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Published: October 24th 2023
Sofitel Jardin des Roses, Rabat
View of the Andalusian gardens from the El Patio terrace.Although we had landed in Casablanca, we were quickly transported to Rabat, where our tour officially began.
At the airport, we had an opportunity to experience first-hand the relaxed attitude of Morocco's population, as we patiently waited for officials to finish socializing before tending to the long lines of travelers waiting for passport check.
The trip between the two cities seemed long, probably because we were tired from the long flights, and the arrival to the city was uneventful. The extended city of Rabat, or nouveau ville, is not much different from any modern generic metropolis.
Our hotel, The Sofitel Rabat Jardin des Roses, was a lovely oasis a distance from the center of town. It boasts 17 acres of Andalusian gardens, and an enormous pool hidden by tall palm trees. It also includes several restaurants and lounge areas.
After a cool shower, we chose to treat ourselves to some welcome champagne at their garden terrace facing the gardens in the back of the hotel. The service and presentation were perfect and soon we were relaxing and enjoying the view.
After our first drink, we decided to try the casual coffee shop area that featured counters
full of delectable looking pastries. Instead of tea we chose to try a local beer, the Casablanca, a choice that we repeated several times during our stay in Morocco.
At both locations we experienced again the lack of rush. In both instances we had to actively search for an attendant to pay our bill to. We were served quickly, but then it was hard to find them again when it was time to leave. We experienced it on several occasions, and it became a regular joke.
At the hotel we had our first experience with the bizarre attitude that Moroccans have about currency. We went to the concierge desk to exchange dollars for dirhams and watched in amazement as the attendant examined every bill closely, and then proceeded to reject several bills for various reasons. One had a small tear, another was issued before 2013, one had uneven borders, etc. No bill under $20 was accepted either. This behavior has not only at the hotel, but money exchange establishments and banks also behaved the same way. It wasn't long before we had a handful of bills that were not exchangeable but, fortunately, there was no shortage of ATMs
Sofitel Jardin des Roses, Rabat
The ice cooling the glasses then went into the buckets. to withdraw the amounts we needed. Dollars are not accepted for payment and if handed over as tips they tended to ask for dirhams instead.
Our group dinner that night was at The Golden Fish, the pool side restaurant where we met our traveling companions. Fresh Atlantic seafood served with a crisp and floral Moroccan wine was a delightful end to the long day, and we retired to our comfortable beds looking forward to the next day's sightseeing.
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