Our day in Tangiers

[EGG]

I posted this yesterday on the Med board and someone suggested I post this here on the Africa board. I did not even notice this board before my cruise. I hope this helps!

 

We returned several weeks ago from the May 19th cruise on Brilliance of the Seas. We tendered in Tangiers. Since so little is on these boards about Tangiers, I've copied a section from my review which I'll hopefully finish in a few weeks.

 

TANGIERS - Another hectic day of touring awaited us. We had planned an independent walking tour with Aziz tours. They had been recommended in the Rick Steves book. Aziz was not our tour guide. We met several other couples from our roll call for the tour. Unfortunately, this was a tender day and tendering was a long and tedious process. Almost everyone on the ship took an excursion. There were only 2 excursions offered. One started at 8:30 and the other at 9:00. So everyone on the ship was up bright and early and ready to go on the first tender which didn’t leave until after 9:00 because it took a long time for the ship to be cleared. We were frustrated and upset, but so were the people on excursions. Why make everyone get up so early if you know ahead of time it is going to take hours to get everyone off. Why not stagger the meeting times. As an independent it was even worse.. Why make us get up so early to get tender tickets if they know they have 3 hours of excursions to get off first. They could even have told us this when they handed out the tender tickets, but instead they said it would be a few minutes until the ship was cleared for tender 1.

 

When we finally got off the ship at about 11:30 we were met at the docks by our tour guide. He instructed us how to behave -don't look anyone in the eye and don't let them engage you in conversation. From what I've read and what I could see, the biggest problem is people getting in your face trying to sell you things. This was not a big problem for our group, so I'm thinking they may see you are with a tour guide. He had a ribbon tied around his jacket sleeve. He was careful to keep our group of 10 together. We had a group of 4 planned, but we picked up a group of 3 from our roll call a day before the port stop and we picked up another group of 3 from our roll call while we waited for tender. This group size worked out fine. We ended up walking 7.5 miles but it was very walkable. 3 people in our group were over 60. We saw the old town, the new town, the souks, the Kasbah and many streets with shopping. We stopped at a carpet store for the carpet show. This was something our group wanted to do, and the other 3 couples purchased carpets. One of the couples purchased an 8 X 10 carpet. The carpet was one of the better ones. The original price was $2,200 and they paid $1,500. The carpets were wrapped into small packages (even the 8 X 10) and the sellers met us at the entrance to the port so that the carpets did not have to be carried all day and the purchasers did not have to pay shipping charges. It was an expensive carpet and we were told that you do not have to pay customs because it is considered art work. We also visited a spice shop, watched them make bread at another open front store and weave. The others in our group stopped for a meal. Since my husband and I did not want to eat, the guide took us to the old synagogue. He was able to get someone to open the building for us. This was really a special treat. We were on one of the small side streets coming from the synagogue when a door opened and we saw 2 goats look out at us. We walked on the beach where we saw a camel.

 

This 5+ hour tour cost 15 euros a person. It was an interesting day in a place I never thought I would see and I never thought I would go to. I would certainly never go there for a land vacation. At 5:30 we were on the tender back to the ship.

[legalasst]

Did you have Aziz as your guide or one of his other tour guides?

[Dorene1]

Hi

 

Thank you for writing this, I am going in Nov. while I did email and get information from Aziz Tours my concern is the walking. Is the walking more flat or do you need to walk up hills. Did you talk to anyone who did take the cruise excursions and not private? As excited about going there, I also feel a little worried too. If you can give any other information did you go to Casablanca also?

 

Dorene

[legalasst]

Dorene what ship are you on in in November?

[Smiles3usa]

Thanks for sharing your interesting review!

 

I must say that walking 7.5 miles is not something I would sign up for -- but I am glad that you pointed out that the walk was at a very relaxed pace and that everyone was able to participate in it in your group. That is the kind of detailed information that I think proves very helpful to others planning excursions.

[WeBeGone]

In Dec we were on the Star Princess which docked in Gibraltar. Our planned port of call was to be Casablanca but Princess canceled it due to "security". So I had planned a day taking the cable car to the top of the rock, visiting the St. Michael's Cave, seeing the native tail-less monkeys, touring the WW2 tunnels, and having some fish and chips at a pub. That didn't happen. When we exited the ship we ran into a family of 8 whom I'd been emailing from our roll call for about 6 months regarding this cruise. They asked if we wanted to go with them to Morocco for the day.

So we were off, knowing that if we weren't back on board by 11pm, the Star Princess would sail to Cadiz Spain without us. We couldn't find a taxi so we walked about a mile to Spain, across the active airport runway which serves as the boundary line between Spain and Gibraltar. Took a great photo with one foot in each country. Of course just then the siren went off and railroad arms came down as there was a plane on approach for landing. Not to worry, we just walked faster. Got into Spain, caught a taxi for the 18 km ride to the port of Algeciras. Paid 144 euros for 2 round trip tickets on the one hour high speed ferry to the city of Tangier, Morocco, on the continent of Africa. Cleared Morocco passport control on the boat as it traveled the 8 miles that separate the 2 continents. We were the only Americans on board with 4 Japanese, and a hundred Arabs who had been to Spain for shopping. With a passport it's easy to travel between countries.

