[Dec. 2025] After Assilah in northern Morocco, our next stop was Tangier.
We stayed overnight here.
First, we visited the Caves of Hercules, which we had no interest in, and the nearby lighthouse (where the Mediterranean and Atlantic Oceans meet).
After that, we headed into Tangier city.
Our local guide, Said, was waiting for us here.
He told us that Said means “happiness.”
He also told us, “These days, you need to master social media to get customers,” and emphasized, “I want to be the best guide in Tangier, so please leave a good comment.”
He decided on his own for us to take a break and made us treat him for coffee, which left us with a rather shady impression.
But he did his job to show us around, at least.
In addition to the town’s history, he told us that Morocco, especially the current king, is very religiously tolerant, and that the town is lined with mosques, churches, and synagogues.
He also told us that they used to be able to tell whether a visitor was male or female by the sound of a knock on the door, and that this would determine the gender of the person who answered the door.
Islam is a surprisingly gender-sensitive religion, isn’t it?
When I pointed out that there seem to be more women wearing hijabs (scarves) than in the past, he replied that it’s a personal choice whether to wear one or not.
According to him, Islamic teachings have never been strongly imposed on people.
If so, perhaps it’s just an unwritten “atmosphere,” which made the women wear hijabs more than before.
By the way, while Moroccan argan oil is famous worldwide, cactus oil is more effective at preventing aging and is said to be a “natural Botox,” according to him.
It’s expensive, however, costing up to 80 euros for a small bottle.
After walking through the medina, which had narrow entrances to surprisingly long and narrow marketplace, we climbed up to the hilltop Kasbah.
This Kasbah is said to be the birthplace of the town.
As it was essentially a fortress, it was inhabited by soldiers and their families.
Access to the Kasbah was apparently restricted to prevent military secrets from leaking.
The artist Matisse is said to have painted this Kasbah, so we went to see the view and overlooked the harbour from the top of the hill before we said good-bye to Said in front of our lodging for the night, Riad la Maison Blanche.
The entire journey took about an hour.
We gave a tip of 40 dirhams, and I’m not sure if that was appropriate.
