Bogie and Bergman here we come! The replica of the famous Rick’s Café as seen in the movie Casablanca is our destination for lunch today. We left Rabat at 9:00 am sharp – Mohammed is a real stickler for staying on schedule – and headed for Casablanca, the largest city in Morocco.
Our first stop was the Hassan II Mosque named for the father of the current King. Construction on this extravagant structure began in 1977 and was completed in 1982. It is the third largest mosque in the world with Mecca’s being the largest and Medina’s, the second largest. The Hassan II Mosque with its expansive plaza is a modern masterpiece that looks to be on the scale of the Vatican and St. Peter’s in Rome, but brings to mind more modern places of worship like the Crystal Cathedral and the Mormon Tabernacle in Salt Lake City.
Opulent chandeliers, hand carved cedar panels, giant marble pillars, intricately designed tile works, magnificent arches, mammoth size titanium doors and more stunning architectural details brought someone in the group to ask, “Why build a mosque this big?” To which Mousa, our guide responded, “Why not?”
Fine Arts major Amy Raudenbush inquired, “How many people did it take to build this?” Mousa told us that 12,500 artisans from throughout Morocco helped in building the mosque and while doing so lived in nearby shanty towns.
Half of the people in our group had seen Casablanca, including Mohammed who jokingly told us, “I was in the cast of Casablanca so I feel close to this place,” referring to Rick’s Café. “The first time I saw the movie I was in Casablanca and I thought these guys are at the table I sat at in the restaurant.”
A number of students who recalled the movie shared their thoughts about the black and white classic. “I loved him (Humphrey Bogart), he wasn’t bad looking,” said Karyn Kittrell.
Nostalgia filled the air as we dined on international cuisine and capped it off by singing “Happy Birthday” to Sophia Demers and Amy who were both celebrating their special day on January 9, 2018 in Rick’s Café.
After the candles were blown out and we all enjoyed the students’ birthday cheesecake we left Casablanca and headed for Marrakech.