Off the ship we hired one of the English speaking guides lurking around the ferry terminal and we began walking into this truly, out of a movie, city. Exotic women - some covered, some not, men is floor length robes, donkey narrow streets, and our guide, Akmed, led us into the food market where fruits and vegetables were piled high on sidewalk carts, fresh seafood and breads, meat and poultry were all being sold. There was not a piece of ice or refrigeration unit, or cooler of any kind anywhere. We liked the look of the raisin bread, until the raisins all flew away! Then we walked through the clothing market where shoes, burkas, and gorgeous Arabic gowns were being sold. Then into the "Sauk", pronounced 'sook' - the handicraft (stuff made for tourists to buy) section. We were shown into a store, a friend of the guide's no doubt, for a rug demonstration and we could buy all manner of brass, "silver", ceramic and copper objects. Bargaining of course was the key to a "deal". When we exited we were literally engulfed by street vendors. Word had spread quickly that there were Americans in town! It was like being a dead crocodile on the river bank - the vultures were in a feeding frenzy. It was "5 for 10", NO, then "7 for 10", NO, then "10 for 10" - ok, sold on 10 copper bracelets. It was tee shirts - "3 for 50", NO, then "3 for 40," NO, then "what you pay mister?", ""2 for 10 - OK, "2 for 10". And they were selling everything but the kitchen sink! I thought it was fun but one of the ladies with us was just freaked out. The vendors were harmless, but aggressive, just trying to make a living. "this is my lady!", "No I saw her first!". In a city where the average monthly wage is $40, and with it being Dec, and no tourists, these guys were desperate to make anything they could. Bad teeth, bad breath, the smell of donkey and camel dung, and poor personal hygine didn't help their sales pitch at all though!

Finally, with our arms loaded and our heads and feet hurting, we got back to the ferry terminal just before sunset. Our guide had asked for 12 euros for the 10 of us but he did such a great job protecting us and telling us about his home town, we paid him 20 euros. He said that was enough to feed his wife and 2 children for 2 weeks! We Americans don't know how good we have it until faced with someone else's reality.

We waited over an hour watching the terminal filling with Arabs with huge suitcases, babies, strollers, and even a kitchen sink. I'm not kidding! We had begun to make plans on how to beat this mob so we could get on and off the ferry with minimum time. We spoke, sorta in Spanish, to a lady whose hands, palms and back, were beautifully painted with Henna. She said she has it done every 2 weeks and that it takes 3 hours each time. I guess this might be a version of the nail salon visit ?? Anyway, soon it was 6:30 and a guard came and got the 10 of us and led us to a bus which took us to the correct ferry. Akmed had arranged our escort. And low and behold, none of the hundreds of people with the tons of luggage boarded with us. Apparently they were waiting for another ferry to somewhere else.

So back in Spain, another taxi to the border, walk across, got a van for the 10 or us and we were back on board at 10 - a whole hour to spare. It was a marvelous day full of "Lawrence of Arabia" views, unidentifiable smells, beautiful women is silk, withered old men in pointed long robes, the sound of the Mosque's call to prayer, the haggling over the price of a carpet, the spice market with strange aromas that were not unlikable, and the whole experience of doing something on the spur of the moment,. Had we somehow missed the ship,it will not wait for anyone, period, the worst that could have happened is that we would have needed to train or taxi the 120 km to Cadiz, our next port of call. We hadn't eaten since breakfast so at 10:30 pm the 10 of us were up in the buffet chowing down on Chinese food while we looked at each other photos. We had an amazing day and my photos turned out great.

We had an experience that no other passengers on the ship had. We had an adventure to MOROCCO. I wouldn't want to live there, but it sure was a fun place to visit !

[Dorene1]

All I can say is Wow, It was like reading a best selling novel. I couldnt stop reading how exciting. However, my lack of courage could never allow me to do it. I was thrilled reading everything you wrote.......A trip of a lifetime.

 

I am going to read it again, I loved it so much

 

Dorene

[lambs2]

WOW WeBeGone! Your little group was plenty brave!! Sounds like you had a wonderful adventure, however, for a whole lot less money than any ships' or private tour! The walking across the border thing is an adventure you guys will surely cherish and relive for the rest of your lives. Thanks for sharing your adventures!!

[Smiles3usa]

Wow, WeBeGone, what an excellent adventure!!! To do some of that stuff "on the fly" is truly amazing. Thanks for sharing! :)

 

Okay, now I've added Tangier to my bucket list!

[Dorene1]

Dorene what ship are you on in in November?

 

Paul and I will be on the Century November 11th. We are flying out of JFK on the 8th and spending one day in Barcelona before our cruise. I just hope the weather is good and I have already been on the Century in 2005 on a Caribbean cruise it is very nice.

 

Dorene