected with a retractable roof.

The rooms were pretty swank. Most of them had very high ceilings, and completely ornate ones at that.

Our favorite one was in Rabat- Dar Karima. It was a lovely place to stay, but what made it was how the people who ran it were the best hosts.

Warm and welcoming, and they invited us to dinner with their family. Huge platters of fresh, fried whole fish. Oysters. Couscous. So much mint tea.

When it came up in conversation that we were yogis, they called their friend who was a yoga instructor and we did yoga in their courtyard first thing in the morning.

They were the best, and I would head back to Rabat just to stay with them again.

Most of the Riads only have a few rooms. It's best to book in advance. It seems like Morocco is a bit hurting for tourist dollars as there were just a few choice places that were fully booked. No one turned us down if we opted to stay an extra night either. In Chefchouen, we were the only people in our entire hotel.

Riad al Bartal in Fes was by far the most ornate. Our two-story room had a fireplace, gorgeous tile work and carpets, and a very green-thumb gardener attending the courtyard.

You felt a little bit royal staying there.

Every place we stayed had fantastic breakfasts: Carb-heavy with lots of Moroccan breads, honey, butter, cheese, jams and fresh OJ.

Compared to the relative craziness of the streets, these were all lovely places to call home for a few nights.

Rabat

We were torn on weather or not to spend any time in Rabat. It's the capital city, and we heard mixed reviews. Like nearby Casablanca, it's more of a modern, soul-less city.

I'm so glad we went though. It was more developed and modernized, with a modern new tram, but the medina was charming, and much easier to navigate.

It was right on the ocean. One thing I've never seen anyplace, ever:

Huge cemeteries, right on the beach.

Sadly, the beach was disgusting. Beyond gross. Garbage everywhere, piles of garbage at the high tide lines.

And dead chickens. I have never. Ever. Ever. Seen dead chickens on a beach before.

Yet a few hardy souls were out there.

Most of the guys out there were really quite good. I know that down the coast a bit, they have a well-known huge break. Really though, I can't see this taking off as a surfing destination until they clean their beaches, and who knows what is going into that water.

Also, having to be covered from head to toe makes for some non-existant tan lines.

Rabat was a pirate stronghold for a couple hundred years. Now it is the capital city.

My favorite find was the Kasbah of the Udayas. A tiny, thousand-year old fortress on the sea, all the doors and ground-level walls are painted blue.

Wandering the souks here was downright pleasant. Not one person tried to wrestle us into their shop. They don't have the crafting heritage here as they did in Fes or Marrakech- I'm sure all the goods were imported from elsewhere in Morocco. Still, it was a very relaxing stroll through the carpet-sellers and leather shops.

There were beautiful Palomino horses guarding the Hassan Tower.

The Hassan Tower was a fairly amazing ruin.

It had been meant to be the largest mosque in the world when construction was started in 1195, and abandoned a few years later. It was never finished.

The minaret is about half the height that it was meant to be, and there are over 200 pilars to have supported the mosque that stretch over a huge swarth of ground.

There is also one of the most ridiculously ornate buildings onsite- a Mausoleum where a former king lays buried.

I found the American embassy here! While the other embassies were in small house-like structures with a small plaque and a flag, the American one was a huge compound walled with multiple security checkpoints, cameras everywhere, and signs saying I was absolutely not allowed to take pictures of it.

Another nice find was Chella- now an unusual botanical garden with Roman and Islamic ruins of a former settlement on the banks of the Bou Regreg river.

There were tons of storks and egrets nesting here as well.

So, yes. Rabat was totally enjoyable and worth spending a couple days in. Don't let anyone tell you otherwise. It was much more relaxed and calm than other cities in Morocco, with less tourist. The locals were actually friendly and tried to help, and they didn't demand payment for it either.